Page 8
THE BATTALION
TUESDAY, JULY 28, 1981
Player reps claim unity
United Press International
CHICAGO — Striking baseball
player representatives, aware the
clock is running out on any chance
to salvage the 1981 season, have
come away from an old-fashioned
union rally determined to present
a unified front to major-league
owners.
The 26 players representatives
— along with about 30 other play
ers — met for nearly SVa hours
Monday night to reaffirm their
support of the bargaining commit
tee’s efforts on the sensitive com
pensation issue that has been the
major stumbling block in negotia
tions to end the 47-day-old base
ball strike.
The representatives, acknow
ledging there had been some
minor dissension within their
ranks, insist the problems were
minor and nearly all of the striking
players were ready to stand firm in
their battle with the owners.
No new negotiations have been
scheduled since the talks broke off
last Thursday in Washington,
although owners reportedly are
set to hold their own meeting
either today or Wednesday.
The players representatives
said the latest owner proposal,
which was rejected last week, is
the only offer on the table. Marvin
Miller, the player’s counsel, con
ceded the outlook for an immedi
ate settlement remained “bleak.”
But he led the chorus of state
ments maintaining the players
were unified.
“Player representatives unani
mously reaffirmed the support of
the association’s negotiating com
mittee and its determination to se
cure a contract as soon as possible
resolving the free-agent issue.
Miller said.
He again leveled a blast at the
owners for refusing to comprom
ise, saying the players were ready
to sit out the rest of the 1981 sea
son — one-third of which already
has been lost to the strike — if
necessary.
“I never felt we were close (to
an agreement) but in Washington,
in the middle of the four-day
period, I felt some progress had
been made.”
Miller said each player repre
sentative has voiced support of ev
erything that was being done in
the negotiations, adding, each
player who reportedly had criti
cized the direction of the talks
have now said they were quoted
out of context.
“What you have to understand
is that the news blackout last week
is a catastrophe for our organiza
tion because we have no way to
communicate,” Miller said.
To help remedy the situation, a
series of regional meetings — the
first one in Los Angeles Wednes
day — will be held to inform play
ers of the progress of the talks.
The representatives told Miller
there was “no way the latest offer
by the owners could be accepted. ”
“Even if the negotiating com
mittee went insane and accepted
it, there would be no way the play
ers would ratifiy it,” Miller said.
While there were few signs of
any break in the players ranks.
New York Yankee player Reggie
Jackson voiced frustration at the
six-week impasse.
He said he didn’t know whether
the season should be resumed. In
order for baseball to have a “legiti
mate” season, he said, between
150 and 155 games would need to
be played.
But Dan Quisenberry, Kansas
City ‘s player representative, was
more specific.
“If we don’t settle something by
the end of the week, the entire
season is lost.” he said.
While face-to-face negotiations
were on hold pending the players’
meetings, talk of a new league was
escalating.
“There would be players defi
nitely interested in another
league,” said White Sox pitcher,
Dennis Lamp. “I’m sure a man
like “Ohio sports owner (Edward)
DeBartolo could do something.”
Former Oakland owner Charles
Finley has expressed interest in
starting a new league and Peter
Rose, associate counsel for the
Players Association, said the talk
“is a fallback position in the event
the season is gone.”
Oilers trim
roster to 72
United Press Internationa]
HOUSTON — The Houston
Oilers have trimmed their roster
to 72 by cutting five players, in
cluding 8-year veteran running
back Boobie Clark.
The team said Monday that
Along with Clark, four rookie free
agents failed to make the team.
They were Jeremy Mindlin, Flor
ida St., defensive end; Frank
Lindsey, Livingstone, running
back; Thomas Young, Baylor, de
fensive back; and George Walker,
tight end. University of Houston.
Clark, 30, gained 988 yards in
1973 with the Cincinnati Bengals
and was named AFC Rookie of the
Year. He was obtained on waivers
from the Bengals prior to the start
of the 1979 season and saw action
on special teams and limited duty
as a running back in two seasons
with the Oilers.
The Oilers must cut 12 more
players before the first roster
deadline on Aug. 19.
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Filling the unavoidable lull
What do you do when there’s
nothing going on in the world of
sports? Nothing big — that is.
With the strike still going
strong and no end apparently in
sight one would think that the
smaller sports would get the
coverage. Well, looking
around, watching all the sports
shows on tv and eventually fall
ing asleep from excitement, I’ve
decided that the smaller sports
just aren’t that exciting to the
average fan.
Everywhere you look you see
the smaller sports. Everything
from a Spanish soccer match to
pool (the kind you shoot) is on tv
nowadays. Now, I don’t speak
Spanish and I really don’t con
sider pool a sport. Tell me,
what’s a guy to do?
The sports pages of many
newspapers are filled with re
ports of Canadian football,
horse racing, and, aagh! —
minor league baseball.
I can’t pronounce half the
names of the Canadian players,
and although more and more of
them are American, I just can’t
get motivated to watch a
“weird” version of American
football. Now, I like the color
Extra Points
by Ritchie Priddy
F
and excitement of horse racing.
I even like to watch the people
at horse races. You know the
ones I mean, they have just lost
their last dollar and are on the
virge of suicide. But still, some
thing is missing.
I’ll tell you one thing, that
something that is missing sure
isn’t provided by minor league
baseball. I don’t care if I ever
see another baseball game as
long as I live. Besides, I still
haven’t found anything quite as
boring as baseball. Maybe —
naw, not even that would be as
boring.
Now here I go again, I don’t
mean to come down on the
smaller sports. They are just as
competitive, and in some cases
even more competitive than the
bigger sports. But, they just
don’t have the drawing power of
the major sports — there’s no
question about that.
What do I define as “major”
sports you ask? I define a "ma
jor” sport as one of the follow
ing: football, basketball and,
heaven forbid, baseball. Of
course I mean the professional
level of each sport. Those are
the sports that are going to
attract the average fan. When
there is an unavoidable lull (i.e.
a period of time without one of
the major sports) in the world of
sports the attention of the fan
almost entirely turns to yard-
work or something worse — like
making up with the wife for all
of the time spent in front of the
tube.
Just what does the average
fan want? I don’t know, but I
would think that most fans want
the excitement of professional
team sports. The major? r
apparently have whatitti I 1 ,
draw the attention of tit fc
That’s good. But what t Our in
done about the lull? Most getting r
nothing. That’s bad. ceremon
But, I have some solj The A
that just might worktolching loi
void. jAer the
They are really quitesij As we
One of my “original ” s«; promise
calls for reruns of big learned e
played the previous ye oouple.
course, the fan may ever .• Did y
realize the game he is vu know wl
is not live. (It’s probaUj^But, a:
Memorex either). Anywj a boon t(
may work for a day or t« network
The resumption of the! >^11 '-tarn
stars competition may trjhaj futu;
some slack. But then | hture pi
would see what some oft- Not th
perstars are really like ABC’s B
would be enough to mak footwear
one yearn for the resumy Just as
baseball. Square!:
Let’s see, whatelsecaniP 1 ? Dre
to fill the void? Howabo l —
no, that may not work.
IBooks as if we could
with nothing to fill theg
average fans eveiytwB
heed — football season
around the comer.
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