"Lazzari's Sports Roundup" ---- 06-03-06

I witnessed race car driver Danica Patrick doing a commercial for Secret deodorant/anti-perspirant during last weekend's Indy 500--
a day when she was racing around the Brickyard in STIFLING temperatures close to 100 degrees. If that product kept her semi-dry in THAT kind of environment, then I'm gonna go purchase ten cases and use it to waterproof my basement..........TRIVIA QUESTION: What player holds the San Diego Padres team record for most RBI's in a season? Answer to follow..........Can you imagine if LPGA golfer Meredith Duncan hooked up with Iowa State track athlete Neil Hines? If they ever tied the knot, cake lovers would surely savor her married name of Meredith Duncan Hines..........Lazzari's "Cheap Win of the Week": Chalk up another one for Randy Johnson. He pitched five innings vs. the Red Sox on 5/24--giving up nine hits, five runs, and two home runs--while throwing a ridiculous 105 pitches. No problem for the "Big Unit," though, as he racks up another "W" as Boston's Matt Clement stunk up the ballpark just a little bit more that evening..........This week in sports history, June 4, 1987: 21-year-old Danny Harris puts an end to track legend Edwin Moses' 122-race winning streak--beating him in the 400-meter hurdles at a meet in Madrid. Harris, a three-time NCAA champion, took the lead at the fifth hurdle and finished in 47.56 seconds while Moses posted a time of 47.69; Moses had not lost a race since August 26, 1977..........Did you ever hear the expression "no green to work with" in reference to golfers facing challenging shots? That's the same phrase I use when bill collectors wonder why payments of mine are late from time to time..........Did you know that, in 1980, Willie Wilson of the K.C. Royals had over 700 at-bats--but walked only 28 times? Playing 19 seasons, Wilson never walked more than 39 times in one year, but stole 668 bases lifetime. Can you imagine how many bases this guy would have swiped had he been a bit more selective at the plate?..........The CIAC's new "score management policy" (suspending a high school football coach if his team wins by 50 points) is outright disgraceful. Sure, the policy has sportsmanship in mind on the surface, but it still leaves the door WIDE open for talented teams to give less-than-100% efforts at times; in essence, it tells/teaches kids NOT to excel when given the opportunity. As far as I'm concerned, the initials CIAC should now stand for Compromising Intensity is Absolutely Criminal..........Do you get the feeling that it's not a question of "if" but WHEN Red Sox reliever Keith Foulke will implode when manager Terry Francona puts a bit too much trust in him during a crucial game later this season?..........The "Unwatchable NBA" Update: It doesn't get any uglier than THIS, folks. Detroit beats Cleveland 79-61 (not a misprint) in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals; the two teams shot a collective 4-for-25 from three-point range and combined to miss 21 free throws during this awful fiasco. In addition, Cleveland scored a PUTRID total of 23 points (not a misprint) in the ENTIRE second half. Granted, a certain amount of credit goes to the Pistons' defense during a game like this, but is it too much to ask for the Cavs' offense to at least SHOW UP in Game 7 of a playoff series? Where are those old "run and gun," ABA highlight tapes when you really need them?..........Answer to trivia question: KEN CAMINITI--who drove in 130 runs in 1996 for Bruce Bochy's first-place ball club........... Happy birthday wishes go out to former major leaguer Bill Spiers--who blows out 40 candles on June 5th. A native of South Carolina, Spiers played 13 big league seasons from 1989-2001 for the Brewers, Mets, and Astros--hitting .271 lifetime. Never really considered a full-time player, Spiers did contribute greatly to the Astros' 1997 first-place club--smacking 27 doubles in only 291 at-bats while hitting .320. The amazing thing about Spiers? He played EVERY position except pitcher and catcher during his career; he was a valuable player, for sure. Best wishes, Bill..........Finally, condolences go out to the family of former tennis champion Ted Schroeder--who died recently of cancer at his home in La Jolla, California, at the age of 84. Schroeder won college titles in both singles and doubles for Stanford in 1942 and went on to become the Wimbledon singles champion in 1949. He also teamed with Jack Kramer to win three U.S. men's doubles championships during the ’40s; he was a top 10 player in the world rankings from 1946-1951. May he rest in peace.

Bob Lazzari

Reprinted by permission of the Valley Times.