All in all, this summer has progressed nicely for first-year Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo. He has installed new offensive and defensive systems, integrated his top rookies and seen his key free-agent additions become team leaders.

The Rams won their first preseason game. Injuries have become a nagging concern, but the short-term loss of front-line players has allowed depth candidates to get extra work.

And, oh yeah, Spagnuolo hasn’t attacked an assistant coach and sent him to the hospital.

That allegedly happened in Napa, Calif., where Raiders assistant coach Randy Hanson ended up a broken facial bone back on Aug. 5. Initial reports claimed Cable punched Hanson, but ESPN reported that Cable actually flipped Hanson out of his chair, causing him to hit his face on a cabinet.

That is wholly unprofessional behavior by a head coach, of course, but it is par for the course in Oakland. At least there was no gunplay . . . this time.

The San Francisco Chronicle offered this report from the scene:

Many of his players said they had no idea what happened until media reports surfaced Monday afternoon. That didn’t keep some from poking fun at the latest brouhaha to hit the Raiders’ franchise.

“Cable, Bumaye!” some players chanted while stretching on the grass before practice.

That’s a reference to the “Ali, Bumaye!’ chant from the Rumble in the Jungle bout in Zaire with George Foreman in 1974. Bumaye translates to: “Kill him.”

There is no telling what owner Al Davis thinks of this – or if Davis even knows that Cable is head coach of his team.

You will recall that Davis seemed unfamiliar with him during the news conference announcing Cable’s appointment last season as Lane Kiffin’s dismissal.

We know that Davis likes Hanson. Al bristled when Kiffin suspended Hanson for insubordination and that discipline hastened Lane’s demise in Oakland.

Chronicle columnist Ray Ratto offered this take: “Finally, there is something Lane Kiffin and Tom Cable have in common - a desire to pound Raiders assistant coach Randy Hanson into a gray paste. Only Kiffin suspended Hanson for five days a year ago, helping hasten his falling-out with The Al, and Cable actually did it by physical force 13 days ago, according to multiple reports. Now we’ll see where Davis stands on the matter, where the NFL stands on the matter, and most entertaining of all, where Kiffin stands on the matter.”

CUBS KEEP CRUMBLING

By losing at San Diego 4-1 Monday night, the Small Bears fell six games behind the Cardinals. Cubs closer Kevin Gregg lost his gig by allowing his 12th homer and blowing his sixth save of the season.

“I think we’re going to make some changes as far as what we’re going to do in late innings,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella told the Chicago Tribune. “We’ll have some more tomorrow.”

Gregg couldn’t protest that decision.

“I could see why he’s (ticked),” he told the newspaper. “I’d be (ticked). I’m (Ticked) right now. That’s a crappy effort I just put forth on the field. I could have regrouped. I still have to get people out.”

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering if Kyle Boller will make the most of his time as the No. 1 Rams quarterback:

• And will Marc Bulger’s lost work time hinder his ability to master this West Coast scheme?
• Did Rick Ankiel earn himself some more playing time with Monday night’s heroics?
• Would John Smoltz come to St. Louis as an eighth-inning specialist? Or is he holding out for a spot in the Dodgers or Marlins rotation?
• What must Thanksgiving be like in Jeremy Mayfield’s house?
• What is more American than exploiting Little League baseball players for financial gain? And what is more fun than playing this video game?
• Who could have guessed that Brett Favre is rethinking his decision not to unretire?
• What’s so bad about designing a more menacing mascot for your athletic department?

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “The Heat traded for 6-6 swingman Quentin Richardson. Then again, who hasn’t? Miami is his fifth team just in 2009, after he ended last season with New York and has since been dealt to Memphis, the Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota and now Miami. Clearly, this guy should be called for traveling.”

David Whitley, FanHouse: “We’ve just witnessed the greatest advancement for female sports since Brandi Chastain ripped off her shirt at the end of the World Cup. So why does it feel more like a punch to the stomach? I’m talking about last weekend’s MMA bout between Gina Carano and Cristiane ‘Cyborg’ Santos. It supposedly is the breakthrough battle that will make female fighting mainstream. It came days after the International Olympic Committee approved female boxing for the 2012 Olympics. The ancient Greeks who started the Olympics treated women like property. Now we’re letting women treat themselves like animals.”

Bill Simmons, ESPN.com: “On the day of last week’s World Cup qualifier between the United States and Mexico, a Mexico City newspaper polled citizens asking if they felt the country’s national pride was at stake. Seventy-six percent said yes. Think about that for a second. Americans are obsessed with sports. We currently sustain four major professional sports leagues, as well as NASCAR, the MLS, MILS, the WNBA, every conceivable NCAA sport, dozens of golf and tennis events, boxing and UFC cards, the WWE and even the Little League World Series. Can you remember a sporting event making us feel as if our national pride was at stake? Me neither.”

MEGAPHONE

“There are probably going to be a lot of comments and jokes for the next couple of years. So you’re going to have to deal with them and get used to it.”

Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane, on getting arrested for his skirmish with a Buffalo cab driver.