Notes on a Scorecard - July 14, 1994

The Clippers still don’t have a coach, but what’s the rush? They waited until July 21 last year to make their sterling choice of Bob Weiss. . . .

I’m surprised that Shawn Bradley chose a shorter man, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to tutor him. . . .

Pity those poor NBA players if the league is allowed to keep a salary cap and the college draft, and the average salary stays down around $1.38 million. . . .

The most entertaining All-Star game in years is exhibit A of why I will miss baseball, 1994 style, when the players strike. . . .

Note ripped up after Fred McGriff hit his score-tying home run with one out in the ninth inning: “Seven consecutive All-Star game wins and four World Series championships in the last five years stamp the American as the dominant league.” . . .

It’s hard to remember a manager or coach receiving a warmer ovation than the one given Jim Leyland at Three Rivers Stadium on Tuesday. . . . It wasn’t surprising that the son of a former All-Star player got the game-winning hit, but most people thought it would be Ken Griffey Jr. or Barry Bonds, not Moises Alou. . . .

Chili Davis deserves a contract extension, but it will be an upset if the Angels give him one. . . .

A nice touch was Chuck Knoblauch wearing a “Hi Mom. Get Well, Dad” message on his batting glove during the AL introductions. . . .

When Wade Boggs gets called out on strikes twice, the home plate umpire must be wrong at least once. And, according to the video replay, Paul Runge was. . . .

The first athlete featured in a commercial during the All-Star telecast was a hockey player, Wayne Gretzky. . . .

Bob Costas, Joe Morgan and Bob Uecker of NBC showed that three men in a broadcasting booth aren’t necessarily one too many. . . .

Morgan was on the mark when he said Rod Carew would have hit .400 against this year’s pitching. . . .

Maybe the game should start an hour earlier. It didn’t end until close to midnight EDT. . . .

The average home run by Griffey this season travels 409 feet. . . .

As part of the NFL’s 75th anniversary celebration, the Rams will wear replicas of their 1951 uniforms at home against San Francisco on Sept. 18 and at Kansas City on Sept. 25. Maybe some of the magic of the only L.A. Ram team ever to win an NFL championship will rub off. . . . The Raiders will wear replicas of their 1963 uniforms, which aren’t much different from the present ones, at Denver on Sept. 18 and at home against San Diego on Sept. 25. . . .

Oldest style will be those of the 1920 Chicago Cardinals, worn by the Arizona Cardinals. Newest will be those of the 1977 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. . . .

A group wanting to buy the Rams and keep them in Orange County is talking about building a new stadium, but I don’t see what is so unsuitable about Anaheim Stadium for football. . . .

Where They Are Now? Paul Caligiuri will appear at SoccerFest at the L.A. Convention Center 2-4 p.m. today, and Alexi Lalas 8:15-9 p.m. on Saturday. . . .

Veteran sprinter Jeff Williams of Los Angeles scored the biggest victory of his career Tuesday when he upset 200-meter world champion Frank Fredericks at Stockholm. . . .

I wonder if the Idaho Sneakers of World TeamTennis have a shoe contract.

Sixteen of the 17 teams in the expanded International Hockey League will make the playoffs next season. . . .

The Mighty Ducks gave up next to nothing, a fourth-round draft choice, to obtain defenseman Richard Dirk, who is big--6 feet 4 and 2l0 pounds--and aggressive. . . .

HBO has broken off negotiations for an Humberto (Chiquita) Gonzalez-Michael Carbajal light-flyweight title rubber match. . . .

Greg Louganis will teach a dance movement class in the USC theater department next semester. . . .

The most promising 2-year-old colt in the East is DeNiro, named for actor Robert DeNiro. . . .

Corey Nakatani will attempt a freeway double Friday night, riding at Hollywood Park early in the evening and then in the featured, 11th race at Los Alamitos. . . .

Former UCLA center Richard Petruska is playing for the Knicks’ summer league team in New York. . . .

If USC defeats New Mexico State in the first round of the NIT preseason tournament, it will play the winner of the Kansas State-Alabama game. Kansas State will be coached by Tom Asbury, formerly of Pepperdine. . . .

The person perhaps least in need of a nickname was pro wrestler Brutus (the Barber) Beefcake. . . .

I’m glad Jimmie Reese was in a baseball uniform the last time I saw him. No 92-year-old ever looked better dressed.