Suddenly, the Bullpen Seemed Like a Cage Awaiting the Lions

Manager Johnny Oates of the Baltimore Orioles vividly recalls where he was when Henry Aaron hit his record 715th home run 20 years ago.

He was in the Atlanta Braves’ bullpen, where the ball was caught by pitcher Tom House, 20 feet away from Oates.

“We were afraid people might come into the bullpen en masse ,” Oates said. “People were practicing putting rope ladders down into the bullpen before the game. Fishing poles with nets on the end were dropped there.”

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Add Oates: “Sammy Davis Jr. had offered $35,000 for the ball,” Oates said. “House ran all the way in from the bullpen without stopping to give the ball to Aaron at the plate. He got an $800 TV for it.”

So House theoretically lost $34,200 by not selling the ball to Davis.

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Trivia time: Tom Lasorda ranks second among active managers in victories. Who is first?

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Paid in full: Bud Shaw in the Cleveland Plain Dealer on the Indians’ new ballpark, Jacobs Field:

“I think there’s a nice symmetry to the relationship between the town and the fans because the team has driven people to drink for 40 years now, and the liquor tax was used to build the new stadium.”

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Dream on: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Michael Jordan’s aspiring baseball career:

“Michael is trying to live his dream, and I respect him for it. I think it was F. Scott Fitzgerald who said the rich are not like the rest of us.

“Well, Michael’s athletic skills are not like the rest of us. He can do things we can’t even think about.”

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Was it imported? Eamonn Coghlan reportedly received a $100,000 bonus from a shoe company for the first sub-four-minute mile by an athlete 40 or over, in 3:58.15, according to Track & Field News.

By contrast, when New Zealand’s John Walker became the first under 3:50 with his world record of 3:49.4 in 1975, the story goes that Walker received $600 under the table--and a case of beer.

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Preference: John Stiegerwald in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

“The fact that more Americans would rather watch bowling than hockey says a lot more about Americans than it does about hockey.”

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Attitude adjustment: Payne Stewart, the 1991 U.S. Open champion, after missing the cut at the Masters with two 78s:

“I have a bad attitude right now. And that’s much worse than a bad golf swing. I’ve had it for some time. I may not play anywhere for a while. I won’t play again until it’s fun.”

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Nostalgia: Jeff Williams won a seldom-contested 100-yard dash--everybody’s running 100 meters these days--in 9.42 seconds at the Fresno Relays on Saturday.

On May 15, 1948, USC’s Mel Patton set the world record for the 100 at Fresno with a time of 9.3 seconds.

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Trivia answer: Sparky Anderson of the Detroit Tigers.

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Quotebook: Owner Jim Thomas of the Sacramento Kings, on why Coach Garry St. Jean will be back for the third and final year of his contract: “I don’t like to waste money.”