This Angel floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee

Well, that's one way to add a little punch to the lineup.

The Angels made catcher Asaad Ali, 18, the adopted son of boxing legend Muhammad Ali, their 40th-round draft pick this month.

Though breaking his habit of wearing two gloves might take a little work.

Hitting pay dirt

"The Texans became the latest NFL team to partner with a state lottery, attaching their logo to an instant-win game," noted David Thomas of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "Because it's the Texans, the game will have a maximum of eight wins per year."

Just wondering

Holy Moses: Have the golfers parted the Bethpage Black Sea yet?

Ringing endorsements

• Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post, on the Lakers' Phil Jackson winning a record 10th coaching ring: "That moves him into a tie with Mrs. Kobe for the team lead."

• Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle, on Mike Tyson getting married again: "Did you see the rock he gave his wife? Not a ring, an actual rock."

Missing a few teeth

Phil Pritchard, keeper of the Stanley Cup, was asked if he would date the legendary trophy if it were a woman.

"Well, she'd be pretty old, and she's pretty beaten up, so probably not," Pritchard told BleacherReport.com. "But she would be pretty experienced."

One for the aged

An 80-year-old woman in Buerstadt, Germany, used her bicycle to overtake a 41-year-old purse snatcher and enlisted help to get him apprehended, Ananova.com reported.

Not only is she being hailed as a hero, she inadvertently won Stage 3 of the Tour de Gramps.

Big D, as in diet

Cowboys coach Wade Phillips is threatening to dock his players $453 for every pound they're overweight, or as Ian Hamilton of the Regina (Sask.) Leader-Post put it, "A hefty fine."

Frosted Windows

Mused Dan Shaughnessy of The Boston Globe: "Notice how much cleaner public-bathroom walls have become since the popularization of Internet message boards?"

Writers' camp

• Steve Schrader of the Detroit Free Press, on why Maurice Clarett is trying to get his 4-year sentence reduced to pursue an NFL career: "Hey, he figures he didn't have to stay at Ohio State for four years, so why should prison be any different?"

• Headline at TheOnion.com: "Detroit Lions begin 8-month megacamp."

• NASCAR truck driver Ron Hornaday Jr., to AP, on why he didn't do a victory burnout after Saturday's win at the Milwaukee Mile: "We're saving dimes right now."

• Dan Daly of the Washington Times, on the most poignant scene when Pudge Rodriguez caught his record 2,227th game last week: "The 32,425 fans at Rangers Ballpark, his old stomping grounds, gave him a crouching ovation."

Baseball quiz

Bob Feller, 90, was slated to be one of the starting pitchers Sunday at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, N.Y., when old-timers staged a first-time event called:

a) The Hall of Fame Classic.

b) The Boys of Gummer.

Sideline Chatter appears Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Dwight Perry: 206-464-8250 or dperry@seattletimes.com