Fielder Was Dealt Out by Card Makers

Although Cecil Fielder of the Detroit Tigers is leading the major leagues in home runs and runs batted in, his 1990 baseball card hasn’t increased in value.

How could that be?

Fielder doesn’t have a 1990 baseball card.

But the card makers aren’t responsible, because Fielder played in Japan last year, and the Tigers didn’t sign him until after card production began.

“The (card) rosters are made up early and there was no way anyone would have known that Cecil Fielder would be in the majors, let alone leading both leagues in home runs,” said Ken Liss, a spokesman for Topps.

Not to worry, however. Fielder will appear in Topps’ Bowman set, scheduled for release next month. And he’s is a shoo-in for the end-of-season update sets.

Hungry Man: Mike Powell, 1988 Olympic silver medalist in the long jump, won $50,000 in a recent slam dunk contest, beating Randall Cunningham and Cris Carter of the Philadelphia Eagles, Deion Sanders of the Atlanta Falcons/New York Yankees, Ed (Too Tall) Jones of the Dallas Cowboys and Devon White of the Angels.

Asked how he beat those talented athletes, Powell replied: “Hungrier. Can you imagine how many long jumps I’d have to compete in to match Cunningham’s $2-million-a-year salary?”

Family ties: After hitting a home run in a recent game, outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. of the Seattle Mariners called his father, collect.

The elder Griffey didn’t exactly appreciate the timing.

“He called at 4 a.m. (and) I said, ‘Can’t you wait until a decent hour?’ ”

Trivia Time: What was the United States’ biggest upset in the World Cup?

Boz update: With his football career jeopardized by an injury, linebacker Brian Bosworth of the Seattle Seahawks is on the verge of becoming an actor.

Negotiations are under way for a multimillion-dollar deal for a movie starring Bosworth as a police agent who infiltrates a gang of lawless bikers on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

The part would not call for Bosworth to alter his trademark haircut, and he could retain his earrings.

The film has a working title of “The Brotherhood.”

No Mercy: The Leonard (Tex.) High School baseball team did not make it easy on Chisum (Tex.) High in two recent games. Despite playing only 4 1/2 innings in each of the games because of a mercy rule, Leonard outscored Chisum, 79-6, and stole 111 bases.

In a 46-5 blowout, Leonard had 53 steals. Leonard stole 58 bases in a 33-1 romp.

Leonard Coach Bill Francis insisted he wasn’t trying to run up the score.

“It was just one of those games where you score a lot of runs and you don’t know how to stop it,” Francis said. “Our kids are concerned about their batting averages and stuff. They didn’t go up there with the intention of striking out.”

Chisum Coach Mike Erwin disagreed. “Look at the score yourself and see,” Erwin said. “He speaks for himself.”

Add Chisum High: The school, located about 100 miles northeast of Dallas, could be in for more trouble this fall, when it will field its first football team.

Brain Power: There’ll be a lot of brain power in the women’s mile at the Jack-In-The-Box track meet Sunday at UCLA’s Drake Stadium.

In the field are PattiSue Plumer, a graduate of the Stanford law school, and Kathy Kanes, who has a doctorate in chemical engineering from Caltech.

Her doctorate thesis: “Biophysical and Biochemical Studies of the Anion Transport Protein Red Blood Cells.”

Trivia Answer: A 1-0 victory over England in 1950.

Quotebook: From Carl Nafzger, trainer of Kentucky Derby winner Unbridled: “If you have to win the Kentucky Derby to be happy, there are going to be a lot of unhappy people Sunday morning.”