Could It Be That They Already Will Take Air Out of McNair?

Quarterback Steve McNair hasn’t played a down of professional football, and already he’s engaged in a tussle over the nickname he has had for several years.

Three employees of a San Diego TV station have filed a trademark application for commercial rights to the moniker “Air McNair.”

If the application is approved, the Houston Oilers’ No. 1 draft pick would lose exclusive control over the commercialization of his nickname and, potentially, millions of dollars.

“I guess this is my welcome to the real world,” McNair said.

The U.S. Department of Patents and Trademarks is expected to rule on the application within six months.

Trivia time: How many shortstops were drafted before Cal Ripken Jr. in 1978?

Sex and soccer: Already shaken by game-fixing and drug scandals, Malaysian soccer has been further embarrassed by a player’s admitting to having illicit sex, a religious offense in the Muslim nation.

A Malacca state player confessed that he faked injuries and made excuses for not playing in games outside his town so he could remain with his lover.

Someone remembers: Seattle is the only major league team wearing a uniform patch this season commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Negro leagues.

How about Schottzie?An enterprising Cincinnati businessman, seeking to make the most of the Reds’ fast start, decided to market a coffee mug with team owner Marge Schott’s mug on the side smoking up a storm. Marge didn’t like the idea and had her attorney halt production.

Columnist Jim Knippenberg of the Cincinnati Enquirer noted, however, “Marge on a coffee cup first thing in the morning might be too startling.”

A different view: Adam Cox, a Lehigh University psychology professor, has analyzed Babe Ruth:

“The Babe’s id appears to have been relatively unimpeded in its quest for satisfaction. Through sex and food, Ruth nurtured the unresolved aspects of his infantile self with abandon.”

And we thought he hit home runs.

Mickey on money: In an interview last fall with TV’s Ann Liguori, Mickey Mantle had this to say about today’s high-salaried ballplayers:

“I don’t blame players for making a lot of money. The one thing I wouldn’t do if I was Mr. Steinbrenner, I wouldn’t give players any two- or three-year contract. When I played, we got paid next year for what we did this year.”

Trivia answer: Eight--Hubie Brooks, Glenn Franklin, Phil Lansford, Lenny Faedo, Nick Esasky, Rex Hudler, Buddy Biancalana and Clay Smith.

Quotebook: U.S. national team player Tab Ramos on the state of soccer in this country: “It seems like soccer has disappeared again, just like it was before the World Cup was here. I think we have lost momentum, there’s no doubt about that.”