Hard-Hitting Tackler Had Chip on His Mind

Pat McInally, former wide receiver and punter for the Cincinnati Bengals, announced his retirement this year after a 10-year career that almost never got off the ground.

McInally, a Villa Park High School product who went to Harvard, made his professional debut in the 1975 College All-Star game. He caught a touchdown pass but broke a leg when tackled in the end zone and had to sit out the season.

The next season, in a Bengal intrasquad scrimmage, he caught a pass over the middle and was hit with a vicious clothesline tackle by linebacker Ron Pritchard. McInally was hospitalized with a concussion and injured shoulder. Fortunately, he recovered and played that season.

“I remember Pritchard visiting me in the hospital,” McInally told Ira Berkow of the New York Times. “I had gotten along fine with Ron, considering he was a linebacker. Well, he came into the room with his head hanging down. He explained that he had mistaken me for Chip Myers, who was built like me. He didn’t like Chip. But when he saw it was me he had hurt, he felt awful. He said, ‘I felt so bad that I went up to Chip and made up with him.’ ”

How did that make McInally feel?

“How did I feel?” he said. “I wanted to raise up and hit him, but I couldn’t move.”

Trivia Time: Who are the tallest and shortest players in major league baseball history? (Answer below.)

The Punch Line: Stan Isaacs of Newsday passes along this one: New York Mets announcer Ralph Kiner, on a recent telecast, said of Chicago Cubs pitcher Rick Sutcliffe, “Rick does interior decorating on the side.”

As fellow announcer Fran Healy registered surprise, Kiner said unblinkingly, “Yes, he once rearranged Tom Lasorda’s office.”

The Bo Watch: Bo Jackson was 2 for 4 with a double and a two-run home run Thursday for the Memphis Chicks in a 9-7 loss to the Orlando Twins. He was 0 for 3 Friday. In 31 games, he is batting .248 with 18 runs scored, 6 doubles, 3 triples, 5 home runs and 18 RBIs.

Gary Fencik of the Chicago Bears, at a London press conference for Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys, told British reporters he didn’t like soccer.

Boos.

“I find it hard to watch a game where you cannot use your hands, although Diego Maradona uses his,” Fencik said.

Cheers.

It was a controversial goal by Maradona that helped Argentina beat England in the World Cup quarterfinals.

Trivia Answer: The tallest was Johnny Gee, 6-9 pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1939-46. The shortest was Eddie Gaedel, 3-7 pinch-hitter for the St. Louis Browns in 1951.

Quotebook

Peter O’Malley, addressing former Dodger stars before the old-timers’ game at Dodger Stadium: “I really hope you’ll give it your best. You may well be the main part of our 1986 highlight film.”