His Vision of Victory Fades Fast

Ira Berkow of the New York Times had a hunch that the Baltimore Orioles would end their losing streak at 14 games Thursday in Milwaukee when a surprisingly upbeat Frank Robinson said before the game, “We’re going to win one one of these days.”

Berkow: “The first batter was Jeff Stone, the Orioles’ left fielder. Stone singled off Brewer pitcher Chris Bosio. Maybe Robinson’s optimism was justified; maybe this just would be the day when the Orioles indeed won one.

“Stone strode confidently off first, perhaps with visions of victory dancing in his head. He was immediately picked off.”

So much for that.

General Manager George Young of the New York Giants, on Craig (Ironhead) Heyward: “I’m a fat guy, so I don’t like fat guys. I didn’t play fat, and I know how much you have to work to get down. If you play heavy, it puts a lot of pressure on your knees and you tend to have troubles.”

So will the Giants pass on Heyward in today’s National Football League draft?

“I have no idea who we’re going to take,” Young said.

From Peter Pascarelli of the Sporting News, saying he’s still not sure about the Dodgers: “There are strange notes, like some top scouts saying that Fernando Valenzuela is not throwing remotely as well as he did two or three years ago.”

Trivia Time: Tommy Herr, traded Friday from St. Louis to Minnesota, hit one of only two homers the Cardinals got against the Twins in the World Series. Who hit the other? (Answer to follow.)

The Wonderlic test, which NFL clubs give to draft prospects, consists of 50 questions that must be answered in 12 minutes. Pat McInally, the Harvard graduate who punted for Cincinnati, is the only player to score a 50. This year, Oklahoma’s Rickey Dixon had a 3 and Nebraska’s Neil Smith a 4. Some of the questions:

--”Luxury is the opposite of: a) poison. b) rapture. c) poverty. d) devotion. e) failure.”

--”A man’s car traveled 16 miles in 30 minutes. How many m.p.h. was it traveling?”

--”Two men caught 75 fish. ‘A’ caught four times as many as ‘B.’ How many fish did ‘B’ catch?”

See answers below.

30 Years Ago Today: On April 24, 1958, Lee Walls hit three home runs and drove in eight runs as the Chicago Cubs routed the Dodgers, 15-2, at the Coliseum. The winning pitcher was Gene Fodge, his only major league victory.

Veteran boxing publicist Irving Rudd, predicting a long reign for Mike Tyson, calls him the most devastating puncher since Joe Louis and adds, “He can box. All you have to do is look at his face after a bout. There’s nothing to reveal what he does for a living. Not one tiny, eensy-weensy mark. He doesn’t get hit with power punches. Cus D’Amato taught him to fight down in a crouch, like Dempsey used to. His opponents have to punch down, making their punches ineffective.”

Trivia Answer: Tom Lawless.

Test Answers: Poverty; 32 m.p.h.; 15 fish.

Quotebook

Cal McLish, Milwaukee Brewers scout: “The definition of a smart player is someone who can’t play.”