Wetteland Isn’t in Majors for Just a Cup of Coffee

John Wetteland, the former New York Yankee pitcher now with the Texas Rangers, is regarded as an extremist.

“Coffee? You have not had a caffeine jolt until you taste ‘John Wetteland Clubhouse Espresso,’ ” Gerry Fraley writes in the Dallas Morning News.

“He pours freshly brewed coffee over coffee beans and collects the drippings to make his favorite drink.”

That’s one way to stay awake on the mound.

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Trivia time: Who holds the Pacific 10 Conference basketball record for assists in a career?

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The good life: Golfer Jonathan Kaye, in the PGA Tour media guide, lists special interests as “fine dining, floating in the pool, dominoes.”

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Quarterback project: The New England Patriots will receive four draft choices in the deal by which Bill Parcells can coach the New York Jets immediately.

“But as further penalty,” writes Steve Rosenbloom in the Chicago Tribune, “Parcells has to coach Neil O’Donnell.”

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Touch ‘em all: Toronto pitcher Danny Cox, on his days in St. Louis: “I always wanted to be a pilot when I was growing up. I always was fascinated with airplanes. Of course, later, I saw a lot of flights leaving Busch Stadium, when I was standing on the pitching mound.”

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Me first: Before quarterback Jeff George signed with the Oakland Raiders, Scott Ostler wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle:

“The Raiders are recruiting free-agent QB Jeff George, because he’s got that old-time Raider bad-boy streak.

“Except that the old-time bad-boy Raider quarterbacks all gave a whit about their team, and George has never displayed that particular psychological hang-up.”

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Add George: From ESPN’s Bob Ryan: “George is the man with the golden arm and the 10-cent head.”

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Talent gap: Islander Coach Rick Bowness, on the difference between his team and the New York Rangers: “We’re developing world-class players. They’ve got them.”

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Matter of time: MSNBC’s Michael Ventre, on the NBA honoring its 50 greatest players at the All-Star game:

“Next year will be Nos. 51-100, then 100-150 and so on, until it gets all the way down to Benoit Benjamin.”

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FYI: Jim Cleamons, the beleaguered coach of the Dallas Mavericks, was a rookie on the Lakers’ NBA championship team of 1971-72.

As such, he had minimal playing time, appearing in only 38 regular-season games and averaging 2.6 points. He was traded in the off-season to Cleveland for a draft choice.

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Trivia answer: Gary Payton of Oregon State, with 938 from 1987 to 1990. California’s Jason Kidd holds the single-season record with 272 in 1994.

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And finally: Pete Sampras, on his image as the world’s No. 1-ranked tennis player:

“People know me. I’m not going to produce any cartwheels or some sort of Comedy Central. I’ll always be remembered as a tennis player, not a celebrity by any means.”