His Bark Lacked Usual Bite

Listening to a phone-in talk show in Philadelphia recently, Charles Barkley heard himself being called “mean and a ball-hog” by 76-year-old Mary Walsh, so he decided to set the woman straight. The 76er star hired a limousine to pick up Walsh, her two sons and a daughter-in-law in Trenton, N.J., and deliver them to the Spectrum, where they had free seats to see the 76ers against the Indiana Pacers.

The two exchanged peace offerings on the court before the game, after which Walsh, embarrassed by the commotion, said: “Look at all the trouble (the phone call) got me into.”

Barkley’s response: “My wife and my mama told me that I’d better shape up. They don’t want nice ladies like you to be mad at me.”

Unlike Mike Tyson, Frank Bruno--who will seek to dethrone the heavyweight champion next weekend in Las Vegas--grew up with a reputation as a big kid with a soft heart.

Described by former neighbors as a “quiet and well-mannered fellow” who cared for wheelchair-bound senior citizens and sick children, Bruno got into his only real trouble when, at 11, he hit an elementary school teacher and was expelled.

But even at Oak Hall, a reform school 50 miles southeast of London, Bruno is remembered for his size and his gentleness.

“At 14, Frank was 6 feet tall and 14 stones (196 pounds) of muscle,” said Sandy Nichols, head of child care at Oak Hall. “Other than his size, he was just like any other kid.”

As nursing home owner and former amateur boxer David Chapman put it: “He didn’t fight at school because everybody was scared of him, including the staff.”

Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post, on the growing frequency with which top college basketball teams are beaten: “Now, not only do good teams regularly get beaten, but if you are fortunate enough to be ranked No. 1, you’d better Xerox the poll, because you’re history within 24 hours. No. 1 is no longer the catbird seat, it’s the ejection seat.”

The Atlanta Braves are scrapping slogans and glitz and turning to discount tickets to try to bring back baseball fans who apparently have drifted to other forms of entertainment during the last five seasons.

The Braves drew only 848,089 fans to their home games last season, failing to break a million for the first time.

The Braves began using slogans in 1983, starting with, “How Much Excitement Can You Stand?” That year, their last winning season, they finished 88-74. Things worsened in the 1984 season, billed, “You Gotta Be There.” The Braves finished 80-82. Before last season, the team decided on, “Goodness Gracious, It’s One Crazy Summer,” and finished 54-106.

How much craziness can you stand?

Say what?: Asked about his refusal to use his bench in Connecticut’s 86-49 blowout of Boston College’s basketball team a week ago, Coach Jim Calhoun of the Huskies replied: “I have never run up a score and I never will.”

Add Calhoun: The Connecticut coach insisted that he did make use of the bench, pointing out that top scorer Cliff Robinson played only 19 minutes. Robinson, however, was hobbled by a sprained ankle at the time and had four fouls when he came out. Boston College never came closer than 25 points in the final 18 minutes. Calhoun didn’t substitute for his regulars until under four minutes remained in the game.

Quotebook

Mike Tyson on the new Mike Tyson: “I’m a born-again Christian. I’ve learned about myself, my character. I understand Mike Tyson now, my moods and my feelings.”