LEADING OFF

PHOTO

PHOTOGRAPH BY MARK J. TERRILL/AP

Hardest On Himself He's only been in the big leagues for two months, but Yasiel Puig has already given fans a question to ponder: Is it possible to play the game too hard? The Dodgers' rightfielder shows his own body no mercy in the pursuit of fly balls, making even his misses (like this one against the Yankees on July 31) highlight-worthy. Sometimes even the outs are costly. Last Saturday he made a sensational dive to rob the Cubs' Starlin Castro of a hit—but suffered a thumb injury on the play and was forced to sit out the next day.

PHOTO

PHOTOGRAPH BY RON CORTES/PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER/MCT/LANDOV

Juuust A Bit Inside Chin music? If Michael Young heard anything as this fastball from the Braves' Brandon Beachy whizzed by his face last Saturday, it was the theme from Jaws. The Phillies' third baseman managed to avoid the pitch, and his plate appearance ended with his reaching base in a much less painful way than he nearly did: with a walk. Both Beachy (who was pulled in the seventh) and Young (removed in an eighth-inning double switch) were long gone when the game ended; visiting Atlanta won in 12.

PHOTO

PHOTOGRAPH BY VIC STEIN/WIREIMAGE.COM

Art Donovan 1925--2013 Back when David Letterman was on NBC, hosting the edgiest show on late night, one of his most popular recurring guests was a crewcut 60-something former Marine who, save for a few extra pounds, probably didn't look so different from when he was fighting on Okinawa. In a way Art Donovan, the Colts' Hall of Fame defensive tackle turned professional raconteur, was the perfect complement, his genial, everyman nature providing a tonic to Letterman's grinning snark. (Dave, on Elf Night in 1988: "How are you celebrating the holiday season?" Art: "Drinking beer.") A few visits were spent promoting Donovan's autobiography. It was titled Fatso, but make no mistake: While Donovan was big (he claimed that, as a Marine on Guam, he polished off 30 pounds of stolen Spam in five days after being given the choice of eating it all or going to the brig), he was limber enough to be a menace to quarterbacks throughout the NFL. A five-time Pro Bowl selection, Donovan (number 70) became the first Colts player enshrined in Canton, in 1968. More than a decade later Steve Sabol of NFL Films interviewed him for a presentation about the 1950s. They shot 12 rolls of film, enough for 10 full programs, and when the show aired, Donovan became an in-demand talk show guest. "He was a classic—a great, fun-loving human being," former teammate Alex Sandusky told The Baltimore Sun. "If they can laugh in heaven, he'll get them going."

PHOTO

PHOTO FILE INC.

[See caption above]