Boyd Unhappy That He’s Been Framed : Quotebook : Don Baylor, commenting on the line in George Steinbrenner’s column Monday, “Welcome to the American League East,” said: “George didn’t write that, somebody wrote it for him. That’s too sharp for him.”

Are those wire-rimmed glasses that Dennis (Oil Can) Boyd wears off the field just for show? Oh, no.

“Unfortunately, I’m blind out there,” he said. “The first time I wore glasses was in ’82 in Double-A, and Marc Sullivan was catching. I threw 80 pitches and I must have crossed him up 30 times.”

Contacts?

“I was fitted for ‘em once, but they were the hard lenses and I need soft,” Boyd said. “My astigmatism was so bad the doctor couldn’t believe I could get the ball over the plate. I’m not real comfortable with the frames I have now, and I’m always sitting on ‘em or stepping on ‘em or my dog is chewing on ‘em. I think I need some (Abdul-) Jabbar frames.”

So how does he get the ball over the plate?

“They had to come up with some new signals after 1983 and ‘84,” Boyd said. “Gary Allenson would wear tape on his fingers, then (Rich) Gedman and I got together and came up with some signs that I can focus on pretty well. Sometimes I cross him up, but that’s because I rush too much. When the light’s good, it’s OK. When there’s shadows, Geddy’s in trouble.”

Trivia time: Which team was the last to be swept in the World Series?

What an honor: Christian Welp, the University of Washington’s 7-foot center from West Germany, was flattered to be named to a national publication’s All-American team until the editor put it all in perspective. Welp reports: “The editor asked me if I was surprised he selected me. I admitted I was. Then he said, ‘Well, there aren’t any centers out there, you’re the only one.’ That didn’t make me feel very good, but I got a trip to Florida.”

Eye opening: Ram guard Dennis Harrah had to be helped off the field after getting hit in the head in the game against the Detroit Lions at Anaheim Sunday, and it was awhile before he regained his senses.

“Even the ammonia wasn’t doing any good,” Harrah said later. “Somebody should have given me a pair of (tackle) Duval Love’s socks.”

Trivia answer: The New York Yankees, who were swept by the Cincinnati Reds in 1976.