Players Should Stop Their Mini-Strike Now

By Dick Young

I would like to tell you that the big league ballplayers are absolutely right in their mini-strike. I would like to tell you that they are being terribly exploited by the wealthy, greedy Lords of Baseball. I'd like to. but I can't. Conscience won't let me.

It would be the expedient thing for me to write such things: Then, all the players would say what a great guy I am, and Marvin Miller would feed me all that good stuff. But how can I kid the people that way. The fans aren't stupid. They can read. They know this about big league ballplayers:

The average pay for the coming baseball season figures to be $150,000. In addition, these affluent young men, who average 28 years of age or have the best possible health plan for themselves and family, a fantastic pension plan, drive foreign cars or mere Caddies, pay great taxes, fly first class or chartered planes, live in the best hotels, receive $29 per day for meals alone while on the road, get their names in the papers daily, mostly praiseworthy, get their faces on TV. get their phones run off the hook by pretty young things, work seven months a year, five hours a day, generally under pleasant conditions. And Marvin Miller wants you to understand how tough they have it? No wonder the guy riding the subway, when the subway runs, can't feel too sorry for them.

More and more, though, I think the ballplayers are coming to realize how lucky they are. More and more the pragmatic players are holding off the screaming hot-heads in their ranks. More and more I hear them saying, when they let their hair down, "Hey I know I'm not worth all this money, but they're handing it out, so I'd be crazy not to take it.”

I've heard Reggie Smith say it. Lee Mazzilli, refreshingly candid, say it. Just the other day, Mike Tyson of the Cards said, "'Hey, my brother makes about $15,000 working for 7-Up, I've got a million dollar contract spread over the next few years. Don't you think I know how good I have it?"

THEN WHY DO THESE MEN vote all one way, as if were voting in Russia? Why do give their union they leader strike backing of 265,000-1, with the one nay vote made on religious grounds?

Out of pure gratitude, that's why. Marvin Miller has achieved most of the above-mentioned benefits for them. Marvin Miller says to them, "Do we threaten the owners strike if they don't come through?" the players roar, "Yeah!" in unison. That's the least they can do.

But when push comes to shove. when it means walking out on all those goodies, that wonderful life, that gorgeous paycheck, the players aren't all that aroused anymore. Realism surfaces. And so they push back their strike deadline. They will make a hollow gesture at getting tough. They will call off the last five or seven exhibition games, hitting the owners in the pocketbook, "where it hurts," as MIke Marshall, the Twins' residing hothead, puts it.

That is not negotiation; that is an attempt at vindictiveness. A voice of reason emanates from Lou Piniella. "They're talking about punishing the owners.” said the Yankees' veteran, "by striking in May when it will hurt them the most financially. Hurting the owners should not be the theme for any strike."

A lot of players around the league laugh at things Sweet Lou says and does. In this case, they should listen attentively. The owners aren't being vindictive. They aren't closing down the training facilities or threatening a lockout on Opening Day rather than wait for the players' new deadline of May 22.

MOST PLAYERS ARE sensible enough to realize this, and to realize that they had better stay in shape this coming week if they are to open the season on April 10, as planned. Teams that operate live-in training quarters have made attractive offers to players who want to keep working out. The Dodgers, Astros and Pirates are giving rooms and meals for $20 a day in Florida to their semi-striking players. I'll take that deal.

Somewhere along the line the players have been convinced that they are outsmarting the owners with their present blueprint. Most of them, under baseball's archaic system, drew salary from Opening Day of the regular season to the last day. Thus, by not playing the remaining exhibition games for free, they are depriving the owners of that income without losing pay. Then, by reporting for work on Opening Day, they draw their pay right on schedule but gate receipts will be slim April and most of May. On May 22, when crowds should start getting bigger, the owners face a strike deadline if this thing hasn't been settled.

Meanwhile, the average player will have collected $40,000 in salary, a slush fund to ride out any ensuing, strike. Taxes will cut that in half, of course, but it's better than zilch.

On the other hand, the postponement of the players' strike deadline: from Opening Day to May 22 indicates a weakening of the union's hard-nosed position. Marvin Miller had said there was no way he could keep negotiating into the regular season without a signed agreement. Now, he will keep talking, and why not? the NBA players are into their playoffs without a contract, with discussions still going on.

SOME PLAYERS PARROT Marvin Miller's line that a union never gives back what it has gained in the past. This cliche is being applied to the so-called "compensation" clause. The owners ask that a ballclub losing a player through free-agency be allowed to select a player from the roster of the team that signs him, after that team has listed 15 of its 40 men as untouchable. Under the old agreement, deprived team received only a selection from the amateur draft, a Joe Highschool for a Nolan Ryan.

It would seem fair, not only to the owners of the Angels but to the fans of the Angels as well, that they get, say Randy Sprowl or Jimmy. Sexton, somebody who has worn a big league uniform.

I wonder how many players, who use the "never give back something you have gained," realize that the agreement on free-agency was agreed by both sides to be experimental. The owners agreed to try it Marvin Miller's way, and did. They don't like what they saw. Now, are they not entitled in all fairness to ask him to try it their way with a compensating player, on the same experimental basis?

The fans seem to think so. The fans think a lot of things. One old guy, watching an exhibition game in Arizona a few days ago, was asked if he thought the players should strike. He said no.

"What should they do?" said the opinion-taker.

"They should learn how to play baseball," said the old fan.

Shorts On Sports (excerpt)

By Bill Fisher, Intelligencer Journal Sports Editor

The remark I hear most when someone starts to talk about a baseball strike is, "Good, let 'em strike."

BASEBALL – I have trouble generating sympathy for either the players or the owners. Both are rolling in money. Broadcasting magazine says the Phillies will collect 5.26 million for their radio and television rights this season. That's the highest of any major league team. When a team, the St. Louis Cardinals for example, agrees to pay three players (Keith Hernandez, Ted Simmons, Gary Templeton) 10.5 million over the next three years you know they're making money, as well as spending it.

NL:  Nobody Owns Relief That the Pirates Have

By Joseph Durso, N.Y. Times News Service

NEW YORK — With two new managers, two partly managers and a flock of new millionaires, the National League opens its 105th season this week and 39-year-old Willie Stargell already has posted the answer to the central question on the Pittsburgh Pirates' bulletin board:

"If everyone stays healthy, we do have a chance."

If everyone stays healthy, a lot of teams have a chance to dethrone the Pirates as the league and world champions, notably the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros in the West and the Philadelphia Phillies. Montreal Expos and St. Louis Cardinals in the East.

In Las Vegas, the odds-makers have quoted the Dodgers as 5-2 choices to regain the pennant they won in 1977 and 1978 before descending amid injuries and dissension into third place. The chief reason is that the Dodgers spent heavily in the free-agent market for two proven pitchers – Dave Goltz, who won 14 games for the Minnesota Twins, and Don Stanhouse, who saved 45 games in two years for the Baltimore Orioles.

But the balance of power also may have been tilted toward the Astros, who o signed Nolan Ryan for $1 million a year; the Expos, who traded pitching for Ron LeFlore; the Phillies, believe their wounds of 1979 have healed, or the Cardinals, who added Bobby Bonds to a line-up of bombers.

THE NEW MANAGERS are Preston Gomez, replacing Herman Franks on the Chicago Cubs, and Jerry Coleman, coming out of the broadcasting booth to replace Roger Craig on the San Diego Padres. The partly new managers are Dallas Green, who succeeded Danny Ozark on the Phillies last August, and Dave Bristol, who followed Joe Altobelli on the San Francisco Giants last September.

But old hands rather than new managers may decide the day. Ryan and Tom Seaver, once teammates, on the New York Mets, are their 3,000th strikeouts. Pete Rose, who turned 39 this month, needs 258 hits to equal Stan Musial's league record of 3,630. And Steve Garvey of the Dodgers opens the season with baseball's best attendance record: he has not missed a game in four seasons.

East Division

The principal intrigue of spring training centered on Bruce Sutter of the Chicago Cubs, who saved 37 games last summer and then won an arbitration award for $700,000 in pay. Would the Cubs trade their ace relief pitcher to avoid an extended contract dispute? If so, who would pay the king's ransom for the man who won the Cy Young Award as the best pitcher in the league?

The questions are intriguing because many people believe that one thing separates the four top teams in the East: relief pitching. Chuck Tanner, the Pirates' manager, should know. Last summer, he walked out to the mound 250 times to signal to the bull pen for his three stoppers: Kent Tekulve. Enrique Romo and Grant Jackson. None of the other contenders relief pitching in such quantity or quality.

The Pirates, though, developed problems during their month in Bradenton, Fla. They had seven starting pitchers last season; they got only 24 complete games from the bunch and then they lost Bruce Kison in the free-agent draft and Don Robinson, Rick Rhoden and Jim Rooker to injuries. Now they suspect that both Robinson and Rhoden may need more time to recover from surgery, and they already know that Rooker is 37 and won only four games last year.

SINCE THE CHAMPION'S technique is to outnumber opposition, they spent much of the last month sending waves of pitchers into exhibition games. Harvey Haddix, the pitching coach, explained:

"We want them out on the mound. So we pitched them. Two innings, then two days off. Like wind sprints. Then three innings, three days off, and so on. It's also good mental conditioning. A pitcher can't sit around and brood. If he fails, he knows he'll be out there again."

The Cardinals, minus Lou Brock for the first time in 18 years, made two financial moves early in spring training in a bid to challenge the Pirates. They signed Keith Hernandez and Garry Templeton to long-term contracts for a total commitment of more than $7 million. They also absorbed Bonds into a powerful lineup, and added the bat of a rookie outfielder, Leon (Bull) Durham.

"We think we can win," said Ted Simmons, the catcher. *That's one reason we stayed together as a team during the strike."

"We play the Pirates eight times in our first 10 games," said Ken Reitz, the third baseman. "We could be 10 games out if we don't stay together.”

The Phillies stayed together, too, and pinned their hopes on a trimmer Greg Luzinski, who reported to camp with far less weight and a cheerier outlook. But they failed to find the relief pitcher for a bull pen that surrendered five runs every nine innings. The Expos, who also may need pitching, solved one problem two weeks ago: They traded Rusty Staub to the Texas Rangers and gave Warren Cromartie clear title to first base.

Green Happy With Workouts

By John W. Smith, Asst. Sports Editor

CLEARWATER – “I’m very pleased with the way the workouts have gone,” said Manager Dallas Green of the Philadelphia Phillies after three days of strike-influenced practice.

“These were the hottest days we’ve had, and we’ve had 100 percent cooperation”

Indeed, the Phillies had better than 100 percent for their workout Saturday. Participating were Rawly Eastwick and Mike Anderson, cut Friday but hoping to find a spot elsewhere in the bigs. (Doug Bird had flown the coop at the earliest opportunity.)

“The guys have gone about their work like they want to get something out of it,” Dallas emphasized.

“We’ve had more chatter out there than we did earlier,” said Paul Owens, the general manager. “The guys look like they’re happy. They’re working hard.”

“We’d have worked on our fundamentals anyway,” said Green. “We’re just going to get a lot more batting practice.

“Because we’re organized (a strong point with Green) and because we’re 100 percent in cooperation, we’re gonna maybe be better off than a couple of other clubs.

“But don’t forget the two clubs we’ve got to beat – Pittsburgh and the Cardinals – they’re still together, so you can’t give us too much of an edge on this.”

Pitchers Need Work

Green admits that the fact that his starting pitchers – all with one question or another except Steve Carlton – didn’t get to pitch in regular games this week could hurt the Phils.

“If we’re gonna get hurt, that will be the place it will be,” said Green. “They weren’t in the consistent grouve that will give us the momentum to carry us into the season.

“We just have to assume that that’s gonna happen now.

“Our starters have proven in the past they can win, and win big. Right now we’re struggling with consistency, and I understand that.

“I can’t explain whether it’s the time of the spring training, or whether it’s just in fact that we still have pitching problems. I prefer to believe that it’s just the time of spring training, that we’re slowly getting our act together.

“We’ve finally gotten out of Ruthven’s head that he doesn’t have arm problems. All we’ve got to do is work on consistency. He never had a control problem before.

“Lerch is a little bit more of a concern, because he is a worrier. We can only eliminate that when we get the rotation set up, and prove we’re gonna run him out every turn.

“I have no qualms about Christenson as a pitcher. In the situation in which he is, mentally he wants to have a helluva year.

“Espinosa we can’t talk about, since he’s disabled. But don’t sell the two kids short. If anybody falters, Noles and Munninghoff can pitch.

“Noles proved that last year, and our guys like to play behind him. Munninghoff doesn’t seem to back off or scare.”

So maybe there isn’t quite as much reason for the Phillies fans to be backing off as the new season dawns.

Phils’ Rookie Additions Surprise Everyone

By John W. Smith, Asst. Sports Editor

CLEARWATER – “I was really surprised,” said Scott Munninghoff.

“It was definitely a surprise,” said George Vukovich.

“Surprised? When spring training started, I didn’t know Scott Munninghoff and George Vukovich existed,” said Mike Schmidt.

The 1980 Philadelphia Phillies are still five days from playing their first game, but you can already call them the surprising Phillies.

Five rookies (Vukovich, Munninghoff, Luis Aguayo, Keith Moreland and Lonnie Smith); two midseason call-ups in ’79 (Kevin Saucier and Dickie Noles), one guy who last started a season in the majors in ’75 (John Vukovich) and one free-agent signee (Lerrin LaGrow) certainly give the club a new look, and bear out Dallas Green’s desire to “change a few faces.”

At the same time, Green’s desire to give the veterans a second chance is borne out in that returning are the eight regulars, two top pinch-hitters, five starting pitchers and two top relievers of the team as it stood last April (thought one pitcher, Nino Espinosa, is of course disabled).

Two At Once

Never in the history of the Reading Phillies (formed in 1967) had a player jumped directly from the R-Phils to the majors at the start of the next season. No, in one swoop, we’ve got two.

(Two came close. Tom Underwood went up directly in August ’74 and started ’75 in Philly, but he did get in three games in AAA in late ’74. Warren Brusstar went to Philly in April ’77 after being at Reading in ’76, but he did get in two games in AAA before the call.)

G. Vukovich, who hit .293 with 88 RBI and 13 homers at Reading, and Munninghoff, who was 14-9, 3.73, are proof that spring-training stats can change people’s minds.

Vukovich hit .364 with four doubles among his eight hits in official games this spring, and Munninghoff had a 1.00 ERA with seven strikeouts in nine innings.

“Munninghoff will pitch wherever I need him,” said Green (long relief is most likely), and George Vukovich has proven to me that he can handle certain left-handed pitchers (George bats left-handed). George could also pinch-run (he stole 16 bases at Reading).

“We wanted to go with the best 25 players we had.”

Vukovich’s addition is more surprising in that pitchers seem able to go up faster, and because (unlike Munninghoff) he wasn’t even on the 40-man winter roster, and could have been drafted last December.

“I was pretty disappointed when I wasn’t protected; I thought I’d proved myself,” said George. “But I realized that with their pitching problems, they had a lot of young pitchers they had to protect. So I kind of forgot about that when they invited me down as a non-roster player (five others, including John Vukovich, got those invites).

“I was a little disappointed that no one drafted me. I would have been nice, because I figured I would have had a better shot (he’d have had to stay in the bigs or be offered back). But I’ve got no hard feelings now.

“When I came down here, I never realized I’d have a shot. But after the second cut (when John Poff and others went), I realized that I had a good shot. It was nice getting the word directly from Ruly Carpenter.”

It’s been quite a spring. He became a father for the first time two weeks ago.

George feels he improved on his ability to hit left-handers this past winter in Venezuela. He improved on his ability to hit both types in the last two-thirds of the Eastern League season. Throw out games before June 5, and George hit .325, with 65 RBI in the last 89 games.

George was the Phils’ fourth-round draft pick in ’77, out of Southern Illinois. He hit .311 at Peninsula in ’78.

But it’s certainly surprising that Munninghoff is up there, too, considering that just two seasons ago he was four steps from the majors at Spartanburg. And in 1977 he was going 0-5, 5.52 in the New York-Penn. Only Larry Christenson has gone up faster among draftees out of high school.

“I’m really surprised because they had to get rid of two pretty good pitchers to keep me,” said Munninghoff, the Phils’ first-round draft pick in ’77. After each cut came by, I felt I had a little better chance, but I didn’t expect this. Dallas Green being the manager definitely helped me. I was very lucky.

“I made big progress in the Instructional League last year, where I was 5-0. Billy Connors (then the minor league pitching coach) worked on my mechanics. I had a tendency to throw with my arm, instead of dropping and driving.”

Scott says he’ll be striving for more “consistency” this year. “Last year I didn’t throw as well some days as others,” he pointed out.

True. Of his 26 starts at Reading, he gave up three or fewer earned runs in 19. But had had four in which he gave up seven.

Scott says the biggest thing he notices about the big-league hitters is that “they’re willing to take a strike to get their pitch.”

He figures his arm is the type that will permit him to start one time (which he may if the regulars throw like they have down here) and relieve another. Though he’s never relieved in a game in the minors, the way his ball sinks could make him a good reliever, if he improves his control over the 4½ walks per game he issued last year. (He walked only one this spring.)

.196 At Reading

Smith and Moreland were known to have made this club last year, but the fifth rookie, Aguayo, is also abig surprise, if you consider that he hit only .196 at Reading two years ago, and was moved around the infield last year at Oklahoma City, playing only 113 games. (He hit .273.) He hit .241 this spring.

“I couldn’t be prouder of this; nobody will outwork him,” said Green. “He’s always smiling. He’ll create an atmosphere of competition which I think is good for us.”

“I wasn’t thinking of this when I came down here,” said Luis, who can play second or short. “I’ll be happy any place they send me.”

How discouraged was he over that year at Reading?

“They tell me everybody have bad years. So I started working on my hitting. They leave me alone last year – at Reading they were with me every day, trying to change my style. I learned to hit to right field last year, and to stay back. I hit .290 last two months.”

Luis, 21 last month, says he has no worries about big-league pitchers.

“It’s all the same; I’ve seen them in winter ball (in his native Puerto Rico). I just got to keep working hard and be ready when they need me. When I told my family, they just said, ‘Keep working hard.’

“Dallas Green was good for us. Danny Ozark – he don’t like younger players.”

It was ironic that for a time this winter it appeared any chance Luis had was dimmed by the possible acquisition of utilityman Billy Smith from Baltimore. But Green was adamant that he wasn’t giving up Lonnie Smith for him, as the O’s wanted.

The day Luis got the good word, the papers carried the announcement that Billy Smith had been cut.

As Luis says about his advancement, and the retention at Oklahoma City of his Puerto Rican mates who outhit him in ’78 at Reading – “That’s life.”

Play Ball!

Players Swap Picket Signs For Bats, Gloves Wednesday

New York (UPI) – It appears baseball players will be throwing strikes instead of organizing one and carrying bats rather than picket signs after all.

At least that will be the case for the first six weeks of the season.

The Major League Players Association, stymied in its attempt to reach a new basic agreement with the owners, agreed last Tuesday to stage a work stoppage during the remainder of the exhibition season, but to start the regular season on schedule.

However, if by May 22, a new contract has not been reached, the players have threatened to strike the next day.

Wednesday Openers

As far as the fans are concerned, though, it will be “Play Ball” on Wednesday with the traditional openers in Cincinnati and Seattle.

The defending National League East (sic) champion Reds will host the “new look” Atlanta Braves in the NL opener at Riverfront Stadium, beginning at 2:30 PM EST, and the Mariners will entertain the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL opener at 10:30 PM EST.

There are nine more home openers on Thursday’s schedule and by April 22 all 26 clubs will have opened their home seasons.

Large crowds are expected at the Cincinnati and Seattle home openers, and if the four divisions are as hotly contested as they were a year ago, Major League Baseball can once again expect to break its attendance record. Last year’s attendance topped 43½ million, a seven percent increase over 1978.

Tight Races

Three of the four divisions featured down-to-the-wire races last season and with several clubs making offseason improvements more tight races are expected this year. Six new managers, four in the American League and two in the National, will make their debuts this year.

In the AL, Dick Howser takes over as manager of the New York Yankees; Jim Frey is at the helm of the Kansas City Royals; Billy Martin assumes the head post of the Oakland A’s and Bob “Buck” Rogers is acting manager of the Milwaukee Brewers while George Bamberger recovers from a mild heart attack.

In the NL, Preston Gomez steps in as the Chicago Cubs’ skipper and Jerry Coleman assumes command of the San Diego Padres after eight years as the club’s play-by-play announcer.

Interim Managers Back

There are also five managers starting their first full season with their respective clubs, having assumed command during the 1979 campaign. They are Dallas Green of Philadelphia, Tony LaRussa of the Chicago White Sox, Dave Bristol of San Francisco, Sparky Anderson of Detroit and Dave Garcia of Cleveland.

Last season, for the first time since divisional play began in 1969, none of the defending champions repeated and, because of major player shifts during the winter months, it will be difficult for the four champions to retain their titles.

The Pirates, despite the loss of pitcher Bruce Kison to free agency, remain the team to beat in the NL East, but the additions of outfielder Ron LeFlore to the Montreal outfield and Bobby Bonds to the St. Louis outfield make the Expos and the Cardinals strong contenders. Philadelphia, wrought with injuries last year, has a veteran club which should also figure prominently in the race.

Pitching will certainly be an important factor in the NL West, with the Los Angeles Dodgers acquiring Don Stanhouse and Dave Goltz and the Houston Astros purchasing free agent Nolan Ryan. The Dodgers and Astros will battle the defending West Division champion Cincinnati Reds for the title.

In the AL East, the Baltimore Orioles return basically the same team which won the division title by eight games a year ago. The AL East, though, is considered the toughest division in baseball and the Orioles will be hotly contested by the Yankees and Brewers.

The Yankees, winners of the AL East from 1976-78, acquired first baseman Bob Watson, outfielder Ruppert Jones, catcher Rick Cerone and pitchers Rudy May and Tom Underwood over the winter in an all-out effort to regain their championship form.

In the AL West, the defending champion California Angels once again pin their title hopes on an offense which produced more runs than any team in baseball last season. Kansas City, which adds slugger Willie Mays Aikens to its lineup, and Texas, bolstered by the acquisition of 41-year-old Gaylord Perry, figure to give the Angels a run for the championship.