With Young Ryan, On-Deck Batters Turned to Beggars

Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News writes that pitcher Nolan Ryan was aware of the frightening side effects of his raw speed even when he was in high school.

In a playoff game, he hit the leadoff batter on the helmet, breaking it. He hit the next batter on the arm, breaking it.

“The third guy went up to his coach and begged him not to send him up there,” Ryan recalled. “I don’t blame him. I wouldn’t have gone up there, either.”

Trivia time: What is the highest scoring game in NBA history?

Ball talk: The odds were 66 to 1 against the Orlando Magic getting the top pick in the NBA lottery. But it lucked out. Or did it?

Magic General Manager Pat Williams on his pre-lottery strategy: “We’re talking to our ball a lot, getting it up, giving it a pep talk, telling it not to be intimidated by all the other balls.”

Barry bashing? Art Spander of the San Francisco Examiner commenting on a recent Sports Illustrated article on the Giants’ Barry Bonds:

“Sports Illustrated, once a magazine of integrity, has taken an in-depth look at Bonds. It’s also taken an ax to Bonds. Whack, slash.

“He comes across as a blend of Donald Trump, Donald Duck, and Dracula. Hear Barry brag. See Barry sneer. Watch Barry stiff the reporter.”

Just as well: Dallas Green, the new manager of the New York Mets, hasn’t had a chance to talk recently with his wife, Dixie, who is vacationing in Tibet and will visit Bangkok and Hong Kong before returning home June 5.

“I might get fired before she gets home, and she would never know I had the job.”

Getting to know you: In a recent game against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Florida Marlins stranded 17 runners, which meant John Kruk had a lot of company at first base.

“It was Meet the Marlins Night,” Kruk said.

The last straw: Former Olympic gymnasts Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner will be the grand marshals for Saturday’s Garden Grove Strawberry Festival parade.

Where’s Darryl Strawberry when you really need him?

Brown’s legacy: From Sacramento King General Manager Jerry Reynolds: “Rick Pitino is the Larry Brown of the 1990s. No job is officially open until he turns it down.”

Trivia answer: The Detroit Pistons beat the Denver Nuggets, 186-184, in double overtime on Dec. 13, 1983.

Quotebook: St. Louis Cardinal outfielder Mark Whiten, on watching baseball on television: “I go home, turn on the TV and doze off. I can only watch it for so long. It’s a good sleeping pill.”