Murdoch Has a Saving Grace in Turner’s Eyes

Ted Turner, owner of the Atlanta Braves, has indicated how he will vote on the impending sale of the Dodgers to Rupert Murdoch:

“He’s the only person on the planet that I don’t like. To me, he’s kind of the Prince of Darkness. He’s really not that bad, but he’s not that good either.

“And he stands for everything that I don’t stand for.

“He’s a good family man, though.”

Sporting of you to add that, Ted.

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Trivia time: Who were the five starting players when UCLA won its first NCAA basketball championship in 1964?

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Just another fan: Despite their controversies, the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan mean something special to backup guard Steve Kerr, and Sunday’s victory over the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden only reaffirmed the feeling.

“It’s so much fun to be a part of this team,” Kerr said. “You take the total performance, 42 points [by Jordan], for granted. We see that all the time. But those moves that he does are just so amazing that I find myself cheering, just like everybody else does in the stands.”

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His Airness: Peter Vecsey in the New York Post: “Regarding Jordan’s impending retirement. When you’re still this good, you don’t retire, your opponents do.”

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Extra! Extra! Jayson Stark in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “Not to suggest there has been a little excess in the local coverage of the [Tampa Bay] Devil Rays this spring, but last weekend, the St. Petersburg Times devoted 39 paragraphs to a game that got rained out after 17 pitches.”

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No snake pit: When the Arizona Diamondbacks make their debut as a major league team, don’t expect to see a snake as a mascot. The Diamondbacks have decided against a mascot, at least for now.

One mascot suggestion, apparently rejected, was “Floyd the Robot Droid,” a character somewhere between a space alien and a new species of Power Ranger.

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No direction: Phil Sheridan in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “Seldom has the term ‘off-season’ been more appropriate.

“The Eagles have been just off the mark with virtually everything they’ve tried to accomplish since their 6-9-1 season ended.

“In the free-agent waters, they’ve found themselves way upstream with just one paddle, rowing in circles, while other NFL teams have zipped past them.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1961, Floyd Patterson knocked out Ingemar Johansson in the sixth round, retaining the world heavyweight boxing title in Miami Beach.

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Trivia answer: Walt Hazzard, Gail Goodrich, Fred Slaughter, Keith Erickson and Jack Hirsch.

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And finally: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the Pirates have signed two Korean pitchers to minor league contracts, Ho Bang Go and Chang Hwan Moon.

Go and Moon? Headline writers should have some fun with those.