Mark Grace usually doesn`t wear batting gloves because they bother him when he`s gripping the bat. This week`s fierce weather has forced him to don them, with wondrous results. He`s opened the season with a .467 average on seven hits, including a homer and two doubles, in 15 at-bats.
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Ballplayers tend to be superstitious, but Grace says the gloves will go once the weather warms, no matter how well he`s hitting. For now, it`s just a matter of brains over bravery.
”It`s one thing not to wear them,” he said. ”It`s another thing to be stupid. If you take one off the end of the bat on a day like this, you`re on the DL.”
Friday was a day like this, with a game-time temperature of 47 degrees. Saturday and Sunday are expected to be about the same, only wetter.
– Gary Varsho, the pride of Marshfield, Wis., was always considered a down-to- earth guy when he played for the Cubs. But once they traded him, he moved to Mars.
”Actually, right near Mars (Pa.), north of Pittsburgh,” said Varsho, who returned to Wrigley Field with his new team Friday.
Varsho had a limited future with the Cubs, who were deep in outfielders. But he fits in with the Pirates, who started him as the first baseman and leadoff man Friday. He went 0 for 2 with two walks.
The other former Cubs on the Pittsburgh roster are Curtis Wilkerson, Lloyd McClendon and Carmelo Martinez.
– Jerome Walton missed Friday`s game because of a stomach ailment. The Cubs say he could play Saturday.
– Either Erik Pappas or Jose Vizcaino stands to become the 1,500th player ever to appear in a Cubs uniform. Chuck McElroy became No. 1,499 when he pitched in Thursday`s 5-4 loss to St. Louis.