Apology May Be in Order

He didn’t come right out and accuse the owners of collusion, but Murray Chass came up with some interesting figures in Sunday’s New York Times.

Wrote Chass: “George Steinbrenner paid Britt Burns $750,000 this year for not throwing one pitch. He paid John Montefusco $966,667 for pitching 12 innings. He paid Al Holland $450,000 for throwing 40 innings and then a tantrum when he was released.

“Burns, Montefusco and Holland will not be on the Yankees’ payroll next year. Their absence will make the payroll lighter by $2,166,667. Steinbrenner could have had Jack Morris for less than that.”

If the Yankees fail to win the pennant next year, Chass poses this question: “Will Steinbrenner, who apologized to the fans of New York when his players lost the 1981 World Series, apologize again for not signing Morris?”

Telling-it-like-it-is dept.: Said announcer Bill King of the Raiders after the Indianapolis Colts took the lead in the fourth quarter Sunday: “I think it is safe to say the Raiders are creating an odiferous atmosphere here.

“They stink right now.”

Trivia Time: Have Alabama and Washington, which meet in the Sun Bowl on Christmas Day, ever met before in a bowl game? (Answer below.)

Just Asking: Why do people keep questioning the strength of Doug Flutie’s arm? Doesn’t anyone remember that the Hail Mary pass he threw to give Boston College a 47-45 win over Miami in 1984 traveled 64 yards in the air?

Add Flutie: Says Chicago Bear Coach Mike Ditka: “There’s a lot of qualities you have to look for besides how tall he is, how fast he runs and how high he jumps. We’ve had a lot of those guys who look good in the shower. I’m not looking for them. I’m looking for football players. This guy is a football player.”

How bad is it going for Joe Kleine, Sacramento’s second-year center from Arkansas? The Denver Post tells this story:

“In addition to the hoops on each end of the Arco Arena floor, there’s one in the middle that Kleine uses during the extra back-to-basics workouts the club has ordered for him. The hoop has been unofficially christened the Joe Kleine Memorial Basket, of which one Kings official said, tongue in cheek, ‘We won’t have to change that net for 20 years.’ ”

Mike Jameson, who once went five rounds with Mike Tyson and now serves as a sparring partner, told the Philadelphia Inquirer: “After he beat me in Atlantic City, he was concerned about my health. I said I was all right, and I thanked him. And he said, ‘My pleasure.’

“Mike is very nice and gracious outside the ring. He’s a man, not a punk.”

And inside the ring?

“He’s an animal,” said Jameson.

Add Jameson: Of Tyson’s stamina, he said: “He’s amazing. The guy never tires. He’s like 220 pounds worth of Duracell batteries.”

Can he be hurt?

“The guy’s got a 21-inch neck,” said Jameson. “Can you believe that? I mean, you hit him in the head, and that neck serves as a springboard. Nothing hurts him.”

Trivia Answer: Yes, in the 1926 Rose Bowl. Alabama won, 20-19, as Johnny Mack Brown, later to become a movie cowboy idol, caught two touchdown passes.

Quotebook

Former Ohio State Coach Woody Hayes, on why he doesn’t build up other teams: “I’m considered somewhat of an authority. If I build up another team, they’re liable to believe me.”