Notes on a Scorecard - June 21, 1993

Remember John Paxson, whose bomb gave Chicago its third consecutive NBA title Sunday night, sinking all those three-pointers in 1991 when the Bulls won their first championship over the Lakers? . . .

If so, your memory is playing tricks with you. . . .

Paxson actually was only one for four from three-point territory during the five-game series against the Lakers. . . .

However, most of the 6-foot-2 guard’s jump shots were from long distance and he shot 65% and averaged 13.4 points that series. . . .

Do I hear four-peat? How about five-peat or six-peat? As long as Michael Jordan is performing at or near the peak of his game, it would be unwise to pick anybody to dethrone the Bulls. . . .

The premier long-ball hitter on TV earlier Sunday was Mike Piazza, not John Daly. . . .

Piazza’s home run that landed in the second deck of the center-field seats at Riverfront Stadium was his 14th, only one less than Johnny Bench hit during his entire rookie season of 1968. . . .

The Dodgers’ record of 35-31 is a bit deceiving because they have played 12 more games on the road than at home. . . .

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Twenty-three years ago today, Detroit shortstop Cesar Gutierrez went seven for seven during the Tigers’ 12-inning, 9-8 victory over the Cleveland Indians. Gutierrez had a batting average of .235 for his career. . . .

No wonder Carlton Fisk hasn’t caught much for the Chicago White Sox this season. . . .

When Toronto Blue Jays first baseman John Olerud went one for three Saturday, his batting average dipped from .403 to .402. . . .

If only Andres Galarraga could face Colorado Rockies’ pitching. . . .

The Cleveland Indians rank among the best hitting last-place teams in recent memory. . . .

I trust that Cito Gaston will learn from Tom Kelly’s mistake and add Cecil Fielder to the American League roster for the All-Star game July 13 at Baltimore. . . .

The last-place team in the AL West, Oakland, is closer to first place than the second-place team in the NL East, St. Louis. . . .

Not that the Athletics are playing so hot. They rank last in the league in batting and 12th in pitching. . . .

The Major League Scouting Bureau, which represents all 28 teams, will conduct a regional tryout camp for prospects age 16-25 Friday at Orange Coast College and Saturday at Loyola-Marymount. . . .

On the day that Baltimore fan Lee Janzen won the U.S. Open, the Orioles won their sixth consecutive series. . . .

As ABC’s Brent Musburger observed Sunday, Payne Stewart shouldn’t have worn a Buffalo Bills’ outfit on a day that he was trying to win the big one. . . .

Janzen, who had never made the cut in the U.S. Open, displayed tremendous composure in the pressure cooker. . . .

It would have been nice, though, if Janzen’s second shot on the 17th fairway could have been shown live. Instead, the network was busy with a commercial. . . .

Asked why he carried his bag to the practice tee, Stewart said, “You’ve got to humble yourself now and then.” . . .

Like most of us old folks, I was rooting for Tom Watson, who regained his putting touch a little too late. . . .

Look-alikes: Fred Couples and Jody Reed. . . .

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Typical of the resiliency of jockeys was Gary Stevens’ return to racing Saturday after suffering a broken thumb on Memorial Day. . . .

The small fields for big-money races at Hollywood Park--five horses Saturday and six Sunday for $100,000 events--illustrate the lack of quality in thoroughbred racing. . . .

The United States should dominate the 400 meters for a while. On the same day that Michael Johnson ran 43.74 seconds in the national championships, Calvin Harrison of North Salinas High ran 45.25 in the State meet at Cerritos College. . . .

Thumbs down on Terry Norris for getting knocked down by lightly-regarded Troy Waters in the second round Saturday in San Diego. Thumbs up to Norris for shaking it off and giving Waters such a beating that he couldn’t answer the bell for the fourth round. . . .

The only other time Norris was knocked down, he stayed down and lost in the second round to Julian Jackson, a much heavier hitter than Waters, in 1989. . . .

It is still difficult to imagine Julio Cesar Chavez choosing to risk his unbeaten record by giving away an enormous weight advantage to Norris. . . .

Most college football preview magazines have Washington playing Michigan in the Rose Bowl for the third consecutive year. . . .

I wonder how many of those who are criticizing the new major league baseball playoff format enjoyed the Stanley Cup finals between the third-place Montreal Canadiens and the third-place Kings.