Hillary Likes Fact Tribute to Caray Is Set in Stone

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton went on the air with the Chicago Cubs’ announcers for a little chat last weekend, talking about Harry Caray and the planned statue outside Wrigley Field to remember the beloved broadcaster by.

When the First Lady--a Cub fan since her youth in the Chicago suburbs--asked how Caray would be depicted, Steve Stone had a quick response: “With a microphone in one hand and a Budweiser in the other.”

And the First Lady? She said it sounded good to her.

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Trivia time: Who has won more clay-court titles than any other woman tennis player?

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Million-dollar ball: There already is speculation that if Mark McGwire breaks Roger Maris’ record, the 62nd baseball he hits out will be worth more than $1 million.

Not to McGwire.

“I wouldn’t pay a dime for it,” McGwire said. “If somebody’s going to put a price on a ball like that, to me it’s worthless.

“If somebody wants a bat or a jersey or a ball [in exchange], then that means something. But if somebody’s going to hold this ball hostage for a dollar sign, you can take it home with you. There is not a piece of memorabilia that’s worth a dime.”

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More balls: Arizona Coach Dick Tomey’s wife, Nanci Kincaid, will publish her second novel in October.

“Balls” is the story of a Southern football coach told through the eyes of women--his wife, mother, mother-in-law, daughter, his assistants’ wives and his players’ mothers and girlfriends.

Kincaid’s first novel, “Crossing Blood,” and a book of stories, “Pretending the Bed is a Raft,” both received critical acclaim.

“She’s good,” said Tomey, adding that the novel was already well under way when the couple began dating before marrying last year. “I’m really proud of her.”

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Quoth the Raven: Baltimore’s new NFL stadium will open Saturday with an exhibition game between the Ravens and the Chicago Bears, and some of the Ravens hope it will mean the team no longer is tangled up in the fans’ memories of the Baltimore Colts.

“I don’t think there’ll ever be total closure on the Colts and I don’t think there should be,” said Coach Ted Marchibroda, who also coached the Colts in the 1970s. “But it’s nice to know we’re going into our own stadium. If we get the fans behind us, playing here could be worth five points to us.”

The old field goal and a safety?

“Hopefully, six,” Marchibroda said.

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Trivia answer: Chris Evert, with 69. Steffi Graf is a distant second with 31.

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And finally: At first glance, UCLA’s Sept. 12 opener against Texas at the Rose Bowl doesn’t look so bad. Texas was 4-7 last year.

Not so fast.

“I think they’re going to be mad as hell, OK?” UCLA Coach Bob Toledo said.

Last year’s UCLA-Texas score? UCLA 66, Texas 3.