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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 9, 1983)
Battalion/Page 15 February 9, 1983 Mil sports m\ ® Mantle banned from baseball ;1CCR)I ' United Press International NEW YORK — Baseball iommissioner Bowie Kuhn as benched his second Hall of Earner. The commissioner, in jeeping with guidelines he ■ established for Willie Mays in p979, Tuesday banned Mick ey Mantle from active associa- i ion with baseball after the former Yankee slugger gned a $ 10(),0()0-a-year con- act as director of sports . romotion with the Claridge IT lotel and Casino in Atlantic II jty, N.J. Kuhn feels Mantle’s asso- ation with an establishment I . kat has gambling interests is .u, r ; ptin the best interest of base- all, even though the former Yankee slugger’s new job will lave nothing to do with gamb- h- “I have told Mickey I have i|) choice,” said Kuhn. “His uation is like Willie Mays, bseball and casino employ- ent are inconsistent. This Blows the pattern I set in eTenjj 169 when I said owners theleai §uld not be involved in Las Vpgas casir\os. its shoe I I would much prefer both against! B them were in baseball and I Bpe in time it can be worked Ladies four the fmH “Mickey understood 1 re at llippuld have to go this way if he w JackitHcepted the casino job and Texi> Mra< iously sent me a message talftimt saying so. ■“Obviously Mickey, like adies MiWillie Mays, continues to be id half,h Welcome at all baseball func- i a pc ad - left. an :ry Hln his new job, Mantle will itn, coordinate and promote golf tournaments and celebri- Broasts for the hotel. He will jjve nothing to do with the ino operation. He clearly understands Kuhn’s position on the matter and will not fight it. “I got the letter this morn ing from the commissioner telling me I’m out as far as my baseball connections go,” said Mantle. “I knew it was going to happen. He (Kuhn) did it to Willie, he had to do it to me. “I wasn’t doing that much in baseball anyway. I don’t have any hard feelings toward the commissioner. He’s not really depriving me of much. My only association with the Yankees has been as a spring training batting instructor for the last 14 years. If you can call it a batting instructor. Mostly, what I did was stand around, sign a few autographs and do some public relations things for Mr. (George) Stein- brenner.” The Yankees also said they would abide by Kuhn’s deci sion. “It’s strictly up to the com missioner,” said a Yankee spokesman. “We’ll do what he tells us. We have no comment otherwise. Whatever the com missioner decides is fine with us and we’ll certainly follow his instructions.” Despite Kuhn’s decision, Mantle said he is not sorry ab out taking the new job. “It’s nothing I’m ashamed of,” he said. “It’s not like I’m standing outside the hotel and trying to get people to come in and lose their money. “It’s primarily the same job I’ve had since I’ve been out of baseball, but it will require a .lot less time and I will make twice as much money. Now I’ll only have to work about six days a month.” Although he will not be eli gible for employment by any baseball team while he is asso ciated with the hotel and casi no, Mantle will be permitted to play in Old Timers’ games, mingle with players and enter dressing rooms. Akeem is a Cougar ‘dream’ United Press International HOUSTON — The skills of Akeem Abdul Olajuwon, who is a relative newcomer to the game of basketball, have diversified much like his diet and have made him the most dominant force in Southwest Conference basketball this year. At the University of Houston, where “Akeem the Dreajn” disc overed steak and ice cream in 1980, the son of a Lagos, Niger ia, cement contractor has Cougar fans eating out of his huge hands. “Dreaming of a national championship,” the banner at Hofheinz Pavilion said in tribute to him. He has responded to the pounding excitement of college basketball and leads the country in shot blocking. He has good leaping ability and coordination to go with his seven-foot height. Soon, he will break the Cougars’ record of 125 blocked Akeem Olajuwon helping UH on both ends of court shots in a year. But when he came to this country in September, 1980, Olajuwon was out of his league except in his eating habits. He devoured huge amounts of well- done steak and vanilla ice cream, and almost nothing else. He filled out from a gangly, 190-pound kid to a 240-pound brute turned loose on the SWC’s hardwoods. At first his skills were limited to slamming dunks, grabbing rebounds and block ing shots. Dribbling, jump shooting or making the “power step” were not in his repertoire. And at first, Coach Guy V. Lewis was disappointed in his development. “What you’ve got to under stand is that Akeem hasn’t play ed organized basketball very long,” Lewis said. “He maybe has four or five decent years be hind him now. When looked at like that, it’s amazing what he can do.” Back then people snickered at Olajuwon’s handwritten entry on the Sports Information De partment’s tout sheet. “And I guarantee nine or eight blocked shots a game,” he wrote. He averages six, and he’s only a sophomore. Plus, this season he'has added a shooting touch and is scoring 13 points a game — fourth best on the team. His presence on defense is a key to Houston’s first-place standing. Texas A&M coach Shelby Metcalf said as much. “The way Akeem started blocking shots (in UH’s 86-66 victory on Saturday) I guess it would teach you not to challenge him too much, wouldn’t it? I hope we play them again. If we do, we’re going to send Akeem flowers and candy that after noon and try to get him to where he won’t be so hostile,” Metcalf said. Said Arkansas coach Eddie Sutton: “Houston has a great de fense. They know they can gam ble because they know Akeem is back there to knock anything down. Houston hasn’t had that luxury since Elvin Hayes.” Much has changed about Olajuwon, 20, in 2‘/2 years in this country — but not his personal ity. Olajuwon still greets visitors with an Englishman’s concentra tion and concern, and the kindli ness of an unaffected kid. “I am very happy to be here,” he said. “I am liking everything about college and I’m having the best time of my life. I spend a lot of time practicing basketball and studying.” Although he has never fouled out of a game, he comes close almost every game. He spends time on the bench be cause more experienced ball players can get him to foul them. But he’s learning, Lewis said. “Akeem’s learning to play cat and mouse with them,” he said. “He’s going for some and not going for others. They just nev er know when he’s going to do that.” MISA EN ESPANOL Lugar: St. Mary’s Church Fecha: Sabado, Febrero 12 Hora: 7 p.m. La asociacion de estudiantes Catolicos invita cordial- mente a todos los interesados. habilil nould bt ix weeli 1 year-old 1 ■evenlli 21inap’ an Diej; awboys' id extra aw no at HALF-PRICE lYOUTH HOSTEL PASS with purchase of Eurailpass or International Airline Ticket EXECUTIVE TRAVEL 121 Walton College Station 696-1748 resc AGGIELAND DISCOUNT AUTO REPAIR JIM RAINS Owner/Manager 10% Discount on parts & labor to TAMU Students and Staff 1403 Briarcrest at Broadmoor Bryan, Texas Full line of automotive repairs — diesel & gas ALL WORK GUARANTEEEDI 713-775-8859 MSC SCONA 28 SCO/V Intramural Uniforms 20% team discount Plan now to attend Swingster Trunk Snowing Men & Womens Softball Uniforms Sun. Feb. 13 2-6 p.m. Ramada Inn Room 204 FREE FIEFRESHMENTS. TRI-STATE A&M # PORTING GOODS 3600 Old College; Hood s » 7* ;i onion for Valentines Presents RHAPSODY IN BALLOONS We Deliver By Messenger 15 Balloons S 19°; DELIVERED <S> CALL 693-7799 RATED G MSC SCOMA 27 Keynote Speaker For mer [National Security Advisor Richard Allen addresses conference delegates. Professor Marcin Sar of The University of Warsaw addresses SCONA 27 dele gates. FEBRUARY 16, 17, 18, 19 r The lecture series continues! TAMING LEVIATHAN: Defederalizing the American Economy 1 hgate »r's H^ 1 IONS and 6^ ^edcW service 1st Spring ’83 General Meeting Thursday, February 10 8 p.m, Lf Texas A&M Society of Fellows John Moore Ed Fuelner W, hat is the future of private enterprise? Can we “defederalize” the American economy?. Is free enterprise the major source of economic development and social progress in the years ahead? How can our colleges and universities contribute to the economic well-being of our nation? John Moore and Ed Fuelner speak on the topic: ‘‘Revitalizing Private Philanthropy.” Mr. Moore is the Associate Director and Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, & Peace at Stanford University. Mr. Feulner is the President of The Heritage Foundation. WHEN: February 10, 3:00 p.m. WHERE: 510 Rudder Tower COST: Admission Free! The topical series of free public lectures is made possible through a gift from the Dr. Scholl Foundation in conjunction with the Association of Private Enterprise Education to TAMU's Center for Education and Research in Free Enterprise. Please call 713-845-7722 for more information.