This Senator Gives New Meaning to Term ‘Well-Read’

Ottawa Senator defenseman Frank Musil, a 32-year-old native of the Czech Republic, reportedly speaks four languages and, according to David J. Neal of the Miami Herald, doesn’t let a word go unread in his presence, no matter the subject.

“It could be about sick dogs in Africa,” teammate and countryman Radek Bonk told the Ottawa Citizen. “He reads everything in the paper, from the first letter to the last letter.”

Musil collects information because “if I can’t get into conversations, I don’t feel good. I like to know when someone talks about something, whether it’s in Oklahoma or Australia, or whether it’s entertainment, business, or whatever, I can talk about it.”

He would seem to be a natural for TV quiz shows.

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Trivia time: How many holes in one were recorded on the PGA Tour in 1996 compared to double eagles?

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Yawn: Bernie Lincicome in the Chicago Tribune: “Losing Dennis Rodman for the rest of the [regular] season is nearly as critical as losing a birdbath for the winter.”

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Grim prospect: When Clem Haskins, now the University of Minnesota basketball coach, was a rookie with the Chicago Bulls in 1967, he used to cry in the locker room after losses.

The Bulls were about 1-12, Haskins recalls, when Coach Johnny “Red” Kerr walked up to him and said, “Rook, it’s a long season. You can’t be crying every single night, because we could lose 73 in a row.”

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Go for it: The Detroit Tigers, who ended last season with 17 consecutive home losses, won’t get a chance to extend their record until Monday, when they open at home against Minnesota. The major league record of 20 was set by the 1953 St. Louis Browns.

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Job insurance: Willie Green, the Denver Broncos’ new wide receiver, knows where his bread is buttered.

“What I want to be is a friend to John Elway,” he said. “Because a friend is someone you can trust any time, anywhere. This is John Elway’s team, and I’m here to speak his language. If I can’t, I know I’m on my way out.”

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Hold the mustard: Tom FitzGerald in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Mike Ayer of San Francisco was among those surprised to hear Giant executive Pat Gallagher say, ‘We will have the largest hot dog in the Western world.’ Said Ayer, ‘They already do, and he plays left field.’ ”

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FYI: Kyle Wachholtz, the former USC quarterback and a rookie with the Green Bay Packers last season, has been moved to tight end.

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Looking back: On this day in 1876, the first official National League baseball game was played, Boston beating Philadelphia, 6-5.

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Trivia answer: Thirty-nine aces to one double eagle, by Guy Hill in the Canadian Open.

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And finally: New York Jet Coach Bill Parcells, on how he has been treated in the Boston media since he left the New England Patriots:

“The way things are going up there, before too long, they’ll be blaming me for the ball going through [Bill] Buckner’s legs.”