Notes on a Scorecard - Oct. 12, 1993

Maybe the Atlanta Braves won’t have to worry about becoming the Buffalo Bills of baseball, after all. . . .

Judging by the play of Milt Thompson and Ron Gant in left field the last couple of days, it’s apparent the Philadelphia Phillies perform better than the Braves with their backs against the wall. . . .

The Phillies have been outscored, 30-17, but lead the series, 3-2. Shades of the 1960 World Series, when the Pittsburgh Pirates were outscored by the New York Yankees, 55-27, but won the series, 4-3. . . .

For the first time during these playoffs, I sensed more than casual interest Monday. No talk about Michael Jordan. No channel switching to college or pro football games. A lot of people in the workplace gathered in front of the television set. . . .

Look-alikes: Paul Molitor and Paul Coffey. . . .

Juan Guzman winning two games in the American League playoffs and Mike Sharperson getting released has to be embarrassing to the Dodgers, who traded Guzman to the Toronto Blue Jay organization for Sharperson in September of 1987. . . .

The Florida Marlins made a good move by picking up talented young first baseman Greg Colbrunn from the Montreal Expos on the waiver wire. . . .

Former Dodger outfielder Ralph Bryant is the leading home run hitter in Japan this season with 41. . . .

Raider substitute quarterback Vince Evans’ 247 yards passing against the New York Jets were second in the NFL only to John Elway’s 367 against the Green Bay Packers Sunday. . .

An Evans-Elway duel could materialize Monday night at Denver if Raider starter Jeff Hostetler again has problems early. . . .

The Raiders ought to have a terrific aerial game with these three receivers--a Rocket (Ismail), a Jett (James) and a flying Wright (Alexander). . . .

The mini-crowd of 41,627 at the Coliseum on Sunday showed that the Jets aren’t nearly as popular as the Giants with former New Yorkers. . . .

Before Dan Marino was injured, the Miami Dolphins looked like a team that could reach the Super Bowl and not embarrass the AFC. . . .

Coach Dave Wannstedt, who was the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator, has the Chicago Bears leading the league in fewest points given up. Last season, they finished 22nd. . . .

Against the Broncos, Reggie White looked like the old Reggie White for the first time as a Packer. . . .

There might not be a better outside linebacker than Greg Lloyd of the Pittsburgh Steelers. . . .

The New York Times’ computer ranks Wisconsin second--in the nation, that is, not in the Big Ten. . . .

I guess that means the Wisconsin-Michigan State game Dec. 5 in Tokyo could be the Rose Bowl decider. . . .

*

Dept. of Misleading Statistics: Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward isn’t leading the Atlantic Coast Conference in total offense. He is second behind quarterback Scott Milanovich of 0-6 Maryland. . . .

LSU, a 58-3 loser to Florida, should think about reducing the capacity of Tiger Stadium instead of increasing it. . . .

San Diego State running back Marshall Faulk had his worst game against Hawaii in three years Saturday night when the Rainbows limited him to 175 yards and four touchdowns. . . .

After 2-year-old Brocco won an allowance race by 8 1/2 lengths Thursday at Santa Anita, the first thing jockey Gary Stevens told trainer Randy Winick was: “You’ve got to run this horse in the Breeders’ Cup.” . . .

British middleweights Nigel Benn and Chris Eubanks attracted 41,000 fans in Manchester, England, a week after heavyweights Lennox Lewis and Frank Bruno drew 25,000 in Cardiff, Wales. . . .

The crowd for Morocco’s 1-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Zambia at Casablanca on Sunday was estimated at more than 90,000 in a stadium that seats 80,000. . . .

Hardly anyone noticed when the Detroit Pistons cut forward Mark Aguirre, who played in three All-Star games while a member of the Dallas Mavericks. . . .

The Chicago Bulls, who were 2-1 to win the NBA championship for a fourth consecutive time, zoomed to 25-1 at the Mirage sports book in Las Vegas after Michael Jordan’s retirement announcement. . . .

Buckler Bologna wiped out Kleenex Pistoia in an Italian league game, 114-83. . . .

The 50th leading money earner on the men’s tennis tour, Jonathan Stark, has reached the $300,000 mark. . . .

Wayne Gretzky seems quicker. . . .

If the Mighty Ducks really did spend $450,000 on their pregame show Friday at the Anaheim Arena, it was nearly as much as the Kings spent on player salaries for their first season, 1967-68.