Steinbrenner and Sensitive Can Exist in Same Sentence

While wondering if perhaps George Steinbrenner has a heart after all, I was thinking:

I’m not talking about his willingness to give Darryl Strawberry another chance. . . .

If he didn’t have the left-handed bat that the Yankees need coming off the bench--Strawberry hit 24 home runs in 101 games last season--there would be no pinstriped uniform waiting for him in New York. . . .

I’m talking about Steinbrenner’s edict that the late catcher Thurman Munson’s locker in the Yankee clubhouse remain unoccupied by any other player for the last 20 years. . . .

It’s a reminder of his contributions to the team before his death in the crash of his private plane on Aug. 2, 1979. His widow, Diana, threw out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on Monday night before the Yankees’ 3-1 victory over Toronto. . . .

Coincidentally, Steinbrenner received another, less poignant reminder of Munson’s death earlier Monday, when he read in the newspaper that the Utah Jazz had waived the stipulation in the standard NBA contract signed by Karl Malone that prohibits players from riding motorcycles. . . .

“I remember I didn’t want him to fly,” Steinbrenner said of Munson. “He said it’s either that or I’ll quit the game. He wanted it in his contract. I put it in and it cost him his life. I didn’t want him to fly.”

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Isn’t it interesting that Jim Leyritz is questioning Tony Gwynn’s commitment to team play? . . .

One reason the Yankees traded Leyritz to the Angels before the 1997 season was his publicized disenchantment with his role as a backup catcher, even for a World Series championship team. . . .

Asked when the Yankees reacquired Leyritz before Saturday’s trading deadline whether Leyritz had been a pain in the posterior, Manager Joe Torre said, “I thought he was.” . . .

Leyritz said he has changed. Perhaps he can resume his role as personal catcher for Andy Pettitte, who was struggling before his victory Monday night against the Blue Jays. . . .

Nothing against Chuck Finley, who has been with the Angels through thick, thin and thinner, but they should have traded him even if Cleveland failed to offer all of the prospects Bill Bavasi wanted. . . .

The Angels reportedly could have acquired promising second baseman Enrique Wilson, a young pitcher or two and still had a chance to bring Finley back as a free agent next winter. . . .

Finley is lucky not to be with the Indians for their current trip, which takes them from Boston to Tampa Bay to Anaheim. . . .

Newsday columnist Jon Heyman says the Mets won’t miss Brian McRae, a trading deadline castoff. . . .

McRae is the player who said last season that other teams like beating the Mets because they dislike Bobby Valentine so much. . . .

Heyman: “He only looked good when compared to Bobby Bonilla.”

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It has been assumed that the Lakers talked about a deal with the Vancouver Grizzlies for the No. 2 pick in the draft because Jerry West wanted a true point guard in Baron Davis. . . .

Maybe. But West also was very intrigued by Jonathan Bender, the agile 6-foot-11 center who recently graduated from high school in Mississippi. . . .

It looks as if the Lakers lost out in the Jud Buechler sweepstakes. . . .

Scottie Pippen has been looking for property in Hermosa Beach, but insists he wants to remain a Houston Rocket. . . .

What was Phil Jackson doing wearing a New York Knick T-shirt on his CNN interview last week with Wolf Blitzer? . . .

Jackson said he knew while guarding Bill Bradley during practices when both were with the Knicks that Bradley would do well in politics because he had “sharp elbows and the ability to move when you think he’s not going to move.” . . .

Gary Smith’s article in Sports Illustrated on Texas Christian’s Cotton Bowl victory over Jim Brown’s Syracuse Orangemen is a must-read. . . .

USC’s Trojans will feel better when they learn they weren’t the only team upset by the Horned Frogs in a bowl game. . . .

I wouldn’t want to be the father of Spice Girl bride Victoria Adams. Her posh wedding to English soccer star David Beckham cost $750,000. . . .

The New York Daily News, after viewing videotapes of Mafia boss John Gotti taken in prison by his family, reported on his hostile reaction when an unidentified grandson said he wanted to become a professional athlete. . . .

“To be a good basketball player or baseball player, first of all, you’ve got to be a good liar,” Gotti said. “A good lowlife and an imbecile.

“And you got to take steroids! You must take steroids, and anybody who takes steroids is a garbage pail.”

“Fine,” the boy said, “then I will be a crook.”

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Randy Harvey can be reached at his e-mail address: randy.harvey@latimes.com.