Allentown Morning Call - April 1, 1980

Pinella gets key hit as Yankees turn back Phillies, 7-3

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) – Lou Piniella's two-run double highlighted a four-run third inning as the New York Yankees defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 7-3 last night in an exhibition baseball game. 

Ron Guidry pitched six innings, his longest outing of the spring, to pick up the victory for the Yankees, although he gave up two home runs to Mike Schmidt, who now has seven spring homers, in the fourth and sixth innings. Guidry allowed only four hits in the six innings he worked. 

Jim Kaat, a 41-year-old left-handed relief pitcher, pitched two scoreless innings to run his scoreless streak to 152'3 innings for the exhibition season.

In the Yankees' four-run third inning. Bob Watson and Eric Soderholm sandwiched run-scoring singles around Piniella's double. Soderholm also had an RBI single in the seventh for the Yankees.

Those poor baseball players, they’re so terribly abused

By Gordon Smith, Call Sports Writer

The poor baseball players. They're so terribly abused. There isn’y a promise for enough money for a couple new Mercedes… gold-filled lamp shades… Steuben crystal chandeliers… an extra house in Accapulco. 

Wives are down to $10,000 limits on their credit cards, and private school for junior cuts into pop's spending money he'd set aside for mink coats for all. 

$100,000 isn't enough for getting up as early at 9 a.m., spending the day at the ballpark playing cards and studying the racing forms. $100,000 isn't enough for playing a game they played for fun as kids. 

Aaaah, yes, cut into the owners' pockets. Hurt the miserable owners. What the heck. They can't hit home runs. All they do is provide a place to play, and promote the game so millions pay to see it.

What would the owners be without us?" is the ballplayers’ lament. 

What does it matter that most men aren't lucky enough to never grow up? What does it matter there aren't many fortunate enough to be a kid forever? 

Marvin Miller and the public – us – have finally succeeded in convincing 500 or so major leaguers that what they do is more important than what almost everybody else does for a living. 

Our baseball players are among the highest-salaried people in the world. But it's still not enough.

Let us pause for a moment in sorrow for these gallant young men who can throw a ball, catch one and hit it, too, better than the rest of us. Let us put the blame – if there is a strike this season – on the owners.

Yes, those dastardly owners. They are keeping "slaves.” They aren't opening the doors wide enough for their intrepid young men in bloomers and high socks to make as much as IT&T, Gulf Oil and Xerox. 

There was a time when every kid who ever hit a ball would dream of playing in the "big leagues." That was where fame and fortune could be plucked from the vine. 

But baseball players have a hard life now. They're teaching us to monitor our youngsters' dreams. Junior must be told that playing major league baseball is a bad risk. 

Hey, if a kid isn't good enough he might make as little as $40,000. Of course, all expenses for travel and course, all expenses for travel and meals and hotel rooms are paid, but that's just a "bone" owners toss to their dogs. 

Baseball, like football, basketball, hockey, and soon soccer, too, just isn't safe anymore. Our children must be told to look for security. We must lead them to places like Mack Truck, Bethlehem Steel, New Jersey Zinc, General Electric. That's where security lies. Hey, they have better health plans than baseball, and all sorts of benefits. A man would be crazy to trade a job like that to play major league baseball. 

It's a good thing we found out about how bad baseball players have it. 

And how about this? When you have a good job at places like those mentioned, you don't have to put up with the tiring packing and unpacking of bags… tedious flights to the nation's big cities… lonely nights in the nation's big hotels… businesses hounding, hounding, hounding you to do TV commercials… opening fan mail… six weeks away from the family, and risk of sunburn during spring training. 

Yep, it's a good thing many of us parents have discovered how tough a life baseball players lead. And it's the same for the better players as it is for the borderline ones. The only difference is three-figured salaries, instead of two. 

Thank goodness there's been a guy around like Marvin Miller to make the players aware how shortchanged they are. Otherwise they'd all be making a measly $25-25,000, plus expenses… slave wages… as bad as something as insignificant as a cancer-research chemist in the laboratory as Sloan-Kettering Institute.

Garvey sees less animosity this time

By Jack McCallum, Call Sports Writer

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – If it is true, as most baseball owners claim, that the players will ruin their image with the fans by voting this afternoon in Dallas to strike, then no one stands more to lose than Mr. Image himself, Steve Garvey. 

But the smile on those handsome dark features that was only highlighted by a set of pearly whites told you that the Los Angeles Dodger first baseman is not worried. Then, Garvey told you himself.

"I see less animosity toward us this time from the fans than in 1972," said Garvey, who has been voted the National League's all-star first baseman the last six years in a row. "I think the fans are more knowledgeable this time than before. That's partly because you folks have been doing a good job of keeping them informed. (Gosh, Steve.) 

"This game is riding a crest of popularity that hasn't been seen before and the fans know that we won't do anything to hurt the game. 'Look, remember after we came back in '72. How much complaining did we hear from the fans? I don't remember much, if any. I think it will be the same situation this year. The fans will not hold it against the players, and the owners are making a false assumption if they really believe that." 

Garvey, who was interviewed before yesterday afternoon's Dodger-Met game, feels there is one way that the players can make enemies of the fans, however.

"That's if we vote to wait and strike after the season begins," said Captain America, 'say, around Memorial Day. I think the fans will look upon that as basically dishonest and I agree with them.

"Yes, there are some players who think we should do it that way but I don't believe there are many. Look, I honestly believe that if we strike now, we can work this thing out by Opening Day. I really do. It's very unusual to have a large labor contract worked out without a situation exactly like the one we're having here. 

"When the new Basic Agreement is signed, it's going to be good for the players, the owners and the fans. If we vote to go out immediately, which is what I think we should do, everyone is going to realize that what we want is that new agreement. It's going to really make everybody sit down to hammer something out. And we still have a week to do that." 

A strike later in the season remains a possibility, however, according to Dodger player representative Jerry Reuss. Like the Phillies and the Pirates, the Dodgers have met as a team to discuss their preferences. Reuss will not discuss the consensus. 

Garvey, who is signed to bleed Dodger Blue through 1982, agrees with most players that the issue boils down to compensation for free agency. 

"They (the owners are trying to put pressure on a system of free agency that has been nothing but profitable for the owners and the game," said Garvey, who has an ongoing playing streak of 672 consecutive games. "We cannot become free agents until we have been here six years. That in itself is a compensation on our part." 

As one of baseball's higher-paid players (somewhere around $500,000) Garvey was asked how he rationalizes a strike. 

"For every player with a large contract, there are probably 50 players, or maybe 80 players, with a contract that could not by any standards be considered excessive," he answered without hesitation. "And look at the players on top. Look how much they're losing by going out on strike. It's a fantastic amount of money but they're willing to do it because we feel it's necessary to preserve the things that have made this a great game.

"Look, it's often been written that the players are going on strike against baseball. That's not accurate. We ARE baseball. And we want to keep baseball where it is, which is on top. That's the way I rationalize a strike." 

With that, Captain America excused himself and said he had only a few minutes to limber up. But what he did instead was stop and sign a few dozen autographs and baseballs and pose for a few pictures with eh Garveyites who draoed themselves all over the lower levels of Al Lang Stadium. 

Now, would they do the same if Steve Garvey walked by with a picket sign?