Harper missed call from George Brett
Bryce Harper finally connected with George Brett.
There was Harper, the history-making Las Vegas baseball phenom, chatting with Hall of Famer George Brett at the batting cage during the All-Star telecast on Tuesday.
The moment reminded me of a spring training conversation.
During dinner in Scottsdale, Ariz., in March 2011, I asked Bob Schaefer, special assistant to the general manager with the Washington Nationals, for his favorite Harper story.
He had recently seen Harper at spring training in Florida, and he let him know he liked what he saw.
"The way you run to first base, keep doing it," Schaefer told Harper, who on Tuesday became the youngest position player in the history of the All-Star Game.
"I had read that he was a fan of George Brett. I told him, 'George never jogged once to first base,' " said Schaefer, who was a coach and interim manager of the Kansas City Royals during Brett's years.
I ran that mention in my column a day or two later.
When I re-connected with Schaefer at Scottsdale this year, the conversation returned to Harper.
Schaefer had a postscript to the story.
Not long after our first chat, he had called Brett and gave him Harper's cellphone number.
The next time he ran into Harper, Schaefer asked if he had "heard from George."
"George who?
"George Brett."
"No," Harper said.
Schaefer explained.
"Oh," Harper said, "I got a call from somebody named George but I couldn't hear him that well. I didn't know who it was so I didn't call back."
THE SCENE AND HEARD
"American Idol" producer Nigel Lythgoe, who has a home at Lake Las Vegas, has Jerry Lewis and Charlie Sheen on his wish list for prospective Season 12 judges, according to TMZ.com. Lewis, a longtime Las Vegan, is 86; Sheen, 46, is a nutjob. ... Members of USA women's Olympic water polo team, having a friendly match with the "O" cast in the Bellagio theater on Tuesday. Members of Team Vegas, a group made up of players ages 6-18, watched the action and later met the players. When the game ended, the Olympics-bound players received a special effects sendoff that included a rainstorm shower and best wishes from the artists.
SIGHTINGS
Poker star Phil Ivey, purchasing a $1,700 bottle of 1942 Don Julio that he paired with chicken wings and a cheese pizza while hanging out with friends at Sapphire Gentlemen's Club on Monday. ... Kardashian family matriarch Kris Jenner, having lunch at Sushi Roku (Forum Shops at Caesars) on Monday, a day after daughter Kourtney delivered her second child, a daughter. ... At Marquee (Cosmopolitan) on Monday: Kobe Bryant, in a group that included former NBA player Jermaine O'Neal and Miss Nevada USA 2012 Jade Kelsall. Bryant was seen chatting with Redfoo of LMFAO before the latter took to the stage to host the famed Party Rock experience. Also in Marquee: poker player Antonio Esfandiari and Jenner, in separate parties. ... Los Angeles Clippers star guard Chris Paul, dining at STK (Cosmopolitan) on Monday with family members. ... Among the celebrities and poker players in the Main Event of the 43rd annual World Series of Poker at the Rio: Esfandiari, winner of the One Drop event last week, runner-up Sam Trickett, Jason Alexander, Jennifer Tilly, Jonathan Duhamel, Ben Lamb, Ivey, and Australian cricket star Shane Warne with fiancée Elizabeth Hurley. ... "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks, dining with his band and some friends at Old Homestead Steakhouse (Caesars Palace) on Sunday.
THE PUNCH LINE
"Katie Holmes has divorced Tom Cruise. I didn't think 'Rock of Ages' was THAT bad." - Jay Leno
Norm Clarke can be reached at 702-383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com. Follow Norm on Twitter @Norm_Clarke.
