Will Foreman End This Retirement? Fat Chance

George Foreman was robbed.

So were we.

With a controversial decision going against him in a fight Saturday night against Shannon Briggs, Foreman announced he was ending one of the most remarkable careers in sports history. It is our loss more than his.

Perhaps it says as much about boxing as about Foreman, but he was the most entertaining and, even at 48, one of the most effective heavyweights. His knockout of Michael Moorer in 1994 was as thrilling as any moment a heavyweight has delivered since Muhammad Ali retired.

Foreman accepted his defeat more graciously than the Atlantic City spectators, who were better judges than the judges.

Of course, we might see him in the ring again. A boxer’s retirement is as lasting as a politician’s promise. But I got the impression in an interview last week with Foreman, even before the loss, that he was ready to quit.

When I asked about it, he said he believed he had a couple of fights left in him. But he would not, he added, still be fighting on his 50th birthday in January of 1999.

He returned to the ring 10 years ago, he said, because he didn’t have enough money to support his ministry or his youth center in Houston.

Now that he has $100 million in the bank, something else has been missing from those pursuits.

Foreman.

“When I’m not getting the kind of dedication from my people at the youth center that’s necessary, I ask them about it,” he said. “They say, ‘George, this is your dream, not ours.’

“They’re right. I’ve got to get back to work on what’s important.”

Fortunately, Foreman is not the retiring type. He will remain involved with the sport as a television analyst and will appear occasionally on late-night talk shows.

Although he might not have the same punch he once did, he can still deliver a punch line.

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You can’t blame Fred Claire for trying, but the Red Sox weren’t interested when he dangled unproven Roger Cedeno in a possible trade for erstwhile shortstop John Valentin. . . .

The Red Sox would be willing to send Valentin to the Dodgers for Eric Karros if Mo Vaughn decided not to stay in Boston. . . .

That could be the best deal the Dodgers could get for Karros, who isn’t attracting the interest on the trade market they thought he would. . . .

The word at the recent general managers’ meetings in Arizona was that Karros’ numbers were soft because he didn’t add to them when it counted in September. . . .

White Sox General Manager Ron Schueler said on a Chicago radio show he had called Tom Lasorda to see whether he would be interested in replacing Terry Bevington as manager. . . .

True to his word to the Hall of Fame, Lasorda said he wasn’t. . . .

Commenting on Emanuel Steward’s abrupt dismissal, Oscar De La Hoya said Monday he never believed the trainer wanted him to leave promoter Bob Arum for Don King. . . .

Although he thought Steward was good for him, De La Hoya said his father didn’t. . . .

“I hate arguing with my father,” he said. “I didn’t want anything to come between us.” . . .

Some UCLA women’s soccer fans criticize Coach Joy Fawcett, complaining she doesn’t have enough energy for the Bruins while also playing for the U.S. national team. . . .

But they can’t argue with her success. The Bruins play in the NCAA quarterfinals Saturday at Notre Dame. . . .

Unlike most coaches, Lisa Love of the USC women’s volleyball team is begging to be sent far from home in the NCAA tournament. . . .

Seven of the last eight times the Trojans advanced, their season ended with a first-round loss at Stanford. . . .

As a tribute to its sister city, Nagoya, Japan, invited two L.A. Marathon veterans to participate in its marathon Sunday--Henry Hernandez of Santa Barbara and Emilio Campos of Alhambra. . . .

Scottie Pippen, recovering from foot surgery, says he’s trying to return for the Dec. 17 game in Chicago between the Lakers and Bulls. . . .

I’m pretty sure he was kidding when he said he wanted to be playing for the Lakers. . . .

Even if he wasn’t, he shouldn’t start pricing real estate here. The Bulls probably would demand Kobe Bryant in exchange. . . .

Andre Agassi, scrambling to improve on his No. 141 ranking, opens play today in the HealthSouth/USTA Challenge at the Burbank Tennis Center against Robert Abendroth. . . .

“This will be like watching Bruce Springsteen play at the corner bar,” tournament official Brian Early says.

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While wondering what it’s like to have an abdominal muscle to strain, I was thinking: Nobody in the NBA would rather stop the Laker streak than Pat Riley, the thing I like about Mike Ditka is that he’s decisive, I wish I could say Gus Frerotte is the biggest bonehead in Washington.