Ch26,1«: The Battalion
SPORTS
.Monday, March 26,1990
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Clay
Rasmussen
Assistant Sports Editor
All this salary
talk is poppycock:
I’m now on strike
X’m going on strike.
No more columns, no more strories,
nothing remotely related to sports or The
Battalion.
“What’s this new strife on the Sports
Desk” you ask? I’m glad you brought it
up.
I don’t feel the management or Texas
A&M appreciates me or my effort. I
have to share a desk with two sports
writers and numerous people from city
desk.
1 don’t even have a nifty nameplate
that says, “Clay Rasmussen — Assistant
Sports Editor.”
And then of course, there’s the salary
thing. I know I shouldn’t complain.
After all, hundreds of people would love
to have this job. But do they know what
the lifetime earning potential of a
Battalion sports writer is?
It’s not pretty.
So, I got this spiffy idea from
watching professional athletes: Whine,
complain and moan until management
caves in. It seems to have worked for
them.
The baseball player’s union went on
strike twice this decade — in 1981 and
again in 1985. And professional football
was brought to its knees after owners
refused to cave in and brought in scabs to
replace the strikers.
My list of demands
And so, here we are.
My demands are simple ones:
• My own desk with a bay-window
(not to mention the nameplate).
• A Jacuzzi located in the sports
department.
• A personalized Bob Decker mug
and water cooler.
• A covered parking space in the
back of Reed McDonald.
• A&M Athletic Director John David
Crow (in a tuxedo) to be my personal
valet.
• A guaranteed three-year contract
with an extension option and an
incentive package including
performance bonuses and A&M football
tickets on the 50-yard line for the rest of
my tenure at the University.
That’s not too much to ask,
considering what some of the top players
in baseball get paid.
Let’s take a look at the Associated
Press All-Star team of 1989. AP has
compiled some of the biggest names in
professional baseball and estimated the
team’s annual cost.
Made up of names like Roger
Clemens, Kirby Puckett and Andre
Dawson, the AP All-Star team would
cost its owner roughly $21,388,036 this
year alone. That’s up almost $2 million
from the 1988 team and $6 million more
than the best team in the league.
That means that the starting lineup
would make an average of
$2,376,448.40 apiece each year.
Players sitting pretty
I can here the uproar already.
And while I know that the average
player doesn’t make the top dollar that
these stars make, they still aren’t in any
financial distress. The average salary in
professional baseball last year was more
than $600,000.
How about the fact that a record 153
players will earn a million or more
dollars this season, and 27 of those will
top the $2 million dollar mark?
And supporters of high salaries for
professional athletes will counter that
since an athlete’s career is a short one,
he needs the big bucks to carry him
through life after his career is over.
Poppycock.
Texas Rangers’ rightfielder Rueben
Sierra brought home a cool $ 1,625,000
last year. If you think someone can’t live
on that type of salary, you need to spend
a semester with a college student.
Hey Reuben, how about you and me
switch places this year?
In comparison with baseball players, 1
don’t think I’m asking for much. Some
respect, a nicer office and a little more
money (maybe even a bigger cut of the
advertising revenues).
And somebody please tell Mr. Crow I
don’t like a lot of starch in my shorts.
Aggies continue Tech dominance
Photo by Jay Janner
A&M pitcher Rich Robertson is congratulated by catcher Blake Pyle after the
junior’s two-hit shutout over Texas Tech Saturday. A&M swept the series.
Robertson shines
in two-hit shutout
as Ags sweep series
By ALAN LEHMANN
Of The Battalion Staff
Pat Sweet was only one pitch away from a
shutout Saturday afternoon when he gave
up a home run to Texas Tech’s Mike Ad
ams.
In fact, when Sweet gave up that homer,
Texas A&M was one pitch away from shut
ting out Tech for the whole three-game se
ries in front of 3,989 at Olsen Field.
Adams’ homer in the ninth inning of Sat
urday’s nightcap was the only blemish on
the Red Raider side of the scoreboard, as
the Aggies won 3-1. A&M, now 28-7 and 3-
0 in SWC play, took Friday’s game 11-0 and
Saturday’s opener 9-0.
The sweep extended the Aggies’ winning
streak to 10 games. A&M has now beaten
Tech 21 games in a row, a streak that
started in 1984.
“Starting off with the sweep gives us mo
mentum going into the Baylor series next
weekend,” Sweet said.
Sweet went the distance and picked up
the win, his first victory since Feb. 26 when
he beat Northeast Louisiana. Still, Sweet
said he hated losing the shutout.
“I was disappointed to miss the shutout,”
Sweet said. “But the pitch was one of my
best pitches. (Adams)just turned on it.”
Few of the Red Raiders — who dropped
to 21-14 and 2-4 in conference play — were
able to turn on the ball over the weekend, as
they managed only two hits in each of the
first two games, and had only eight hits in
the finale.
The Aggie hitters showed their apprecia
tion by bashing 27 hits in the series — with
10 hits in each of the first two games.
“It was important for us to start confer
ence play like this,” said third baseman Tra
vis Williams. “The pitchers were outstand
ing. You can’t ask for better pitching than
they gave us.”
Williams snapped out of a slump this
weekend, going 4-for-10 and slamming the
ball hard almost every time he came to the
plate.
“I’d been hitting the ball hard and I just
hadn’t had any luck,” Williams said. “I fi
nally got a couple to drop in.”
In the second inning of the nightcap,
Trey Witte’s double scored Blake Pyle from
first base to put the Aggies on the board.
Witte scored on Jason Marshall’s ground-
out to give Sweet a 2-0 lead.
It stayed that way until the eighth, when
freshman Brian Thomas’ single brought
home Marshall with an insurance run.
Sweet struck out six before giving up the
homer to Adams, and finished the game
without walking anyone.
Friday, the Red Raiders gave the Aggies
11 walks and allowed A&M to score five sec
ond-inning runs without hitting the ball out
of the infield.
In that inning, Tech righthander Lucio
Chadiez issued four free passes, hit a batter
and fired two wild pitches.
Five runs was more than Ronnie Allen —
now 5-1 — needed. He shut out Tech, al
lowing only two hits and walking four en
route to a complete-game victory. Allen
struck out nine batters, and only one Tech
runner reached second base.
Still, the Aggie hitters insisted on scoring
more. They added single runs in the third,
fourth and fifth innings and capped the
scoring with three runs in the eighth.
Witte and Pyle struck with back-to-back
doubles for the third-inning run.
Witte led the team at the plate, going 1-
for-1 and scoring three times. Williams was
2-for-4 with two runs batted in, and backup
shortstop Sean Drinkwater was 1-for-l with
two RBI.
In Saturday’s opener, lefthander Rich
Robertson got off to a shaky start. Rob
ertson gave up a leadoff double to Raider
centerfielder Chris Moore, but got out of
the jam with a pop out and a strikeout.
Robertson, now' 6-0 on the season, didn’t
allow another hit until fourth inning, and
gave up only two walks while striking out
10.
A&M threatened in both the first and
second innings, but didn’t score until the
third. It was worth the wait, as the Aggies
scored seven times on three hits, two walks
and three Raider errors.
Thomas led off the inning with a bloop
single to left and moved to second when
Williams’ bunt was hobbled by the first
baseman. David Rollen followed with a line
shot to the warning track in left-center field
that was dropped by left fielder Danny Jor
dan.
Witte knocked in Thomas with a
smashed single into rightfield. Chad Brous
sard drove in Williams with another shot to
right, and Pyle walked to bring Rollen in.
Two outs later, center fielder Tim Holt
walked to force Witte across with the fourth
run. Thomas again hit a looper to left, and
Jordan dropped it, allowing Broussard and
Pyle to score.
The inning finally ended when Williams
hit into a fielder’s choice to third. Thomas
was tagged out on the play, but not before
Holt crossed the plate to give the Aggies a
7-0 lead.
A&M scored two more in the fifth, when
Rollen doubled in Thomas and Williams.
The Aggies, who outscored the Raiders
53-7 last season, edged Tech 23-1 this year.
Spotlight: NCAA Tournament
ON TO DENVER
Photo by Phelan M. Ebenhack
Arkansas’ Lee Mayberry, shown after the SWC Post-Season Classic, leads a
talented group of teams into Denver’s Final Four, including UNLV, Georgia
Tech and Duke. The Razorbacks square off against the Blue Devils Saturday.
UNLV leads
talented pack
of Final Four
teams in 1990
Associated Press
UNLV, Georgia Tech, Duke, Arkan
sas: They are the Final Four.
“On to Denver,” read a sign held up
by UNLV’s Moses Scurry as the Runnin’
Rebels polished off Loyola Marymount
131-101, ending the Lions’ emotional
ride.
On Sunday, UNLV captured the West
Regional at Oakland, Calif., and Georgia
Tech was a 93-91 winner over Minnesota
for the Southeast Regional title at New
Orleans. Duke and Arkansas advanced
on Saturday.
With Georgia Tech and Duke both
winning, the Atlantic Coast Conference
has two teams in the Final Four for the
first time since 1981.
Arkansas’ victory over Texas Saturday
makes it the first Southwest Conference
school since Houston in 1984 to advance
to the Final Four. The SWC was assured
of at least one school in the Final Four
since Arkansas played Texas in the Mid
west Regionals final.
That year, North Carolina and Vir
ginia both advanced to the champion
ships, with the Tar Heels losing the na
tional title to Indiana.
Six times in the ’80s there was more
than one team from a conference in the
Final Four, including 1985 when the Big
East had three.
On Saturday, Duke beat Connecticut
79-78 in overtime to win the East Re-
ional at East Rutherford, N.J., and Ar
ansas defeated Texas 88-85 for the
Midwest Regional crown at Dallas.
Duke (28-8) meets Arkansas (30-4)
and Georgia Tech (28-6) plays UNLV
(33-5) in next Saturday’s Final Four
semifinals in Denver, with the national
title to be settled next Monday night.
WEST
No. 3 UNLV 131, No. 21 Loyola 101
UNLV is going to the Final Four for
the third time. Loyola Marymount goes
home after losing on the court but win
ning its mission in the memory of fallen
teammate Hank Gathers.
Stacey Augmon scored 25 of his 33
points in the first half as UNLV reached
a season-high in points while holding the
nation’s scoringest team well under its
125-point average.
UNLV put it away with a run of 13
straight points late in the first half.
UNLV lost in the semifinals in its pre
vious two Final Four trips, to North Car
olina in 1977 and Indiana in ’87.
Loyola’s emotional trip, meanwhile,
ended after three victories and its deep
est march ever into the NCAA tourna
ment.
It was all dedicated to Gathers, a star
for the Lions who collapsed in a game
and died on March 4 of heart disease.
Bo Kimble, a close friend of Gathers’
as well as a teammate, scored 42 points,
seven above his nation-leading average,
including eight 3-pointers. But his team
mates shot just 34 percent against
UNLV’s harrying defense.
“Going out with class, that was the
most important thing,” Kimble said.
“I told our team I was proud of
them,” Coach Paul Westhead said. “It
was a good long run for us. We ran our
fast break. The pace was perfect. We just
didn’t make enough key baskets and
they got a bunch inside that really hurt.”
Las Vegas was just a better team today.
Jerry had been ready for the run.”
“There were three things we had to
do,” UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian said.
“We had to beat the press, we had to
score when we had the numbers and we
had to get back and stop the transition.
We did all three.”
SOUTHEAST
No. 9 Georgia Tech 93, No. 20 Minne
sota 91
Dennis Scott, Kenny Anderson and
Brian Oliver scored all but four of
Georgia Tech’s points as the Yellow
Jackets earned their first trip to the Final
Four.
“Believe it or not, that’s not that un
usual with this team,” Georgia Tech
coach Bobby Cremins said. “We had that
happen several times this season.”
“Them doing all the scoring is not
designated. It’s something that happens
and just comes naturally.”
Scott scored 40 points, Anderson 30
and Oliver 19.
Minnesota (23-9), making the round
of eight for the first time, was the last of
a record seven Big Ten teams in the field
of 64.
The game was the 23rd so far in the
tournament to be decided by three
points or less. Minnesota had a chance to
win, but Kevin Lynch’s 3-point attempt
from the side missed at the buzzer.
EAST
No. 15 Duke 79, No. 3 Connecticut 78
The Blue Devils are in their third
straight Final Four and seventh since
1963, although they have never won the
national championship. They lost in the
championship game in 1964, ’78 and ’86.
Duke beat Connecticut (31-5) on
Christian Laettner’s 15-foot jumper at
the buzzer, becoming the first school
since Houston in 1982-83-84 to make
three straight Final Four trips.
The play that put the ball in Laettner’s
hands tor the final shot was called from
the sidelines by Duke coach Mike
Krzyzewski with 2.6 seconds to play.
Laettner inbounded to Brian Davis, took
a return pass and hit his shot.
MIDWEST
No. 7 Arkansas 88, Texas 85
The regional championship not only
sent Arkansas to the Final Four but gave
the Razorbacks their first 30-win season
since 1978. Lenzie Howell was the re
gional MVP, scoring 25 points against
North Carolina and 21 against Texas
(24-9).
“Lenzie Howell has come to his home
town time and time again and proven he
is probably one of the best players in the
country,” Arkansas coach Nolan Rich
ardson said. “Not in the Southwest Con
ference — in the country.”
Arkansas had to get oy without How
ell for part of the game. He was poked in
the eye with 18:17 to play and the Razor-
backs leading by four. In the next seven
minutes without Howell, Arkansas
stretched its lead to 70-54.
Arkansas beat Southwest Conference
rival Texas three times this season, al
though Texas cut the Razorbacks’ lead
to 82-78 with 1:37 left on a pair of free
throws by Joey Wright.