Notes on a Scorecard - July 13, 1994

I give four stars out of a possible four to an All-Star game that was dramatic, high-scoring and enhanced by an Ozzie Smith fielding gem. . . .

Maybe now, Fred McGriff will be what it should have been long ago, a household name. . . .

The mark of Mike Piazza, the competitor, is that he chokes only in home run hitting contests. . . .

My vote in the balloting for the most memorable L.A. Dodger home run went to Kirk Gibson’s in the first game of the 1988 World Series against Oakland at Dodger Stadium. Second would be Rick Monday’s in the fifth game of the 1981 National League championship series at Montreal. . . .

After watching the tape of Brett Butler’s catch against the New York Mets a half-dozen times, I’ve come to the conclusion that it was underrated. . . .

It wasn’t long ago that a lot of baseball people said Barry Larkin was the player they would pick first to build a franchise around, if they had the opportunity. However, Barry Bonds, Frank Thomas, Ken Griffey Jr. and Piazza, among others, have zoomed ahead of the Cincinnati shortstop. . . .

I wonder who will be the starter, setup man, and closer Saturday night during the three tenors’ concert at Dodger Stadium. . . .

Tony Danza shows some impressive pitching form in “Angels in the Outfield.” One of the biggest crowds of the year at Three Rivers Stadium, 35,000, watched the premiere of the movie on three screens Sunday night. . . .

Do you think ABC might be rooting for a Brazil-Italy World Cup final Sunday rather than, say, Bulgaria-Sweden? . . .

By popular demand, the Forum is moving its last three scheduled Friday night boxing shows to Monday night dates. That means the card scheduled July 22 will be held July 25, instead. . . .

One reason the Seattle Seahawks are so bullish on quarterback Rick Mirer is his durability. He missed only 28 of 1,019 Seahawk plays during his rookie season. . . .

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If I ran the sports section in St. Louis, I would give a lot of space to Ram games this season. . . .

The Cincinnati Bengals are still $6 million under the NFL salary cap and the Rams $3.8 million under. The Raiders are only $34,000 under, meaning they would have to drop someone to sign Tom Rathman. . . .

The Raiders’ Family Day will be at 11:15 a.m. July 23 at Channel Islands High in Oxnard. Art Shell and his coaching staff will conduct a clinic, there will be an autograph and photo session with the players, and the Raiderettes will perform at the annual event that is open,free of charge, to the public. . . .

Next great college quarterback from Orange County could be Scott Covington from Dana Hills High, who will be a freshman at Miami this season. . . .

The only thing separating jockey Alex Solis from stardom is a big horse. With a boost from agent Harry (the Hat) Hacek, Solis appears a cinch to win the Hollywood Park riding title. . . .

Keep an eye on 2-year-old colt Mr. Purple, a son of Deputy Minister. Trainer Ron McAnally plans to jump him from a recent maiden victory into the $100,000 Hollywood Juvenile Championship on July 25. . . .

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Cobi Jones and Eric Wynalda will play for the United States and former World Cup team members Junior, Edinho and Adao for Brazil in a professional beach soccer game at 3 p.m. Friday in a 5,000-seat outdoor stadium near the Hermosa Beach Pier. Admission is free. . . .

After watching Clipper rookie Eric Piatkowski win most-valuable-player honors in the Desert Classic, Bill Fitch, who coached Larry Bird for four seasons, said, “Piatkowski runs the floor a lot like Bird. His character and the way he carries himself out there, I can’t help feeling I’ve seen that before.” . . .

Two of the best undrafted NBA prospects, center Kevin Salvadori of North Carolina and forward Kendrick Warren of Virginia Commonwealth, are playing for the Lakers’ pro summer league team at UC Irvine. . . .

Add Earl Strom: NBA coaches loved to have him referee their road games, but not so much their home games. He went out of his way to be fair to the visiting team. . . .

Dick Butkus, Joe Morgan, Bill Sharman, Don Newcombe and Walt Hazzard are among those who will participate in the Jackie Robinson Invitational Golf Classic Monday at Riviera. . . .

I will be rooting for Kim Williams in the U.S. Women’s Open. . . .

The New York Rangers, who had four Russians on their Stanley Cup championship team, drafted four more. A few years ago, they would have been known as the Broadway Reds.