To Say They Recognized Him Is Generous

Oakland Raider defensive end Anthony Smith was late for a recent meeting in Los Angeles with a charity organization, according to the Associated Press.

No taxis were in sight, but along came a bus. Smith had only $20 bills in his wallet. It was an exact-change bus, so into the box went 20 dollars. That caused a stir among the other passengers.

“Seems they didn’t believe football players could be riding a bus,” he said. “I turned around and told them, ‘Yes, I’m me.’ ”

Does Smith really believe the passengers recognized him as a former Los Angeles Raider, considering that he wasn’t in uniform?

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Trivia time: Who was the last player from Great Britain to win the men’s singles title at Wimbledon?

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It’s about time: Enos Slaughter, whose first-to-home dash on a single scored the winning run in the 1946 World Series for the St. Louis Cardinals, will have his No. 9 jersey retired Sept. 6.

“I appreciate it very much,” Slaughter, 80, said. “Better late than never.”

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His pacifier: Colorado Rocky shortstop Walt Weiss panicked when he lost his glove before finding it in a teammate’s equipment bag.

How important is the glove to Weiss? “The only thing I’d be nearly as particular about purchasing is a home,” he said.

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Holding the bag: C.W. Nevius of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Rony Seikaly wants to be traded from the Golden State Warriors, but it’s unlikely:

“The Warriors insist Seikaly currently has the trade value of a bag of Cheese Doodles. And that’s not a full bag either.”

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Nasty habit: Baltimore Manager Davey Johnson wants the Orioles to be more aggressive on the basepaths.

“If you never run, and you sit there with your finger in your nose, you don’t win ballgames,” he said.

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Getting hungry? A sampling of what McDonald’s expects to serve athletes at the Olympic Games:

Big Macs--2,464 per day; cheeseburgers--2,465 per day; egg McMuffins--2,658 per day; medium order of French fries--4,930 per day; McDonaldland cookies--1,963 packs per day; cheese slices--8,318 per day; pickle slices--10,216 per day.

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Looking back: On this day in 1919, Carl Mays of the Boston Red Sox pitched two complete games against the New York Yankees. The Red Sox won the first game, 2-0, but lost the nightcap, 4-1.

Trivia answer: Fred Perry in 1936. He also won in 1934 and 1935.

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And finally: Bernie Lincicome of the Chicago Tribune is anticipating a press release:

“Former L.A. Lakers star Magic Johnson said that he had checked his schedule and that he can find time for one unretirement press conference in August and fit in one retirement announcement in October, but after that, he’ll have to return calls.”