More Bang for the Bucs in Pittsburgh

Who says baseball’s small markets are doomed? Logic may but the Pirates don’t.

They’re in the thick of their division race, even if it’s only the National League Central, where .500 suffices.

“You hear a lot of things about playing in Pittsburgh,” said Lou Collier after Francisco Cordova and Ricardo Rincon combined on a 10-inning no-hitter against the Houston Astros on July 12. “But after what I’ve seen, wow, I just can’t believe it.”

OK, who’s Lou Collier?

He’s a rookie shortstop. When your payroll is $9.1 million--less than Barry Bonds, Gary Sheffield, Albert Belle and Sammy Sosa make by themselves--you have a lot of unknowns.

The Pirates are on pace to draw 1.5 million fans and make money for the first time in the ‘90s. New owner Kevin McClatchy, the heir to the Northern California newspaper family, was so excited after Mark Smith’s three-run pinch homer won that 10-inning no-hitter, he exchanged high fives with NL President Len Coleman. Peter O’Malley never did anything like that, but he has been around a lot longer.

Said McClatchy: “It was pretty exciting.”

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Add McClatchy: At a recent game, some fans in the nosebleed seats of Section 518 unfurled a banner: “Mr. McClatchy, Wanna Trade Seats? Go Bucs!”

In the fifth inning, McClatchy, who normally sits behind the plate, hiked up to 518 and spent the rest of the game there, signing autographs.

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Trivia time: Who is the only rookie in the modern era to lead the league in hitting?

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What else is new? In the wake of the Mike Tyson biting Evander Holyfield’s ear, many people said they had never seen anything so outrageous.

They obviously aren’t boxing fans.

Pennsylvania Boxing Commission member Andy “Kid” Paul told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette of a fight he refereed in the 1980s in which a heavyweight floored his opponent, then kicked him in the face while he was down.

“My back was turned,” DePaul said. “He took one good shot with the right leg. Jeez, he almost killed him.”

Then there was the bout DePaul worked in which a losing heavyweight kicked his opponent in the groin, ending the match, even if he lost on a disqualification.

“It was a 20-karat kick,” DePaul said. “I mean it was a field goal.”

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Trivia answer: Tony Oliva of the Twins, who hit .323 in 1964.

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And finally: Not merely bad, the Philadelphia Phillies are flirting with immortality.

They’re No. 25 in the majors in runs scored, No. 24 in earned-run average. They’re on a 114-loss pace but a slump or the speculated trade of Curt Schilling-- whose 11 wins represent 39% of their total--might drop them to the magic 120-loss mark, tying Casey Stengel’s “Amazin’ Mets” of 1962.

Phillie veterans Schilling, Ricky Bottalico and Mickey Morandini welcome trade talk.

Just to show how things are going, after last week’s rare win over the Braves, their chartered bus clipped a plane’s wing on the airport tarmac.

Said Darren Daulton, finding the all-important silver lining: “Better than being on a plane and running into a bus.”