Cheap Seats
Just a Livermore guy
Randy Johnson grew up in Livermore, near Oakland, and he remembers sitting in the stands with his Little League teammates, dreaming of pitching in the Oakland Coliseum.
“It’s the most exciting ballpark for me to pitch in because I used to come here and watch the Oakland A’s,” he told Ann Killion of the San Jose Mercury News. “I consider this home. I want to pitch well in front of my family and friends.”
In his last outing in Oakland, the 6-foot-10 Johnson struck out 13 in seven innings to win his 14th game for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
It’s about the money
Soumaila Samake, a 7-foot-1 center, is trying to make the New Jersey Nets’ roster while his father and younger brother tend to the family farm in the West Africa republic of Mali.
“They don’t know that much about basketball,” Samake told the New York Times. “I’m just telling them how important it is - how much money I can send back to them.”
Just an old softie
Bo Schembechler, the old Michigan taskmaster, annually holds a golf tournament in his late wife’s memory. When Bo called the latest one off because of rain, Rick Leach couldn’t resist.
“You never called off practice because it was raining,” the former Wolverines quarterback said.
A simple case of envy
Jeff Bagwell, Houston’s All-Star first baseman, has high praise for the play of Cleveland second baseman Roberto Alomar and shortstop Omar Vizquel.
“Everybody knows that when you play in Cleveland, you don’t hit the ball up the middle,” he said. “I would love to play shortstop or second base like them. I can’t. Nobody can.”
When might makes right
When is a Dirty Bird not a dirty bird? When it’s an Atlanta Falcon, apparently.
The NFL can prevent Alan Weiss, a longtime Falcon fan, from using the popular “Dirty Bird” phrase, according to a consent order reached in federal court.
Weiss may continue to place his “DirtyBird Zone” banner on the wall near his seats behind the end zone at Falcon games, but cannot use the team’s nickname anymore on items he sells to a fan club composed of other ticket-holders near the end zone.
When might makes fright
Scoring goals for England in international soccer play was nothing for former Arsenal striker Ian Wright compared to receiving a medal from Queen Elizabeth II.
“It’s the most nerve-racking thing I’ve ever had to do,” Wright, dressed in top coat and tails, said after receiving his Member of the Order of the British Empire.
The last word …
“I wish she’d never heard of Sarah Fisher.”
- Former Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever, whose 11-year-old daughter wants to emulate the teen driving sensation.