Notes on a Scorecard - June 14, 1994

Shed a tear for Chicago. . . .

First, Michael Jordan. Now, Ryne Sandberg. Goodbye, Nos. 23. In a span of eight months, the best fans in America have lost their two most beloved athletes to premature retirement. . . .

Sandberg’s decision Monday wasn’t as important to baseball as Jordan’s was to basketball last October, but it was nearly as surprising. . . .

How many other 34-year-old athletes would forfeit all those millions of dollars in salary because they thought their skills were eroding?. . . .

A long time ago, I saw a young Cub second baseman who I thought was headed for the Hall of Fame--Ken Hubbs, the 1962 National League rookie of the year from Colton High. . . .

He was killed at age 22 in a plane crash after his second season. . . .

The Cubs were unlucky to lose Hubbs, but fortunate to obtain Sandberg. . . .

He and shortstop Larry Bowa were traded to Chicago from the Philadelphia Phillies for shortstop Ivan DeJesus on Jan. 27, 1982. . . .

Next stop for Sandberg will be Cooperstown, N.Y.. . . .

*

Judge Patricia Gifford cutting time off Mike Tyson’s sentence would have been as startling an upset as Buster Douglas knocking out Tyson. . . .

Even if you aren’t a fan, do yourself a favor and watch the hockey that begins at 5 p.m. today on ESPN. . . .

This is no ordinary seventh game of a Stanley Cup finals. . . .

It matches a team counted out as long ago as Tuesday when it trailed in the series, 3-1, against a team that last won the Cup as long ago as 1940. . . .

Even if the New York Rangers-Vancouver Canucks game at Madison Square Garden doesn’t live up to its billing, the postgame handshakes and the victorious captain’s skate around the rink with Cup raised high will make it all worthwhile. . . . In the fourth quarter, an NBA most valuable player is supposed to be the go-to guy. . . .

Hakeem Olajuwon has become the can’t-find guy. . . .

But he showed his value to the Houston Rockets in another way in the final half-minute Sunday night when, instead of trying to force a shot against the collapsing New York Knick defense, he fed Sam Cassell for the decisive three-point basket. . . .

It was the most important assist of the series thus far. . . .

Knick power forward Charles Oakley, who usually leaves opponents bruised, is aching all over and has to ice down his shoulders, ankles and knees after every game. . . .

The Say No College Basketball Classic--featuring many local players and recruits--begins a two-month run at Trade Tech downtown with a tripleheader Friday at 6 p.m. Five games are scheduled both Saturday and Sunday, starting at noon. Admission and parking are free. . . .

New York’s first-place baseball team, the Yankees, couldn’t have picked a better time for a slump. . . .

With the Rangers and Knicks playing for championships, nobody has been paying much attention to baseball in New York. . . .

Doug Jones, the new closer in the Philadelphia Phillies’ bullpen, is known as “the Mild Thing.”. . . .

The St. Louis Cardinals would love to have a twin-brother battery some day--pitcher Brent Wagner, who was taken in the first round of the draft, and catcher Kyle Wagner, taken in the 21st round. . . .

Pitcher Doug Million didn’t quite live up to his name when he signed a $905,000 contract with the Colorado Rockies after being drafted in the first round. . . .

The only good thing about Brocco’s scratch from the Belmont Stakes is that Hollywood Park fans might get to see him in the Swaps Stakes on July 23. . . .

*

Johnny Tapia, the undefeated flyweight from Albuquerque who didn’t fight for 3 1/2 years because of a drug problem, will make the fourth start of his comeback attempt on June 24 at the Olympic Auditorium. . . .

Channel 9 is delighted with the high ratings--an average of 5.4 and a peak of 8.5--that the boxing show from the Forum got Saturday night. . . .

Basketball America says California forward Lamond Murray and Minnesota guard Vashon Leonard will go to the Clippers and Louisville forward Clifford Rozier will go to the Lakers in the first round of the NBA draft on June 29. . . .

Dennis Rodman’s status with the San Antonio Spurs is shakier than ever now that John Lucas is no longer around to baby-sit. . . .

It must not be easy for Boston fans to root for a Chamberlain--Red Sox outfielder Wes Chamberlain. . . .

Prediction: New York 5, Vancouver 4, the winning goal being scored by Mark Messier at 5:54 of overtime.