Reds managers, Bonds' stats multiply

Fact: Without Mike Mussina, the Orioles have a 14-27 record.

Opinion: Magic Johnson would make an excellent coach.

Fact: Cal Ripken is on a 16-homer, 71-RBI pace.

Opinion: One day, Riddick Bowe might actually have to train for a fight.

Fact: At this rate, Barry Bonds will finish the season with 212 hits, 44 homers, 130 RBI and 29 steals.

Opinion: Prairie Bayou wins the Belmont.

Fact: It's five managers in 44 months for the Cincinnati Reds.

Opinion: Tennis is pretty tame without Connors and McEnroe.

Fact: Kevin Loughery has had as many pro head coaching jobs as Larry Brown (six to five), but there is a difference: Loughery gets fired and Brown quits.

Opinion: It's hard to lament the death of the Saturday baseball Game of the Week when no one watches it anyway.

Fact: If the current pace continues, the Orioles will come close to outdrawing the Yankees and Mets combined.

Opinion: Terry Pendleton should have been reprimanded, by the Braves or the National League, for walking off the field after his pitcher refused to throw at a Reds batter last week.

Fact: Sparky Anderson on why he doesn't carry a briefcase to rTC the ballpark: "Me carrying a briefcase is like a hog wearing earrings."

Opinion: The Reds abused Tony Perez, but wound up with a better manager.

Fact: If the Ryder Cup teams were chosen today, Sandy Lyle and Ian Woosnam wouldn't qualify for Europe.

Opinion: Slick Rick Pitino will indeed return to the NBA one of these days -- to coach Charlotte or Orlando.

Fact: As of yesterday, the Tigers had seven players with more RBI than the Orioles' team leader, Cal Ripken.

Opinion: Montreal will beat the Kings in the Stanley Cup finals. In five.

Fact: Junior Felix has a son named Junior Felix, but a different middle name keeps him from being Junior Felix Jr.

Opinion: Buddy Ryan will be the head coach of the Houston Oilers by November.

Fact: Baseball's attempt to shorten games has cut exactly five minutes off the average game time.

Opinion: Neither of today's American League division leaders will end up on top.

Fact: The teams with the three best records in the majors (Phillies, Tigers, Giants) were a combined 52 games under .500 a year ago.

Opinion: The Dodgers' win streak saved Tom Lasorda's job, but they won't contend with the Braves and Giants.

Fact: Leo Gomez is on a pace to hit 26 homers, but with only 65 RBI.

Opinion: The Bulls over the Knicks in seven. (Go with the best player.)

Fact: Manny Alexander (The Man Everyone Thinks Could Replace Cal If Cal Ever, You Know, Wanted To Like Sit Down For A Game or Something) is hitting a skimpy .226 at Rochester.

Opinion: I'm extremely skeptical about Shawn Bradley, the BYU antenna, being worthy of a top draft pick.

Fact: Juan Bell made five errors in two games last week -- more than Cal Ripken made in 162 games in 1990.

Opinion: With the sixth pick in the NBA draft, the Bullets might win, oh, maybe 30 games next season.

Fact: Take away Tom Glavine (7-1) and the Braves' Fab Five rotation is a not-so-fab 16-15.

Opinion: The Bulls-Knicks winner will beat the Suns-Sonics winner.

Fact: Every gold medalist at the World Track and Field Championships in Germany will receive not just a gold medal, but also a $50,000 Mercedes.

Opinion: Wayne Gretzky's Game 7 hat trick against the Maple Leafs was what being a superstar is all about.

Fact: The first-team ex-Oriole rotation of Curt Schilling, Pete Harnisch, Jose Mesa, Dennis Martinez and Mike Morgan is 22-17.

Opinion: The Mets will finish ahead of the Marlins -- but by no more than five games.

Fact (From the list of "Essential Things to Know"): Chris Evert reveals in Tennis Magazine that she lost her dinner in her U.S. Open trophy after her wedding reception in 1988. Lovely.

Opinion: To those excited about the baseball amateur draft: Get a life.

Fact: The tennis cognoscenti say 18-year-old Andrei Medvedev of Russia will be the next great player.

Opinion: Given sunny days and a local team in the finals, the NCAA lacrosse Final Four could draw 50,000 at College Park.

Fact: Rockies pitchers are allowing 1.7 base runners per inning.

Opinion: What we really need are more baseball books. There aren't enough.