There’s a First for Everyone, He Realizes

There is good sportsmanship in baseball, or at least there used to be.

Reader Fred Trout of Arcadia tells a story involving a friend, Jay Kleven, a New York Met catcher in 1976 whose major league career consisted of two games, five at-bats and one hit.

The lone hit came against Bruce Sutter of the Chicago Cubs, and when Kleven got to first base, the Cubs’ first baseman said, “Hey, kid, was that your first major league hit?�

Kleven said it was, so the first baseman asked Sutter to toss him the ball. He gave it to Kleven as a souvenir, and Kleven in turn gave it to his father.

That first baseman was Rick Monday.

Trivia time: What player holds the NFL record for most safeties in one game?

Grand slams: Regarding Wednesday’s trivia about Tony Cloninger of the Atlanta Braves being the only pitcher to hit two grand slams in one game, several readers wondered how many position players have done it.

According to Wikipedia, an Internet encyclopedia, it’s 11.

Fernando Tatis, who hit two grand slams for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1999, is the only other National League player to do it. In fact, he is the only modern-era player to do it in the same inning.

American Leaguers who have done it include Frank Robinson of the Baltimore Orioles in 1970, Robin Ventura of the Chicago White Sox in 1995, Nomar Garciaparra of the Boston Red Sox in 1999 and Bill Mueller of the Red Sox in 2003.

Favorite topics: Dan Marino, interviewing Joe Namath on HBO’s “Inside the NFL� on Wednesday night, asked the former New York Jet quarterback whether he ever gets tired of talking about the Jets’ victory over the heavily favored Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III.

“No way,� Namath said. “Don Larsen, who pitched a perfect game for the New York Yankees [in the 1956 World Series], came up with the perfect answer. I was standing there and someone asked Don, ‘Do you ever get tired of talking about your perfect game?’ And Don said, ‘Why should I?’ �

Still confident: Marino asked Namath, “If the Jets played the Colts in the Super Bowl 10 times [in 1969], how many times would the Jets have won?� Said Namath: “They were a great team. No doubt about that. And really, I honest to gosh felt this way. If we had played 10 times, the Colts might’ve won one.�

Looking back: On this day in 1984, the Rams set an NFL record with three safeties in a 33-12 victory over the New York Giants. Two of the safeties came on blocked punts in the end zone.

Trivia answer: The Rams’ Fred Dryer, who recorded two safeties against Green Bay in 1973. The record for most safeties in a career is three, set by former Ram Kevin Greene.

And finally: San Francisco’s 3ComPark, formerly Candlestick Park, will now be known as Monster Park. Reader Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe says, “And in the hopefully not-too-distant future, when they implode the place, the gala event should be known as the ‘Monster Mash.’ �

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Larry Stewart can be reached at [email protected].