Some of the Greatest Finished Careers at Home--in a Way

Ross Atkin of the Christian Science Monitor penned a piece of baseball trivia that is too good not to share: Besides being great hitters, what did Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, and Hank Aaron have in common?

“Each finished his major league career in the city where he began, but for a different team: Babe Ruth began with the Boston Red Sox and retired with the Boston Braves. Willie Mays bracketed 14-plus years in San Francisco between service with the Giants and Mets in New York. Aaron played for the Braves in Milwaukee and Atlanta, but closed out his career with the Milwaukee Brewers.”

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Counting: Take heart, baseball fans--only 100 days until pitchers and catchers report for spring training.

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Trivia time: What is America’s favorite sports activity, according to a national survey that measured participation in 58 sports?

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Scientific age: Electronic line callers have replaced human line callers at some tennis tournaments, and Jim Courier doesn’t like the idea.

“I think that the general consensus among the guys is that we prefer to get angry at linespeople instead of computers,” the former U.S. Open champion said.

Sunday time: The possibility of Panthermania created by Charlotte’s new NFL franchise is causing consternation among pastors along Tobacco Road. Rev. John F. Merck, pastor of the Lutheran church in Faith, N.C., told the Atlanta Journal:

“I am all for sports, but I have reservations about our national obsession with them. Sports has become a pseudo-religion for many people. They invest more money and time in sports than any aspect of their lives.”

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Add Panthers: According to NFL Properties, more than $30 million worth of Carolina merchandise is expected to be sold by Christmas.

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One man’s advice: After the great mismatch of 7-foot Shaquille O’Neal and 7-foot 6-inch Shawn Bradley, the Shaq had this to say about the Philadelphia 76er rookie center:

“He felt a little light leaning against me. I think maybe he should try to be a little more aggressive, and he’s going to have to get stronger. At 7-6, he should be dunking the ball every time he touches it.”

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Priorities: Mark Kreidler in the Sacramento Bee: “Manute Bol got fined $25,000 by the Miami Heat for taking an exhibition timeout to attend meetings in Washington concerning the civil war in his native Sudan, but, look, it could’ve been worse. His wife could have been expecting.”

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No kidding: Former NBA star Julius Erving says Michael Jordan’s retirement leaves Charles Barkley as the game’s leading spokesman.

“I don’t know that he is the ideal person, but with Jordan’s departure, I see Charles becoming the spokesperson because he’s naturally outspoken,” Erving said.

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Trivia answer: Bowling, with 49.6 million participants.

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Quotebook: Left tackle Tony Jones of the Cleveland Browns on what to expect after the Browns’ release of veteran quarterback Bernie Kosar: “You take away the chief from the Indians, and the Indians fold.”