The Latest in Detroit Free Press

PASADENA, Calif. -- They will see each other again some day, maybe 20 or 30 years from now, at a picnic or a party or an alumni function. Bobby McAllister, the quarterback. Lorenzo White, the tailback. They will laugh and slap backs, remember this story and that story.

There's no talking to Doyle Alexander. There's no disrupting Doyle Alexander. There may be no stopping Doyle Alexander. At least, no one has done it since he donned a Detroit uniform last month. He is the least likely of heroes, a craggy-faced, 37-year-old veteran with a personality -- at least to reporters -- that would compare nicely to a pit bull's. And who cares? If he keeps pitching the way he has been pitching, the Tigers will give him a door for his locker and his own "DO NOT DISTURB" sign.

CALGARY, Alberta -- It was over before the second guy even skated. You knew that watching Brian Boitano Saturday night, knew it when, in the middle of the final cyclone twist of a brilliant routine, he jerked his head skyward with a smile that said it was all worth it, all the wait, all the work, everything, because the gold medal was coming, it was just a matter of time.Nailed it."I had such a feeling of accomplishment," Boitano said Sunday, recalling the pinnacle moment of his skating career. "I looked at the ceiling and just sort of said, 'Thank you.' "

So, in other words, he could still be a Detroit Tiger. That's what we get from Jack Morris' one-week tour of America. He went to the Minnesota Twins and they turned him down. He went to the New York Yankees, and they were lukewarm. So he offered that which has never been offered before: A one-year deal, subject to arbitration.Which means this: Morris gives a figure, George Steinbrenner gives a figure, and a bozo with a degree on his wall decides which is fair. This has never been tried with a team that did not previously employ the player.

PASADENA, Calif. -- Suddenly the magic was gone, dried up in the California wind and blown out to sea. Jim Harbaugh took his first snap of the third quarter -- how many first snaps of the third quarter had signaled Wolverine fireworks this year? -- and he overthrew Greg McMurtry. By a mile. Harbaugh took the second snap and tried to run. He was stuffed. He took the third snap, scrambled around, and dumped the simplest of lobs to Jamie Morris. Morris dropped it.

BOSTON -- You want made-for-TV baseball? OK, you got it. Here is what it looks like: pitchers losing one-hoppers in the sun. Second basemen botching easy fly balls. Infielders bobbling grounders, batters flailing at pitches, major leaguers looking stupid, feeling embarrassed.You like it so far? Oh. Hold it. Let's pause for a commercial message.

I like words. Words are my business. But usually, as the sports year draws to a close, all we look back on is action. The great plays. The winning moments. Nobody remembers the colorful, fascinating, and often boneheaded things that people said during the course of the year. Sure. They would rather forget them.Not so fast. I have spent all year saving up great nuggets of sportstalk. And I have spent the last week digging them out from behind my desk. Some, in retrospect, look wise. Some look foolish. And some look just plain . . . ridiculous.

LAKELAND, FLA -- They keep coming, like ducks in a penny arcade. New rivals for Tom Brookens. Baseball in springtime is oh so poetic, the awakening of grass beneath a player's feet and all that. Yeah. Unless you happen to be fighting for your job. And then the grass beneath your feet doesn't feel so steady. That's the other side of sports. Always someone before you, always someone right behind. Tom Brookens knows it.

MIAMI -- I have a confession to make. Four years ago, when Joe Montana was last playing in a Super Bowl, a certain Florida sports columnist wrote that he was a "wimp."It was meant tongue-in-cheek. After all, Montana was the enemy, leading his 49ers against the hometown Dolphins.

LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- Thomas Hearns was clean. Smooth skin. Not a mark on him. He was talking to a couple of women in tight dresses, and his entourage had a party on its mind. And this was about 30 minutes after his fight.Marvin Hagler wasn't so clean. It took him an hour to emerge after his bout, and he wore sunglasses to cover the swollen tissue over his eyes. He moved slowly, everything was beginning to ache, and when someone asked him for an autograph he answered softly: "I can't do that for you right now. I can't sign with my hand. How about we just shake instead, OK?"

The New Guy was already on the phone Monday morning when the old guy came in to tell him he was leaving."You can have the office now," said Darryl Rogers."Oh, no, that's not necessary," said Wayne Fontes."It's OK. I got all my stuff out.""Thanks . . . I'll just stay here for a while."