Vintage Bill Veeck practiced by Miami Miracle ball club TAMPA - Bill Veeck's ghost, er son, the wild man who nearly destroyed Comiskey Park with Disco Demolition Night, is alive and well and practicing his outrageous brand of public relations in the Florida State League. Mike Veeck is the president of the independent Miami Miracle, a club that won't play a single game in Miami this season and operates out of a peach-colored trailer set up behind its "home" ballpark at Pompano Beach Municipal Stadium. Only a team run by someone named Veeck would call itself the Miami Miracle and play home games in Pompano Beach. The decision to play outside of Miami was made long before Veeck became involved with the club, though. Miracle owner Marv Goldkang, who bought the franchise from New York businessman Stuart Revo last fall, made the move to Pompano when it became apparent to her that Miami baseball fans - what few there seem to be - simply did not support the Miracle. To help ensure that her turnstiles in Pompano would indeed turn and not rust this season, Goldkang hired Veeck and demanded that he bring his whacky bag of tricks with him. Almost immediately, Veeck, who has been running an advertising agency in Pompano since he got out of baseball nine years ago, brought in a dog named Jericho that delivers baseballs to the umpire. Call it vintage Veeck. On the heels of that ultra-popular move - Jericho receives more autograph requests than Miracle manager Mike Easler, Veeck said - the Miracle held a "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" night, where somebody dressed in a turtle suit walked around the park entertaining kids all night. And they followed that up with a $10 Haircut Night - complete with barber chair and poll for the adults. The stunts have only had a slight impact on attendance. With an average crowd of less than 400, the Miracle are still hovering near the bottom of the league in attendance. But the fans are having fun, Veeck said. "The community's taking a look-see and it's starting to catch on," he said. "So with the next little barrage here, maybe we'll get a few more fans out." It's doubtful that the FSL will mind when he stages Babes in Toyland Night - a toy-grabbing freefor-all for the kids, scheduled for Friday night or Jericho Night, where all dogs will be admitted free. But when he stages Blue Review Night, there could be trouble. Veeck's plan is to give fans placards with numbers on them and have them rate the umpires' calls. "It's in honor of the late great Ed Hurley, one of the worst umpires in the history of baseball," Veeck said. "It's kind of a take-off on an old gag my dad tried 40 years ago when he had a thing called Grandstand Managers. The fans would be asked what to do i in certain situations, like bunt or hit and run, and they could respond by holding up cards that said yes or no." .. Matilla's merit. When inquisitors asked Boston Red Sox general manager Lou Gorman this spring to expound on his organization's top catching prospects, the name Pedro Matilla spewed forth from his mouth more often than the daily lunch menu. Gorman, the man who never met a lunch he didn't like, apparently is yet to meet a Matilla he doesn't like. "You'll want to keep an eye on that kid, he's going to be a good one," Gorman said of the Cuban native, a solid defensive catcher who, after two unimpressive years at Elmira (New York-Penn), finally began to blossom as a hitter last season when 1 he hit .285 with five homers and 23 RBI for the Red Sox rookie-affiliate in the Gulf Coast League. "We really like what we see of Pedro," Gorman said. "We think that in time he can develop into a fine major-league catcher."
