Selig: No Celebration if Bonds Moves Past Ruth

Barry Bonds will have to wait until he passes Hank Aaron before baseball throws a party for him.

Major League Baseball is not planning any celebration for Bonds if and when he tops Babe Ruth’s mark of 714 home runs, Commissioner Bud Selig said Thursday.

“Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s record,” Selig said. “We don’t celebrate anybody the second or third time in.”

Bonds has been the subject of steroids speculation for several seasons. The recent book “Game of Shadows” detailed allegations against him, and a federal grand jury is investigating whether he committed perjury when he told another grand jury that he had never knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs.

Bonds hit his 711th homer Wednesday. His San Francisco Giants were off Thursday, and open a three-game series tonight at home against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Selig does not figure to be in San Francisco -- or in Milwaukee or Philadelphia, where the Giants play next week -- as Bonds nears Ruth.

“We celebrate new records, that’s what we do. We’re being consistent,” Selig said at the Associated Press Sports Editors annual meeting with league commissioners in New York. “There’s nothing to read into that.”

Ruth is second on the career home run list, trailing Aaron’s total of 755.

*

Top Tampa Bay prospect Delmon Young was suspended indefinitely by the International League a day after throwing a bat that hit a replacement umpire in the chest.

“The Devil Rays organization supports the decision,” said Andrew Friedman, Tampa Bay’s team’s executive vice president of baseball operations.

The 20-year-old Young, brother of Detroit’s Dmitri Young and considered one of the best players in the minors, was ejected in the first inning after a called third strike in the Durham Bulls’ triple-A game at Pawtucket, R.I.

When Young took his time leaving the batter’s box, the umpire tossed him. Young then flipped his bat underhand and it sailed end over end, striking the umpire. The umpire, whose name was not released, did not appear injured and remained in the game.

“I sincerely regret my actions in the game yesterday,” Young said in a statement released by the office of his agent, Arn Tellem.

“Regrettably, in the heat of the competition my emotions got the better of me.”

*

C.C. Sabathia could return to the Cleveland Indians’ rotation soon after making 75 pitches in a rehabilitation start at triple-A Buffalo.

Sabathia, who strained an abdominal muscle on opening day, yielded six hits and two runs -- one earned -- in five innings. He walked one and struck out five, getting the victory in Buffalo’s 8-4 win over the Syracuse SkyChiefs.

Sabathia threw 51 of his pitches for strikes, and his fastball topped out at 95 mph.

*

Selig is likely to pick a new owner for the Washington Nationals within a few days and the team probably will change hands in June.

Bob DuPuy, baseball’s chief operating officer, said Selig intends to have major league owners vote on the sale when they meet May 17-18 in New York.

*

The top 10

Active home run leaders:

*--* PLAYER HR 1. Barry Bonds 711 2. Ken Griffey Jr. 538 3. (tie) Gary Sheffield 453 Frank Thomas 453 5. Jeff Bagwell 449 6. Jim Thome 439 7. Manny Ramirez 438 8. Alex Rodriguez 434 9. Mike Piazza 400 10. Carlos Delgado 378

*--*