Hot-hitting All-Star second baseman Ryne Sandberg is gaining a reputation for being a precocious pyromaniac in the Cubs` locker room. Sandberg is the acknowledged ”hot foot” prankster on the club. He has lit matches under the feet of numerous unsuspecting teammates. Tuesday night, the generally quiet and unassuming Sandberg made sure assistant trainer Dick Cummings was ”fired up” before the game.
”Cummings is so jumpy now that he practically flies out of his shoes whenever he sees Ryno come near him,” said Cubs catcher Jody Davis.
Scott Sanderson, who started his first game since June 14 Tuesday night, said he has gained respect for the task of relief pitchers.
”It`s not an easy job out of the bullpen at all. What I knew of it before, it became even more solidified in my mind after working out there,”
said Sanderson. ”The guys who do it, and do it well, should be applauded for the job that they do.”
Even when he was in the bullpen, Sanderson said he was thinking as a starter. He closely followed the pitching patterns of Cub starters on a given day.
”Being in the bullpen is a different way of thinking about the ballgame,” he said. ”To me, it was almost totally different than being a starter.”
Shortstop Shawon Dunston, on the disabled list with a broken finger since June 16, said he will be allowed to start taking batting practice on Aug. 13.
”I can`t quite make a fist yet, so it bothers me trying to hold a bat,” said Dunston. ”But I`ve been taking grounders and throwing. I can throw just as hard as I could before I broke my finger.”
Rick Sutcliffe, who has donated thousands of dollars and much of his time to needy organizations, Wednesday visited Children`s Hospital in Pittsburgh to see 20-month-old Martha Luque, who is trying to survive a liver transplant. Sutcliffe has appeared on local television to try and raise money for Luque, the daughter of a Peruvian lawyer.
Even the last-place Pirates find it difficult to explain their dominance over the Cubs this season.
”We`ve played well against the Giants, and we`ve even played the Mets well, as well as the Cubs,” said center-fielder Barry Bonds. ”But we`ve got to play Philadelphia better. That`s a team that has really hurt us. When you beat the good teams and then you don`t beat the teams you should beat, it`s depressing sometimes.”
