Notes on a Scorecard - Sept. 11, 1995

The socket of the left eye of Danny Romero, the young International Boxing Federation flyweight champion, was broken in the first two minutes of a non-title fight Friday night in Las Vegas. . . .

By the third round, the eye was swollen nearly shut. . . .

But Romero continued to fight. After every round, ring physician Margaret Goodman checked him in the corner. Romero kept telling her he was all right. . . .

Finally, after the seventh round, Goodman instructed the referee to stop the fight. . . .

Romero was ahead on points, but his 25-fight winning streak had been ended by journeyman Wily Salazar in a bout expected to be so one-sided that no odds were posted at the local betting parlors. . . .

Many in the crowd at the Aladdin Hotel booed when Salazar’s hand was raised. . . .

In his dressing room, Romero, applying an ice pack to his eye, complained that he should have been allowed to continue. . . .

Sunday morning, I read that the injury was so severe that surgery will be needed and that Romero might not be able to fight again. . . .

How sobering after hearing more boos Saturday night when another previously unbeaten fighter was defeated. . . .

But these boos were aimed at Genaro Hernandez because he chose to quit after the sixth round after suffering a broken nose in his World Boxing Organization lightweight title fight against Oscar De La Hoya at Caesars Palace. . . .

Even some of Hernandez’s supporters from East L.A. called him a coward. . . .

They should know that Hernandez’ nose was broken in 20 places and that he too will require surgery. . . .

“I know a lot of people will turn their backs on me now,” Hernandez said Saturday, “but I played it smart.” . . .

In his own way, Hernandez showed as much courage surrendering--realizing that he would have to face the music--as Danny Romero did continuing to fight. . . .

Hernandez’s priorities were in order. . . .

“I was thinking about my safety and what was best for my family and my friends,” he said. . . .

Unfortunately, the sudden ending took much away from what might have been the finest performance of De La Hoya’s 19-bout career. . . .

Known more for his punching power than his boxing ability, the Golden Boy bobbed and weaved and made Hernandez miss 268 of the 350 punches he threw. . . .

De La Hoya attacked mostly in flurries, landing 99 of his 198 punches. . . .

He reminded me of a former star on the Las Vegas strip, Sugar Ray Leonard. . . .

*

Granted, it was against the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates, but the Dodgers played some of their best baseball of the season over the weekend. . . .

In the three games, they committed only one error. . . .

Best images were those of Mike Busch exchanging high-fives with his teammates. . . .

The Cincinnati Reds didn’t exactly scare the Colorado Rockies. . . .

Next up are the Atlanta Braves, but the Rockies won’t have to face Greg Maddux, who pitched Sunday. . . .

Much of the credit for ESPN’s terrific coverage of the night Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s record belongs to director Marc Payton. . . .

A 45-7 victory over San Jose State does not make a season, but, as advertised, USC seems more physical than at any time since John Robinson’s first tenure as coach. . . .

Not much more is expected to be learned about the strength of the Trojans on Saturday when they return to the Coliseum against Houston, coming off a 19-7 loss at home to Louisiana Tech. . . .

Oregon lost two games in a row last season to Western Athletic Conference teams, and California has done the same this season, but UCLA is 44-5-2 lifetime against the WAC after its victory over Brigham Young. . . .

Freshman Cade McNown might be UCLA’s best-blocking quarterback since the single-wing days. . . .

The Raider bombing has stopped. Mike White’s team has completed only one pass of more than 20 yards in two games. Maybe that’s why they are unbeaten. . . .

Rookie Napoleon Kaufman made a Barry Sanders kind of move against the Washington Redskins on Sunday and already appears to be the Raiders’ best running back. . . .

The St. Louis Rams are the NFC’s most surprising 2-0 team. Some wise guys didn’t think they would win that many games until midseason. . . .

No temp is the worth the money the Dallas Cowboys are paying Deion Sanders.