He Found Out Why Chicago Is Second City

Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Mike Royko, who died Tuesday, was a die-hard Cub fan. Of the ill-fated 1969 National League pennant race--the Cubs had an 8 1/2-game lead in mid-August and blew it to the Mets--Royko wrote:

“When the crunch came, the Cubs swallowed their tongues, and New York in its greed, had another championship.

“Since that season, I have made a point of seeing the movie ‘Fail Safe’ every time it is on TV, because the movie ends with New York being nuked.”

Add Royko: “I’m mad at the Cub management for trading Jose Cardenal, the only player I saw who could sleep between innings.

“In fact, Jose could sleep between pitches. With his potential, I had hoped he would remain in Chicago and someday become a distinguished alderman.”

Trivia time: What was the result of the 1969 World Series?

Calling card: Eric Turner, former UCLA standout safety, recently signed with the Oakland Raiders and described his style of play:

“They used to call me Headhunter when I was in the Pop Warner leagues. I believe in getting there as fast as I can. Then let ‘em know I was there.”

Mr. Lean? Top draft pick Orlando Pace, all 6 feet 7, 344 pounds of him, made quite a first impression at the St. Louis Rams’ mini-camp.

Tackle Wayne Gandy was surprised by the leanness of Pace’s huge frame.

“He’s not as big as I thought,” Gandy said. “I thought he was in the mode of Erik Williams [Dallas’ 6-foot-6, 324-pound tackle] around the middle section. He’s a tall guy, so he’s got some long arms. He looks like he can play some football.”

The Rams certainly hope so.

Ugh! Gordon Strachan, player-manager of the Coventry soccer team in England’s Premier League: “I’m on a diet of bananas and seaweed. It doesn’t make me a better player, but I’m a better swimmer.”

Kick this around: The Florida Marlins are high on a third base prospect playing for double-A Portland in the Eastern League. He is regarded as a good fielder even though his name is Josh Booty.

Trivia answer: The Mets, in their first Series, defeated Baltimore in five games.

And finally: Bob Kravitz in the Rocky Mountain News: “If San Francisco is still in first or second place in the NL West by mid- August, I’ll walk around with a loaf of sourdough in my pants for a day.”