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.”
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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.