Notes on a Scorecard - July 12, 1993

It has been more than a week now, but it is still hard to believe that Don Drysdale is pitching for the angels. . . .

National League owners must be wishing that the expanded playoff format had been installed for this season. . . .

Managers Cito Gaston and Bobby Cox proved that the fans aren’t the only ones who make mistakes in their All-Star team selections. How could Gaston have left Detroit Tiger catcher Mickey Tettleton off the American League squad, and how could Cox have slighted St. Louis Cardinal infielder Gregg Jefferies until Robby Thompson got hurt? . . .

During the 1971 All-Star game at Tiger Stadium, six home runs were hit by future Hall of Famers--Reggie Jackson, Harmon Killebrew and Frank Robinson for the Americans and Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente and Johnny Bench for the Nationals. . . .

Rarely have the Angels had a week at Anaheim Stadium as exciting as the one that ended Sunday. . . .

Unless Mike Piazza and Tim Salmon collapse, this will be the first time that the rookie-of-the-year awards have been won by a Dodger and an Angel the same season. In fact, the Angels never have had a rookie of the year. The Dodgers have had eight since moving from Brooklyn. . . .

Catcher on the 1962 AL all-rookie team was the Angels’ Bob Rodgers, later to be known as Buck. . . .

Perhaps the toughest midseason choice is that for outstanding manager in the National League, but give a slight edge to Dusty Baker, whose San Francisco Giants took three of four over the weekend at Philadelphia, over the Phillies’ Jim Fregosi. . . .

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The Giants, who didn’t swoon in June this time, will play 41 of their remaining 73 games at Candlestick Park. . . .

Don’t count on the Montreal Expos trading Dennis Martinez to the Toronto Blue Jays. Patriotism goes just so far. . . .

Detroit leads the American League in home runs with 105, but has given up 107. . . .

Recommended reading: Gary Smith’s cover piece in Sports Illustrated on how the families and Cleveland Indian teammates of Steve Olin and Tim Crews are coping with their tragic deaths. . . .

This year, the U.S. Senior Open was a more exciting event than the U.S. Open. . . .

It was nice that Jack Nicklaus and Nancy Lopez won tournaments on the same day. . . .

Long before Wimbledon, promoter Bob Kramer lined up singles champion Pete Sampras and doubles champions Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge for his Volvo/L.A. tournament Aug. 2-8 at UCLA. . . .

Cameron Murray, the Glendora High star and brother of Portland Trail Blazer Tracy Murray, scored 16 points, including four three-point baskets, in the Nike camp game at Indianapolis on Saturday. . . .

Coaches aren’t the only people in university athletic departments not blessed with great job security. In the last three years, there have been 47 changes of athletic directors at the 107 NCAA Division I-A schools. . . .

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Let’s hope that Oscar De La Hoya, who has an inflamed tendon in his left hand, doesn’t become the latest in a long line of powerful punchers to suffer from chronic hand problems. . . .

Until the setback that cost him a spot on the pay-per-view card Saturday at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, the pieces had been fitting together perfectly for De La Hoya since his gold-medal performance in Barcelona. . . .

More than 30,000 tickets, some priced as high as $1,000, already have been sold for the Julio Cesar Chavez-Pernell Whitaker bout Sept. 10 at the 74,000-seat Alamodome in San Antonio. . . .

George Foreman might be training harder for his upcoming ABC sitcom “George” than he did for his last fight against Tommy Morrison. Foreman has taken off six pounds after weighing 256 when he lost a decision to Morrison on June 7. “I’ve got to look good for the cameras,” the former heavyweight champion explained. . . .

The Los Angeles Sports Council estimates that the 1994 World Cup games at the Rose Bowl will pump $100 million into the local economy and the 1993 Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita $50 million. . . .

Ray Scott, the voice of the Packers during the glory days of Vince Lombardi, is back in Green Bay doing a daily radio show after receiving a kidney transplant from his son. . . .

So much for the notion that the newly installed NFL rookie salary cap would expedite the signing process. Only five of the 29 first-round choices have signed. . . .

The West Los Angeles apartment of Thomas Gottsegen recently was robbed. Among those items taken were six of his seven baseball caps. Only his New York Met cap was left untouched by the front-running thieves.