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Notes on a Scorecard - Aug. 15, 1994

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On the fourth day of the strike, the Angels remain closer to first place than the Atlanta Braves. . . .

What bugs me is the lack of urgency shown by both parties in the labor dispute. . . .

Richard Ravitch and Donald Fehr have appeared together more often on television than at the negotiating table. . . .

Right now, most of the owners and players are more concerned about punishing the other side than about reaching an agreement. . . .

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Will the broken hand suffered by Jeff Bagwell during the Houston Astros’ next-to-last game before the strike be known as a timely injury?. . . .

Dennis Gilbert called to say that New York Met pitcher Bret Saberhagen, not Dodger third baseman Tim Wallach, should be the National League comeback player of the year. By the way, Gilbert is Saberhagen’s agent. . . .

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If you like slaughters, you must have loved switching between the PGA Championship and the World Championship basketball final Sunday. . . .

Shaquille O’Neal was one Dream Team II member who would have belonged on Dream Team I. . . .

The competition in Canada was weak, but O’Neal showed that he has improved his footwork and will be a more versatile offensive player next season. . . .

TV analyst Doug Collins wondered if there will be a better starting five in the NBA this season than O’Neal, Horace Grant, Dennis Scott, Anfernee Hardaway and Nick Anderson of the Orlando Magic. . . .

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The trash-talking Americans might not have won any Mr. Congeniality awards, but, as usual, Joe Dumars was a class act. The veteran Detroit Piston guard never embarrassed the opposition and asked Coach Don Nelson to cut his playing time so teammates could play more. . . .

Riddick Bowe needs an eye exam if he didn’t realize that Buster Mathis Jr. was on one knee when he landed a right hand on Mathis’ jaw Saturday night. . . .

Too bad George Foreman wasn’t working the fight for HBO because he could have told viewers about the time he did virtually the same thing to Joe (King) Roman in the first round in Tokyo in 1973. . . .

That night, though, Foreman, making his first defense of the heavyweight title, was declared a knockout winner over Roman. . . .

The “no contest” ruling in Atlantic City was proper, but there is no need for a rematch. Mathis, though willing, is not exactly the complete package. It was only a matter of moments before Bowe would have finished him cleanly. . . . Bowe got sharper as the bout progressed, but looked like a fighter coming off a nine-month layoff. He should have a tuneup fight or two before challenging Lennox Lewis for the World Boxing Council title. . . .

Funny, but Foreman would be a heavy favorite over Joe Hipp, who is expected to replace him as Michael Moorer’s next opponent. . . .

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And if you don’t think politics were involved in the cancellation of the Moorer- Foreman fight, how come the WBA waited until a month after the bout was signed to announce that it wouldn’t sanction Foreman? . . .

Former bantamweight and super-bantamweight champion Lupe Pintor, 39, should be saying “no mas” after being stopped by Leonardo Mas. . . .

Eddie Delahoussaye again demonstrated that nobody is better on a stretch runner when he rode Tinners Way to victory over Best Pal in the $1-million Pacific Classic Saturday at Del Mar. . . .

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USC quarterback Rob Johnson and tackle Tony Boselli were among Trojans who worked on the Coliseum reconstruction crew this summer. . . .

“I only worked about a week and a half, sweeping up and picking up trash and wood,” Johnson said. “Some of it was on the graveyard shift from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. I lost interest fast. I usually get bored when I’m doing something besides sports.” . . .

The stadium, which was badly damaged by the earthquake, is supposed to be ready in time for the Trojans’ Sept. 3 opener against Washington and Johnson is delighted about that. . . .

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“I love the Coliseum,” he said. “It gives us a huge home-field advantage. I think a lot of visiting teams are intimidated.” . . .

The Raiders showed midseason form Saturday in Pittsburgh when they were penalized 10 times. . . .

So did the Rams when they put their quarterbacks’ lives in danger against the New England Patriots. . . .

The addition of 1,000-yard running back Leonard Russell won’t help the Denver Broncos solve their biggest problem, which is defense. . . .

Parity among Americans on the PGA Tour means mediocrity when none of them wins a Grand Slam tournament in 1994.

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