Cheap Seats
Marge Schott, environmentalist
Marge Schott was peeved last Sunday at the amount of paper the Dodgers were using for press notes. When employees informed the Reds owner that visiting teams provide their own paper, Big Bad Marge cited the extra wear on the team copy machines.
Schott even asked the Reds’ publicity department to limit their notes to a mere page. She was told it was unfeasible, particularly considering the Reds have the finest record in the National League. She then asked if just one set of notes could be written and passed around the press box for everyone to share.
Stuck on court time
Even Judge Lance Ito is knocking baseball.
During the O.J. Simpson trial Wednesday, prosecutor Christopher Darden asked witness Robert Heidstra, “What are your favorite sports?”
“Soccer, what we call football in Europe,” replied Heidstra, who lives around the corner from the condominium where Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were slain.
“Anything else?” Darden asked.
“Oh, yeah, ice hockey, basketball,” Heidstra answered.
“American football?” Darden asked.
“Boring,” the witness replied.
That’s when Ito stepped in, saying, “Wait till you see baseball.”
Baseball is like a quick trip to traffic court compared to that eternity you call the O.J. trial, Lancie baby.
Can’t Uncle Don pull some strings?
Don King couldn’t praise Peter McNeeley enough when McNeeley was announced as Mike Tyson’s next opponent. Now the promoter is asking, “Peter who?”
McNeeley wanted eight tickets to the Aug. 19 fight in Las Vegas, planning to invite family and friends. King told the fighter he would have to buy them. McNeeley did. Eight seats at ringside - $12,000.
For 12 grand, they could order it on pay-per-view.
E-Manager
Many fans scored it an error when Montreal manager Felipe Alou named Los Angeles shortstop Jose Offerman to the National League All-Star team. “The guy was hitting .340 when I picked him,” Alou shot back. “He might not be hitting .300 now and the fans saw him maybe make 10 more errors, but I didn’t know that was going to happen. I’m not a prophet.”
Not for profit? Let’s hope not. Some claim Alou favors Latin players such as Offerman over more deserving players. And Offerman’s selection was greeted by murmurs and boos by the Dodger Stadium crowd on July 2. (In the days after Offerman was named, he made two errors and went 5 for 29.)
Alou also had to make a decision at pitcher, eventually choosing Hideo Nomo in place of the injured Greg Maddux. “Now I hope nobody tells me I’m favoring the Japanese,” Alou quipped.
The last word …
“Corvettes don’t race with Yugos.”
- NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller, turning down a golf challenge by CBS analyst Gary McCord
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo