A theory on NL All-Star supremacy

Remember outfielder Tommy Davis, a former National League batting champion who averaged .346 for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1962, with 230 hits, 27 homers and 153 runs batted in? Well, Davis thinks he knows why the National League has now beaten the American League 11 consecutive times in baseball's midseason All-Star Game.

''It all goes back to the fact that the National League is a fastball league and the American League a junk-ball league,'' Tommy said. ''National League hitters know they have to be aggressive or they're going to fall behind in the count. So they have learned to attack any pitch they think they can hit, even if it's the first one thrown.

''But American League hitters tend to lay back and take good pitches, hoping that maybe some junk will be along in a minute, only you can't do that against National League pitchers,'' he added. ''National League All-Star teams also have more unity, partly because a lot of the same players, like Pete Rose, are named every year. Those kinds of players go at things more as a team and come in expecting to win. Look it up, the turnover of American League All-Star personnel is much greater than that in the National.''

Davis, now in the air cargo business, is still in demand as a public speaker.