This Switch Proved to Be a Sane Move

How Atlanta Brave second baseman Mark Lemke became a switch-hitter falls into the necessity-is-the-mother- of-invention department.

The sandlot field Lemke played on as a teenager in Utica, N.Y., has a short left-field fence, and beyond that fence was a state institution for mental health care.

Lemke, batting right-handed, began launching balls over the fence, but he said he grew leery of scaling the fence to retrieve the baseballs. So he started hitting left-handed.

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Trivia time: Which team holds the NBA record for fewest turnovers in a season?

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Nice guys now: Miami defensive end Kenny Holmes after East Carolina routed the Hurricanes last Saturday, 31-6: “The game was a disgrace. We’re supposed to be big, bad Miami.”

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Jordan rules: Boston Celtic Coach M.L Carr was asked if there is an NBA rule requiring players to tuck in their jerseys.

“Yes, there is,” Carr said. “Unless Michael [Jordan] decides to take his out. Then it will be OK.”

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Nothing personal: Dallas offensive lineman Nate Newton, talking about his former coach, Jimmy Johnson, whom he faces Sunday when the Cowboys play the Miami Dolphins:

“I don’t miss Jimmy. He’s not my wife. He was my coach. I don’t get into male bonding.”

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$ign of the times: Tiger Woods has earned more money in seven tournaments than Sam Snead earned in his career. Snead, who won 81 events, earned $620,126; Tiger is at $734,794 and counting.

What else? Harry Spear is a fishing guide in Key West, Fla.

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Just like Rocky: Jeff Van Raaphorst was Arizona State’s quarterback during the Rose Bowl season of 1986 and is now the analyst on Sun Devil radio broadcasts.

“It’s starting to get the same feel,” he said. “I see this team as kind of a prizefighter. They don’t realize they’re bleeding from everywhere. They just keep swinging.”

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Limited options: Iran has told its women to stick to Olympic sports that can be played while wearing a veil, prompting this comment from Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune: “Rules out just about everything but fencing.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1990, Wayne Gretzky became the first player to reach the 2,000-point plateau when he helped set up a goal by Tomas Sandstrom at 14:32 of the first period of the Kings’ game at Winnipeg.

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Trivia answer: The 1990-91 Minnesota Timberwolves, with 1,062, an average of 13 a game. Mistakes were minimized, but the Timberwolves still finished with a 29-53 record.

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And finally: Cleveland Cavalier forward Tyrone Hill was asked when he got married over the summer. He turned to a Cavalier public relations man and asked: “When did I get married?”