Dibble Doubles as a Nice Guy When He’s Away From Game

Reliever Rob Dibble of the Cincinnati Reds, who was fined three times last season--including $200 for throwing at the Dodgers’ Willie Randolph--insists he is a nice guy away from the diamond.

“As soon as I get the call in the bullpen, I’m as mean as they get,” the 6-foot-4, 235-pound Dibble says. “But when the game is over and I take my shower, it’s like one of those child’s robots where you push the head down and turn it around, then I’m me. I never take that aggression or the game home.

“I have some regrets about those incidents. For the adults, I don’t care, because they’re going to draw their own conclusions. But to be a successful reliever, you have to be aggressive and can’t be intimidated. That fear factor is important, like the pitcher in the movie, ‘Bull Durham,’ hitting the bull mascot with a pitch. I do have regrets, though, for the kids. That’s not the way the game should be played.

“The batter wants to take you deep. Your job is to get him out. Kirk Gibson plays the game like me. Every at-bat is like his last one with the game on the line.”

Trivia time: What was the winningest basketball team in the Pacific 10 Conference during the 1980s?

Flying start: His speed, not merely his height and strength, is what has made David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs an instant star in the NBA.

Robinson says: “When I was in training camp, we’d be running the fast break, and sometimes the ball would go to Vernon Maxwell or Willie Anderson on the wing. Mo (point guard Maurice Cheeks) would tell them, ‘If the big guy runs with you, you give him the ball.’ And that’s what they’ve been doing.”

Add Robinson: The Philadelphia 76ers’ Charles Barkley says: “He’s going to be a monster. He can do it all: Play defense, shoot, rebound and block shots. Plus, he’s the fastest big man I’ve ever played against.”

Last add Robinson: While Robinson is exceeding his rookie billing, the New York Knicks’ Patrick Ewing, in his fifth pro season, finally is playing up to his.

Paul Silas, a Knick assistant coach, compared Ewing to Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain: “He’s strong, like Wilt. Russell was quicker, more of a David Robinson kind of player. Wilt had to gather his mass to block shots; Patrick’s a little quicker that way. Explodes up quicker. Plus, (Ewing) passes better.”

Question of image: Ian Peacock, chief executive of Britain’s Lawn Tennis Assn., said the group will try to gain grass-roots popularity for its sport.

Peacock says: “Ten years ago, there were three sports which were said to be snobbish--golf, squash and tennis. Golf and squash have both kicked away that image and have basically become sports for the masses. We haven’t yet cracked that.”

Trivia answer: Oregon State, 214-83 overall and 131-49 in conference play.

Quotebook: Denver’s Bill Hanzlik, on the fact that he and his 11 Nugget teammates combined for only 43 dunks last season: “If you stay near the ground, you don’t get hurt.”