A Record That Rose Missed

Pete Rose doesn’t chew tobacco, not that he didn’t give it a try. He tells about his first experience with the stuff when he broke in with Cincinnati under Manager Fred Hutchinson.

“I didn’t like the taste of it and I told Hutch,” Rose said. “Hutch told me to mix the chew with gum. I told him I still wasn’t feeling well, and Hutch asked me where the juice was.

“I said, ‘What juice?’ ”

It-had-to-happen Dept.: Wade Boggs, coming off an 0 for 6 performance Sunday, shaved his beard Monday and went 2 for 4 that night. The next day, Boston teammates Spike Owen, Danny Sheaffer and Mike Greenwell all shaved their mustaches.

26 Years Ago Today: On July 25, 1961, Roger Maris of the New York Yankees hit four home runs against the Chicago White Sox in a doubleheader to give him 40 for the year. That put him 25 games ahead of Babe Ruth’s pace. The Yankees won both games, 5-1 and 12-0.

Trivia Time: Who holds the Angel record for most grand slam homers in a season and in a career? (Answer below.)

For What It’s Worth: When Mariano Duncan committed three errors in the second inning Thursday night, he tied a Dodger record set by center fielder Willie Davis in the 1966 World Series and tied by second baseman Davey Lopes during the 1973 regular season.

Note: The major league record is four errors in an inning. It is shared by seven, including shortstop Len Merullo of the Chicago Cubs. Merullo tied the record in 1942 on the day his first son was born. He named the boy Boots.

Now-it-can-be-told Dept.: From Wallace Matthews of Newsday: “The Mike Tyson-Tony Tucker bout may turn out to be far more competitive than the 10-1 odds favoring Tyson, if only because Tyson may have other things on his mind besides the 6-5, 220-pound, undefeated Tucker. According to a reliable source, the 21-year-old Tyson bolted camp for four days during the weekend to fly to Los Angeles in pursuit of a lost love, actress Robin Givens.”

Hall of Fame golfer Nancy Lopez, on her matches with husband Ray Knight of the Baltimore Orioles: “We definitely compete. That’s just the way we are. I’m a better loser than he is and probably a better winner because he rubs it in.”

From Sen. Bill Bradley (D-N.J.): “How shall we Democrats choose our next presidential candidate? Shall it be in a smoke-filled room? Shall it be by brokered convention? Shall it be by a national primary? Personally, I prefer jump shots from the top of the key.”

Trivia Answer: Joe Rudi, with three in a season and seven in a career. He hit three in both 1978 and 1979.

Quotebook

Lee Trevino, asked if he had ever helped Nancy Lopez in her career: “One time when they wouldn’t serve her in the clubhouse because she was only 18, I sneaked her a beer from the bar.”