He’s Self-Made, but Promoted by Other People

The Washington Post’s Michael Wilbon says tennis star Michael Chang is one of his favorite pro athletes. His explanation:

“Only one element of his physical game is what you’d consider world class: his speed. That’s it.

“The guy is 10% talent, 90% concentration, guts, smarts, preparation, anticipation and reaction. His game is almost totally self-made, the product of tinkering and retooling and being the best-conditioned man on the tour.

“You know how parents always say, ‘You can do anything if you put your heart and soul into it.’? Chang is the personification of that.”

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FYI: Baseball’s most expensive ticket is at Boston’s Fenway Park, where prices were hiked 14.6% over last season, according to Media Sports Business newsletter.

The average Red Sox ticket costs $17.69, compared to the cheapest, $6.81 for the Montreal Expos. The Dodgers rank 14th at $11.16, and the Angels 24th at $9.68.

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Trivia time: Based on a minimum 20 games played, who has the highest World Series batting average?

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Trivia for the record: Catcher Charles Johnson of the Florida Marlins, apparently in an effort to confound Morning Briefing, which reported Monday that he had none, does indeed have a passed ball this season. He was charged with one in last Friday’s game against the Mets.

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Easy, easy: FIBA, basketball’s international governing body, got a little carried away recently in a piece about the Chicago Bulls competing in the McDonald’s Championship at Paris Oct. 16-18:

“The greatest sports side [team] ever assembled are heading for Europe in October, with the infectious Bull mania bug which swept America about to conquer France,” FIBA said in a news release.

“The names of the Chicago players . . . make you weak at the knees: Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Longley, Harper, Kerr.

“To witness the five-time NBA champs playing in Europe is a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity not to be missed. Never before has the visit to Europe of an NBA team created such hysteria.”

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Blackmail time: The Montreal Expos, who say they’ve lost $15 million over the last two seasons, are the latest to threaten a move if they don’t get a new stadium, according to Media Sports Business newsletter.

Managing partner Claude Brochu wants a $180-million downtown stadium, or says the team will be sold and relocated by 1999.

A proposed new park would be built adjacent to Molson Centre, home to ice hockey’s Montreal Canadiens. The Expos play in Olympic Stadium.

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For what it’s worth: General Motors, according to Media Sports Business newsletter, was the champion 1996 television sports advertiser.

GM paid more than $294 million to four networks to advertise on sports programming, the newsletter reported.

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Trivia answer: Lou Brock, .391 in three Series for the St. Louis Cardinals.

And finally: Terry Bradshaw, on a poor play call by the Cowboys’ Barry Switzer:

“Poor Barry. He probably thought he was back in Norman, playing Iowa State.”