There’s No Reason for a Baseball Strike

By Dick Young, New York Daily News

DAVE WINFIELD has averted any chance there was for a baseball strike. He has embarrassed all other ballplayers much, they wouldn't dare strike now. He has made them the laughing stock of the entire land. He has exposed the excessive demands of the spoiled-rotten ballplayers for what they are, an absurdity.

Dave Winfield did all this by making a unique demand on his clubowner. He wants it written into his contract that the San Diego ballclub, for which he plays outfield, cannot be sold without his consent. The ballclub is owned by Ray Kroc, who also owns McDonalds, the nationwide hamburger chain. This morning, while ordering my egg McMuffin, I asked the little lady behind the local McDonald's counter if Mr. Ray Kroc has to get her permission to sell his food business, and she said, please mister, don't start any trouble, I need this job.

I don't really believe Dave Winfield demanded that Mr. Ray Kroc not sell the club without first getting his permission. I think Dave Winfield's agent dreamed up that one. Ballplayers' agents are dreaming up all sorts of outlandish things lately, trying to outdo each other. There seems to contest going on to determine "the agent who can make the most preposterous demand," first prize, the right to buy the A's, with the stipulation they must be kept in Oakland.

Mr. Al Frohman, Dave Winfield's agent, has taken a large lead in the contest. It will take a bold bid by another agent to beat out Al Frohman in the absurdity sweepstakes. I can imagine Gary Walker, the representative for Reggie Jax, demanding that George Steinbrenner consult Reggie before rehiring Billy Martin next July, but I just can't believe Reggie would go along with such a ridiculous stipulation.

MAYBE I'M WRONG. Maybe Dave Winfield did suggest to his agent that he have rights of approval for any new owner of the Padres, but if so it is a rarity. In most cases, the agent composes the contract clauses. After all, what are agents for? The player just goes along. Privately, to himself, the player says ridiculous, but what have I lose? Let him ask for the moon and settle for a half-moon.

Similarly, the ballplayers blindly follow Marvin Miller, the head of their union. He says to them "If I call a strike is it okay with you? All in favor?" The count. 40-0.

This goes every day now, and why not? Every player says just one thing; Marvin Miller has done a great job for me so far. Anything he says is fine with me. The players don't think when Marvin talks. They sit there and nod. They are robots. His soft-drone mesmerizes them. That's his business, and he is the best at it.

Example: I'm sitting on a bench outside the Cardinals clubhouse the other day, chatting with Darold Knowles. He asks me if I think there will be a strike and I say no. He says, why not.  I say because there's no strikeable, issue. The only major point of conjecture is the owners' demand that if a man plays out his contract and signs with another club, the team that loses him receive some sort of major league talent in return.

"There is so much room for compromise on that issue," I said to Darold Knowles, "the players would be insane to strike over it. I'm sure some sort of compensation can be worked out."

He shook his head, no, "I don't think Marvin would go for that," he said.

IT WASN'T WHETHER the players would go for it. It was whether Marvin would go for it. That is an insight into how the players' union operates. It is made up of members averaging 26 years or age, who have the world the tail and can't be bothered with all that jazz about negotiations. So, they just listen to the 62-year-old smoothie who has the easiest union job in America. He can lead his youthful membership by the nose and he deals with a bunch of yulds who have turned over their ballclubs to him, till now.

In whipping up his membership to a strike-vote frenzy, Marvin Miller uses the old union cliche, "they're trying to bust our union." This would be the first case in history where management is trying to bust the union by giving it 98 percent of what it asks for. Just recently, the owners have distributed dues checkoff forms to the players. This will raise 300 to 400 thousand for Marvin Miller's operation this year, a very strange way to break a union.

There have been outstanding examples of players on the verge of free-agency, trading themselves. A year ago, Rod Carew traded himself from the Twins to the Angels. The "compensation" to the Twins was four players including Ken Landreaux. Vida Blue traded himself from the A's to the Giants. Here, the A's got seven men, including Gary Thomasson and Mario Guerrero. Both Carew and Blue received lush long-term contracts, with base salaries starting at $800,000. In both cases, the players that went in payment for stars were decided upon by the ballplayers involved. Had the exchange been done under the plan now being asked by the owners, the compensation for free agency, the exchanged players would been about the same quality, or less, and certainly fewer in number.

THE POINT IS THIS: When a ballclub loses a star through free-agency, it deserves it. There is plenty of compromise room between the no-return for the baseball owner, and the stringent return in the NFL where top draft for choices of high value are awarded.

With so much room for compromise, there can be no rational reason to strike. It would be this sort of insanity: Let's say you are making $140,000, the average big league salary for the coming season. Let's say you have a solid medical plan and a fat pension. But you're mad. You must buy your own subway token to get to work in the morning. For that, you're going to strike?

Hard Work and Sweat for the Phillies This Spring

By Bob Bruhn, Special to the Sunday News

CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Philadelphia Phillies have changed their act in spring training this year. Hard work and sweat have been substituted for excitement and optimism at Carpenter Complex here in Clearwater.

All the hoopla of last year that surrounded the arrival of Pete Rose is gone, the euphoria connected with the acquisition of Manny Trillo has faded. This year spring training is devoted to plain hard work on basics and baseball fundamentals.

First year manager Dallas Green has decreed a program of "repair and prepare" for 1980. Green observes, "The Phillies are a darn good baseball team. The eight guys we run out there every day can play with anybody."

No doubt about it, but the eight guys the Phillies ran out there last year started only seventy-four games together.

Admittedly, the regulars had their physical problems, but it was the pitching staff which was hardest hit by injuries. Inconsistency on the part of the starters and overwork in the bullpen were the primary factors as the club, favored by most to take it all, stumbled to a fourth place finish in the N.L. East.

"The off season was a period of repair, so spring training is going to be the period of preparation. We're not going to be learning any great new tricks, just polishing the players' skills." Green says. He feels must be physically and mentally prepared for consistency over a 162 game schedule.

THE REPAIR PART SEEMS to be working; the players are healing. Larry Christenson, Dick Ruthven and Warren Brusstar have all thrown well without experiencing pain and stiffness. Randy Lerch, who pitched half of the 1979 season with a broken right • wrist, is sound. Jim Wright, who missed the entire season because of an injury, has looked sharp in the early going. Any improvement in the physical condition of the starters will compliment steady Nino Espinoza and lefty Steve Carlton.

Catcher Bob Boone may be the slowest of the injured to heal. Boone is coming off knee surgery and making satisfactory, if slow, progress. Because of the injury to Boone, Keith Moreland will get a chance to play. Moreland impressed the Phillies with a .302 batting average that included 20 homers and 109 runs batted in last year at Oklahoma City. When he was called up at the end of the season, Moreland hit .375 in 14 games.

No one works harder than the manager in this training camp. Like the crabgrass which passes for lawns in Florida. Dallas Green is everywhere.

Says Green: "The team did not play sound fundamental baseball during portions of last season." He is determined to correct this shortcoming. “…I'm a firm believer we must prepare for 162 games." Bake McBride is one of those getting Green's attention in the hope that the fleet six-year veteran can maintain consistency and be injury free over a long season.

Greg Luzinski reported to camp 25 pounds lighter than he played last year. At 217, Greg, who is sporting a distinctive new pair of glasses, looks fit and says he feels good. The Bull was active while he dieted over the winter, he hunted as often as he could and he worked on his hitting. Here at Clearwater he takes all the extra practice he can get in the batting cage to help him recapture his smooth stroke. A comeback by Luzinski is essential if the Phillies are to improve on their 1979 finish.

TWO SATURDAY PRACTICES were devoted primarily to bunting. Pitchers who weren't throwing to the hitters spent time in a bunting drill under the direction of hitting coach Billy DeMars. Batting and infield practice are held daily on two of the diamonds at Carpenter Complex. Mike Schmidt and Pete Rose usually work out on one field while Larry Bowa and Manny Trillo are paired on another.

Green feels the Phillies minor league pitchers are probably a year away from the big league level, so pitching help for the ailing bullpen must come from those on the roster. Ron Reed and Tug McGraw were used excessively last year, and this hurt the club. Green points out, "McGraw was used in more games than in any other season. Reed relieved 61 times, second high for his career. I'm confident if we can keep them for the 'hammer' jobs in the eighth and ninth innings, they can do the job. But we can't use them early one night and late the next game."

Sinker ball pitcher Lerrin LaGrow, signed as a free agent during the off season is getting a real chance to show he can help the club in the pen. LaGrow will get plenty of work during the exhibition season. Green feels Kevin Saucier and Dickie Noles have the ability and competitive attitude to work effectively in relief.

Rawly Eastwick continues to work on a new pith, the split-fingered fastball. His progress was encouraging toward the end of last season, but he must continue this development to reduce his high earned run average. Doug Bird must rebound off a disappointing season to stay on the roster.

Unless Gold Glove center fielder Garry Maddox, who is playing out his option, is traded. the eight regular spots seem set. This leaves the bench open for needed improvement. Greg Gross is a talented and versatile player of proven ability, who could probably play every day on a number of other major league clubs. Gross will be the first reserve in the outfield. He batted .333 in 111 games last year.

Three rookies should play a part in upgrading the bench strength. Green is highest on Lonny Smith, Keith Moreland and John Poff.

Smith is an exciting offensive player who has the speed the manager likes and needs. He hit .330 and stole 34 bases in 1979 at Oklahoma City. Poff is a good looking prospect at first base who can field well and swing the bat. Although he has a position problem playing behind Pete Rose. Poff is a versatile enough athlete to be used in the outfield.

The Phillies are in the league's toughest division. Montreal has matured. Pittsburgh is a proven winner. St. Louis is coming on.

Dallas Green doesn't feel you can count the Phillies out. His team is in a state of repair and he guarantees they will be prepared. Early workouts are finished and the team is healing. Baseball fans will have the opportunity to evaluate the results of this year's spring training program beginning Friday night, April 11, in the season opener at Veterans Stadium against the Montreal Expos.

Confusing

Why Won’t Phillies Pay Maddox What He Wants!

By Ralph Bernstein

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Garry Maddox says that he can't understand why the Philadelphia Phillies admit he’s worth what he's asking in a new five-year contract but won't pay the price.

In an interview Friday night, Maddox claimed the Phillies have told him he could get what he wants in the open market and to go out and get it.

Maddox, through his agent, Jerry Kapstein, have been negotiating with the club since Jan. 1, 1979. Two weeks ago both sides agreed they had reached an impasse and halted negotiations.

Maddox said he would play out his option this season and become a free agent, which would still give the Phillies a chance to sign him if they change their mind.

A source close to the team indicated Maddox was asking close to $1 million a year over the five-year contract, which is more than the Phillies pay Pete Rose.

Maddox denied that he is asking for more than Rose.

Maddox has made no secret of the fact that he wants to remain in Philadelphia. He asked his agent to reopen negotiations with Phillies owner Ruly Carpenter. Carpenter and Kapstein had a long conversation Friday

Carpenter said no new numbers were exchanged but general concepts were discussed. He said they would talk again in a few days. Maddox said those talks would be Sunday.

Maddox said confused. He asked that if the Phillies believe he's worth what he's asking and won't pay, what will they do at the expiration of contracts with such stars as Mike Schmidt, Greg Luzinski, Larry Bowa, and Manny Trillo?

Maddox asked if they take the same attitude, how can they remain competitive. He asked if they are going to tell all those stars to take a walk and test the waters of the free-agent market.

Carpenter is a hard-liner when it comes to signing expensive free agents and paying salaries he considers out of line with baseball's financial structure. The only bonafide free agent signed by the Phillies has been Rose.

Despite drawing 2.7 million people at home in 1979, the Phillies claim they lost money.

Maddox said he can't believe it. He asked if baseball teams are in a state of poverty, why won't they open their books and show the players the facts?

Maddox said he plans only to talk through spring training. If there is no settlement, he'll play out his option and won't talk about money again until he becomes a free agent.

Maddox did say that Kapstein told him Friday's talks with Carpenter were of a positive nature and that both were optimistic.

The 30-year-old Maddox, who was acquired May 4, 1975, from the San Francisco Giants for first baseman Willie Montanez, has developed into one of the best centerfielders in major league baseball. He is noted for his fielding abilities, but last season, he also hit .281, drove in 61 runs and led the team with 26 stolen bases.

Carlton Hurls Five Scoreless Innings

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Steve Carlton pitched five scoreless innings Saturday as the Philadelphia Phillies took a 3-0 shutout from the Houston Astros.

The big lefthander gave up three hits over the first five innings while walking one and striking out four.

Larry Bowa scored the first run in the third inning, reaching base on an error shortstop Rafael Landestoy. Bowa moved to third on Carlton's single and scored on an infield out by Pete Rose. The run came off losing pitcher Joe Niekro.

Reliever Ken Forsch was tagged for the other two runs in the seventh. Greg Gross singled to left and scored as Garry Maddox followed with a double to deep center.

Maddox advanced to third when base Keith Moreland grounded to first and scored when Bowa laid down a perfect sacrifice squeeze bunt.

The Phils' win was their seventh in 10 games: Houston fell to 2-7.

Say Hey!

For the First Time in 30 Years Willie Mays Is Not With a Big League Baseball Team

By Peter Mattiace

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — For the first time in 30 years, baseball Hall of Famer Willie Mays is not running, catching, throwing or hitting in the warm sun of spring training.

Instead, the "Say Hey Kid" is bouncing around the chilly Northeast, talking baseball for a Boardwalk casino hotel.

In the spring, especially, baseball enthusiasts love to listen to Willie Mays.

"I really like talking to kids because I have something to tell them," Mays says. "My message is, 'Hey, I come from a poor family. I didn't have the right education. It wasn't easy, but I made it to the top the hard way.'

"Then I tell them, 'Don't do it the way I did it."

The message is important to Mays, now pushing 49. But when a youngster asks Mays whether he would rather be talking to a community group or shagging flies in center field, he answers, "If I could still play, I'd be playing baseball right now."

FOR 10 DAYS A MONTH, for the next 10 years, Willie Howard Mays Jr. will be a goodwill ambassador for Bally's Park Place casino hotel.

The pay is very good - $100,000 a year to talk at elementary schools, play golf occasionally, say hello to civic groups, greet high-rollers and pose for pictures with bused-in tourists.

"They don't push me to do anything. Whatever I do I want to do. It's good for the hotel and it's good for me," Mays says.

Mays loves to talk baseball - about his great over-the-shoulder catch in the 1954 World Series, about pitchers like Sandy Koufax, Don Newcombe and Robin Roberts, about artificial turf vs. natural grass, about his patented basket catch, and about his New York Giants, his San Francisco Giants and his New York Mets.

In front of children who barely remember him, and older fans who recall every great play, Mays chats like he's bantering with a friend in a neighborhood tavern.

"Wouldn't YOU shake with Koufax on the mound?" he asks a youngster.

"You say the Pirates, I say maybe the Phillies. Let's put a 100 on it and we'll see," he kids an oldtimer.

UNLESS HE IS ASKED, Mays offers little about gambling or the casino hotel or the way Commissioner Bowie Kuhn threw him out of baseball when he took his new job last October.

"I'll tell you just what I told the commissioner, he says. "I cannot gamble. I don't want to gamble. I'm in the community more than I'm in the hotel. I want to serve the people. I don't really see a conflict.

"And I told this to the commissioner," Mays adds. "I said, 'I don't feel I deserve this kind of handling after 22 years in baseball with never a scratch of trouble. I don't think I've damaged baseball with this job. I'd never hurt baseball. Baseball made me. Baseball was very good to me.’"

But with all his major league records, Mays is not embarrassed to say he is looking for financial security now. Park Place President William Weinberger, who adopted former boxing champion Joe Louis for Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, simply offered Mays the security he sought.

"P.R. (public relations) is my field," Mays says.

For the remainder of the month, Mays will make appearances for a major toiletries manufacturer, a New York brokerage firm, a Boston racetrack and a string of Los Angelesarea supermarkets. He still makes his home in Atherton, Calif., near San Francisco, with his second wife, Mae.

"I HAVE A LOT of things going for me, but life could change, he says. "I've seen too many guys get to 60 and say, 'That's old.' But that's not old today."

Still, Mays tells child admirers in the ghettos and the suburbs to go to college. His new experiences in the business world make him regret that he ended his education with a high school diploma in Birmingham, Ala.

"I could have been better in finances. I could have been a better speaker. I could have been a better person," he says.

With a few more years in the majors, Mays also could have been richer.

"I don't like to talk about money and I don't like to down players." he said.

"But, Dave Parker (of the Pirates) really hit as well as I did, he doesn't field like I did and he doesn't run as I did. He's getting $1 million.... What do you think of that?"

Phils Win, Carlton Sharp

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) – Steve Carlton pitched five scoreless innings Saturday as the Philadelphia Phillies took a 3-0 shutout from the Houston Astros.

The big lefthander gave up three hits over the first five innings while walking one and striking out four.

Larry Bowa scored the first run in the third inning, reaching base on an error by shortstop Rafael Landestoy. Bowa moved to third on Carlton’s single and scored on an infield out by Pete Rose. The run came off of losing pitcher Joe Niekro.

Reliever Ken Forsch was tagged for the other two runs in the seventh. Greg Gross singled to left and scored as Garry Maddox followed with a double to deep center.

Maddox advanced to third when Keith Moreland grounded to first base and scored when Bowa laid down a perfect sacrifice squeeze bunt.

The Phils’ win was their seventh in 10 games; Houston fell to 2-7.