How ironic and tragic that if you choose to assault a grown man who happens to be associated with a professional sports team, your bail is set at $200,000 (''Royals coach assaulted; father and son are held,'' Sportsline, Sports, Friday).

But if you choose to assault your 4-year-old defenseless child, as an Indiana mother recently did in an incident caught on a parking-lot surveillance tape, your bail is only $5,000. It's unfortunate that we lack the political will to wage a war against the very real, day-to-day terror of child abuse.

Judith Talbot (Minden, Nev.)