This Day, Dog Had His Say

Former Milwaukee Brewers slugger Gorman Thomas had some big days at the plate, but he claims the only time he got a standing ovation was in 1975 when he struck out eight straight times and hit into a double play in a series at Boston.

Thomas: “I got a standing ovation for striking out, a standing ovation for hitting into the double play and, when I got out to center field, a dog ran out in front of me and relieved himself, and I got another standing ovation.”

Dave Righetti of the New York Yankees, on the power and speed of the Kansas City Royals’ Bo Jackson: “Bo makes the ballpark real small.”

Now-it-can-be-told dept.: After the Kansas City Royals were awarded a franchise in 1969, owner Ewing Kauffman and General Manager Cedric Tallis got together with Oakland A’s owner Charlie Finley to explore some deals.

“I asked Finley how much he would sell one player for,” Kauffman said. “He thought about it a minute and said he would sell any player on his club for $1 million.

“We discussed the matter awhile and discussed which player we would take, and I told Finley it was a deal. Finley wanted to know if the money could be paid in cash. I told him, ‘Charlie, you can have it in $10 bills if that’s the way you want it.’

“Charlie said he had always promised his wife one million dollars. We sat there for another hour, and you could tell Charlie was thinking about it. But in the end he turned it down.”

The player was Reggie Jackson.

Trivia Time: On this date in 1984, when Pete Rose tied Ty Cobb’s career record for singles at 3,052, who was he playing for? (Answer below.)

Cleveland Indians pitcher Tom Candiotti, in the midst of a losing streak that reached five games against the Angels, asked Indian fans to send him good luck charms.

“A radio guy gave me an Irish coin,” he said. “Other people have sent me arrowheads and four-leaf clovers. Somebody sent me a Civil War bullet they found on their property. They told me I could shoot the Yankees with it.”

When people ask Pirate broadcaster Steve Blass, the former pitcher, for an autograph, he tells them, “My fee is $5--that’s all I can pay.”

Wait a Minute: Channel 4, answering its sports quiz Sunday night, called Amy Alcott’s 280 the best score in U.S. Women’s Open history. Then it showed Liselotte Neumann shooting 277 at Baltimore.

Alcott didn’t even hold the previous mark. Pat Bradley did at 279.

Add Neumann: Said the Washington Post’s Thomas Boswell of the Swedish golfer: “She showed more personality in one afternoon than Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander have in their careers, combined.”

More Neumann: Some are saying she’s a cinch for stardom, but not all who make the U.S. Open their first victory manage to cash in.

Janet Anderson (1982) and Kathy Baker (1985) haven’t won since, and Jerilyn Britz (1979) has won only once, in 1980.

Add Open: The good news for Nancy Lopez is that next year’s U.S. Open is in Detroit, where she and her husband, Tiger third baseman Ray Knight, own a home. That means she can get in plenty of practice time at Indianwood Country Club.

The bad news is that after practicing at the Baltimore Country Club last year, when Knight was with the Orioles, she finished tied for 12th on the course this year.

Trivia Answer: The Montreal Expos.

Quotebook

Muhammad Ali, asked why Wilt Chamberlain never changed his name: “He wanted to, but the one he wanted was taken--Bill Russell.”