Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 58

D2 The Arizona Republic Thursday, April 9, 1992 On The Air Visually impaired find hero in Suns' Ceballos 8 Here's a switch, flayer takes ess money 1 1 a JM. fH Randy Bush Realizes middle-level talent can't continue making top-level salaries. They paranteed the terms. "I think it showed some foresight," Bush admits. "My agent and I have always said let's be careful not to price ourselves out of the market' "I'm going to play until all of the teams tell me I can't play anymore.

And then I'll get on with the next phase of my life. I'm very much looking forward to that. I've never understood why players say they want to make sure they don't have to work after baseball." Isn't that refreshing? Nobody cheered louder than Maureen Ryan Esposito when Cedric Ceballos of the Suns slammed home a dunk blindfolded at the NBA All-Star Weekend. "I got the kick out of that," she said. "All of my friends who are blind did, too." Twenty-seven years ago, Esposito was born legally blind.

She only can see objects clearly if they are within inches of her eyes. Most of the world is a blur. But that did not stop Esposito from averaging double figures for Metuchen (N.J.) High School junior varsity basketball team. "No one could ever understand how I could barely see but still make baskets. It just took a lot of practice." Esposito is preparing for the 1 992 Paralympic Summer Games, in Barcelona.

She was one of six women to make the team in goalball. The Germans invented the sport after World War II as rehabilitation for blinded soldiers. The game is played on volleyball-size courts, with three players per side. The object is to score goals by underhanding a 3-pound ball filled with bells into a court-width net. The players defend the goal by throwing their bodies in the direction of the jingling bells.

Everyone wears a blackened ski mask, "even the totally blind," Esposito said with a laugh. "They want to make sure nobody can see anything." Her lack of vision once helped her school win a cross-country meet. "I got lost and on my home course. Since I was pretty good, I was at the front of the pack and no joke four girls from the other team followed me and got lost, too. So my coach didn't mind, because we won." It's big news here Bill Clinton, Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Verdi wrote, won big in Randy Bush is not only a two-time World Series champion, he's smart enough to know the only way to be a three-timer is to stay in baseball Bush, a utility outfielder-first baseman type, has a business degree and plays the stock market as a hobby.

He's studied baseball's financial picture. He knows teams will no longer be able to pay mid-level talent top-level money. Part-time players like Bush would find themselves out of the game if management deemed them overpaid. There are a lot of players of Bush's ability making well over 1 million a jtear. They are headed for a fall Bush asked for $900,000 total for two years.

Bush likes it, his agent, Jim Bronner, likes it and the Twins love it game was nearly suspended before the a key finally turned up. Has had enough Poor California Angels. Poor Gene Autry. The old singing cowboy doesn't care if the tumbling tumbleweeds take over Anaheim Stadium. "Anyone who wants the Angels can have them," he said.

"There is no warmth anymore. There's no feeling of family. Once, I was close to all the players." Dynasty? After Duke had won its second straight NCAA basketball championship, Coach Mike Krzyzewski was asked about establishing a dynasty. Krzyzewski, a history major in college, replied that, being a lifelong Cubs fan, he didn't know anything about dynasties. Live bait It's not Burt Reynolds and it's not Cosmopolitan, but in the April issue of Details magazine, Missouri's Randy Blaukat earned the distinction of being the first bass pro to pose nude in a national publication.

SPORTS TAKES EDITOR Jeff Cade Compiled from Republic sports wire and staff sources. ITS YOUR CALL 271-8333. TODAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Seattle Qolkh Seattle State 'l)m- 7-30 om 7:30 pm. KTAR (620) KTAR626) Suns 0,145 aspn pN wjy Tacoma Tacoma Tacoma Tacoma Vancouver Vancouver gMSkBt p.m. 7.05p.m.

KXAM (1310) KXAM (1310) KXAM (1310) KXAM (1310) KXAM (1310) KXAM(1310) hi 'I AiXiA.Liiiir iJiMtiiiJil i i 'i Stanford Sord UNLV UNLV 2:30 p.nt 7 p.m. 7 p.m. ITv Southern Southern Southern JP Cal Cal Cal 7 p.m. 7 p.m. p.m.

UA ffV Chapman Chapman Chapman 7p.m. 7p.m. 2p.m. Grand Canyon Cedric Ceballos His blindfolded dunk was an inspiration to the visually impaired. New York, the stock market reversed its field and Yasser Arafat was missing somewhere over Libya.

But the man on the local radio station in Augusta, home of this week's Masters, led with news of Sam Snead's fender-bender. "Slammin' Sam's car was totaled," the voice at dawn said. "And he did go to the hospital for treatment of facial cuts. But he's OK. Mr.

Snead is OK." The laughs are on him Jack Nicklaus who last won the Masters in 1986, likes this joke: A man walks into a bar with a dog and sits down to have a drink. Nicklaus is on TV playing in the Masters. He birdies a hole, and the dog does a backflip. He booms a big drive, and the dog sprints up and down the bar. Bartender: "Boy, he really loves Jack.

What does he do when he wins?" Dog owner: "Don't know. Only had him six years." Illuminating experience Baltimore's Opening Day was a smash at new Oriole Park at Camden Yards, but it almost wasn't. As the sunny afternoon wore on, the umpires asked for the lights to be turned on. "Quick as a wink," Orioles officials said, only to find the switch box padlocked shut and no key in the place. The umps were not amused.

The Christian Laettner Easily beats Shaquille O'Neal in Wooden Award balloting. Chris Mills Arizona basketball player charged with criminal damage. will have another meeting to discuss the sale, in which 60 percent of the $125 million investment would come from Hiroshi Yamauchi, president of Nintendo Co. Ltd. of Kyoto, Japan.

Joe Molloy, George Steinbrenner's son-in-law, was approved unanimously by major league owners as managing general partner of the New York Yankees Center fielder Lenny Dykstra, who missed 99 games for the Philadelphia Phillies last season because of injuries, had a bone in his left wrist broken by a pitch in the first inning of Tuesday's season opener and was placed on the 15-day disabled list First baseman Glenn Davis has a strained muscle in his rib cage and will be sidelined at least until the weekend, Baltimore Orioles General Manager Roland Hemond said. Boston Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens will have the little finger on his right hand examined today. Clemens awoke Wednesday with a swollen little finger. New York Mets pitcher Sid Fernandez, plagued by injuries last season, had to leave Wednesday's start against St Louis because of an inflamed left knee. NBA New York Knicks forward Charles Oakley was fined $2,500 by the league for hitting the Detroit Pistons' Isiah Thomas with his forearm.

Oakley was ejected from Tuesday night's game with 1:24 remaining in the fourth quarter. Miami Heat forward Willie Burton has left the team to enter a medical facility where he will be treated for depression, Heat Managing General Partner Lewis Schaffel said. Burton, a second-year player, was Miami's first-round pick, ninth overall in the 1990 draft NOTEWORTHY Houston middleweight Ulysses Boulware hopes to regain his status as a contender tonight when he meets former Mexican national champion Jamie Montano at the Wyndham Paradise Valley Resort. Boul-ware's title hopes were derailed last December in Las Vegas, where he lost by technical knockout in the second round against Danny Garcia of Puerto Rico. The Boulware-Montano bout is scheduled for 10 rounds on a card that will include five fights.

The first bout is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. PGA Senior Tour veteran Dan Moran shot a final-round 4-under 68 to win his first Ping Arizona Senior Open at Hillcrest Golf Club. Bob Learn Jr. remained atop the leader board through three rounds in the $225,000 Bowling Proprietors' Association U.S. Open at Canandaigua, N.Y.

He averaged 231 for 24 games, totalling 5,556 pins. Wendy Macpherson tied a Ladies Pro Bowlers Tour record by bowling over 200 for all 24 games of match play to take the top qualifying berth at the $40,000 LPBT Robby Open in Alexandria, La. Compiled by Gail Baker from reports by The Arizona Republic and The Associated Press. 1 1 EOBCOHN The Arizona Republic Brock calls coverage insulting Arizona State baseball Coach Jim Jtrock is fed up with what he considers shoddy treatment of bis program by KTAR radio. "It's been so disheartening to me that I have tried to isolate myself from it," said Brock, who last week won his game as a head coach.

"It's been very, very disappointing to me. I would say it's even been insulting to me." Brock js steamed over KTAR's reduced coverage of ASU baseball over the years. Aggravating matters is that only one game has been aired so far. It wasn't that long ago KTAR carried as many as 25 regular-season games, including most Pac-10 Southern Division road games. Under the current contract which includes every ASU football and basketball game 10 baseball games were scheduled, none on the road.

The contract also calls for reports to be filed during another 15 games. But because of other commitments, KTAR has to play catch up to honor the contract KTAR now will hit the road and carry games from Stanford, UCLA and Arizona. A total of 12 games will be aired. Still, Brock was so upset he refused invitations to appear with Jude LaCava on the 620 Sportsline, KTAR's sports talk show." "I have a little pride left," Brock said. "I like Jude very much, but I'm not happy with the way his station has treated the baseball program at Arizona State." Jim Taszarek, KTAR vice president and general manager, was not available for comment In the past he has said college baseball is a money-losing proposition for his station.

"Their philosophical approach is that baseball is an albatross," said Brock, who is in his 2 1 st season at ASU. "I am personally insulted and hurt by what they think baseball's level of importance is, and the job I have done with it" he said. ASU Athletic Director Charles Harris said it would be great if more games were on, but "the economic reality of advertising doesn't support that. I'm not going to tell you I'm not disappointed, but I am delighted with the drop-ins (reports) we're Harris said other stations were asked about carrying the baseball portion of the ASU contract but all declined. "It wasn't enough of a package for them," he said.

On the other hand. The Firebirds will have no problem with exposure on the airwaves. All 144 games of the San Francisco Giants' Triple-A affiliate will be broadcast this season by KXAM radio (1310 AM). Calling the action is Russ Langer, who did games for the California Angels' Dcuble-A affiliate in Midland, Texas, last Before that, he did Class A games in Springfield, 111., and Vero Beach, Fla. This is the first year since 1987 that all Firebirds games will be on radio.

The first broadcast is tonight when the Firebirds play Tacoma in the Pacific Coast League opener. ASPNPrime Ticket also will televise 20 Firebirds games this year. Gearing the air? Baseball fans who have trouble picking up Oakland Athletics and San Diego Padres telecasts on KUSK-TV might get a break. KUSK General Manager Rich Howe said a new, high-powered antenna is planned for the East Valley, which will boost the sjgnal of Channel 17 into Phoenix. That, along with Channel 55, beams baseball and other programs on the Prescott-based station.

Channel 27, which formerly had all the programming, is now confined to a home shopping network. The only hurdle facing the antenna's construction is a study to ensure it can withstand Ju'gh winds. Howe said he is committed to all former Channel 27 viewers receiving the programming they used to get, including baseball. AH options will be explored if problems continue, including putting baseball back on Channel 27, he said "We knew there would be some people trapped in the void of getting only Channel 27, and we realized that could create some problems for people who want to see baseball," Howe said. Howe said if problems persist, with or without the new antenna, the station wants to know about it KUSK's number in Prescott is 778-6770.

New show KFNN radio (1510 AM) will unveil a one-hour, weekly sports talk show at 4 p.m. Saturday. Spdrtswatch will have Joe Boyle as its host, a 26-year veteran of play-by-play whose assignments have included the Minnesota Twins, Minnesota North Stars and NCAA football and basketball. The show will include listener phone calls, interviews and a segment on the business side of sports. Boyle succeeds Jeff Aaron, who took a radio job in Seattle.

EJ Home LJ Away Ali Times Are Arizona Time TODAY'S OTHER EVENTS: DOG RACING Apache Greyhound Park, 2 p.m.; Phoenix Greyhound Park, 7:30 p.m. HORSE RACING Turf Paradise, 1 p.m. TODAY'S TELEVISION TENNIS Bausch lomb Championship 1 0:30 a.m. YACHT RACING America's Cup ChallengerDefender semifinals loon GOLF USA. .1 p.m.

first round NBA Spurs at Lakers. -TNT. Suns at SuperSonics I Ch. 45. BOXING Harold Brazier ESPN.

vs. Vernon Phillips TODAY'S RADIO NBA Suns at SuperSonics KTAR (620). -5 p.m. .7 p.m. -6 p.m.

p.m. Laettner caps awards sweep with Wooden Christian Laettner completed a sweep of college basketball's major awards Wednesday when fKvas given the 16th annual John R. Wooden Award. Laettner, a 6-foot-11 senior at Duke, also recently received the Adolph F. Rupp Trophy, the award named for the late University of Kentucky coach, as The Associated Press player of the year; and the Naismith Award, named for the inventor of basketball.

Laettner easily beat Shaquille O'Neal of Louisiana State in the nationwide voting of 984 sportswriters and broadcasters for the Wooden Award, receiving 4,560 points to 3,964 for O'Neal, a junior who last week declared himself available for the NBA draft. Laettner and the Blue Devils advanced to the Final Four in each of his four years with the team. MORE HOOPS Arizona's Chris Mills has been cited on a misdemeanor criminal damage charge in a domestic-violence incident, Tucson police reports say. Mills, 21, was ordered to appear in Pima County Justice Court on April 17, after telling police that he threw a rock through the front window of a pickup truck during a fight early Saturday outside a house. Mills was cited and released.

The owner of the truck, Joseph R. Gomez, 22, was booked and released from the Pima County Jail on two misdemeanor charges of assault and one misdemeanor count each of trespassing and criminal damage, the reports say. Mills told deputies he was asleep at the house of an unidentified woman, when the woman's former boyfriend crashed through the door and began to hit her. The two men began to fight, leading to the brick-throwing. A Dallas businessman who made an improper payment to Texas basketball star Dexter Cambridge was an alumnus and a summer employee of the school, according to records obtained by The Dallas Morning News.

Cambridge temporarily lost his eligibility in the 1991-92 season when he revealed that Keith Heingartner had given him a $7,000 check. The money was a graduation present before Cambridge transferred from Lon Morris College in Jacksonville to Texas, the player said. The documents, obtained by the paper under the Texas Open Records Act, show Heingartner worked for Coach Tom Penders during the summers of 1990 and '91 as a basketball camp coach. NHL On the eighth day of the players strike, the NHL was prepared to cancel its season and the Stanley Cup playoffs, which were scheduled to start Wednesday night. The owners have given the players until noon today, Arizona time, to accept their final take-it-or-leave-it offer.

BASEBALL Baseball's ownership committee, while again postponing a recommendation on the Japanese-led offer to buy the Seattle Mariners, gave indications that it is moving toward approval of the controversial sale. Fred Kuhlmann of the St. Louis Cardinals, who chairs the 10-man ownership committee, and John Ellis, who would be chairman of the Mariners if the deal is approved, were optimistic after the three-hour meeting in St Louis. The committee asked Ellis for additional information, and Ellis said he would provide the answers within two weeks. Kuhlmann said the committee then BASEBALL Cubs at Phillies KCKY (1 150) 4:30 p.m.

White Sox at Angels -KNNS (1 360)7 p.rrt Tacoma KXAM (1310) 7:05 pja at Firebirds Dodgers at Padres KOY (550) 7:1 5 p.ra Masters USA p.m. (tape delayed) BOWLING LPBT Robby Open 4:30 p.m. BASEBALL Cubs at Phillies WGN 4:30 p.m. Giants at Braves TBS 4:35 p.m. KCKY(1150) WEEKS RANKED NOl IN MEN'S PRO TENNIS 1.

Ivan Lendl (1st ranked 1983) 270 weeks 1 Jimmy Connors (1974) 268 weeks 3. John McEnroe (1980) 170 weeks 4. Bjorn Borg (1977) 108 weeks 5. Stefan Edberg (1990) 66 weeks 6. Die Nastase (1973) 40 weeks 7.

Mats Wilander (1988) 20 weeks 8. Boris Becker (1991) 12 weeks 9. John Newcombe (1974) 8 weeks 10. Jim Courier (1992) 4 weeks through March 8 ATP computer rankings of Aug. 23, 1973, through March 8, 1992 Source: International Tennis Weekly WHAT'S HAPPENED SINCE THE NY RANGERS WON A STANLEY CUP? 1.

Yankees World Series wins 14 2. Men on the moon 12 3. Winter Olympic Games 12 4. U.S. Presidents 10 5.

Supreme Court Chief Justices 6 6. States added to the Union 2 7. No. of World Wars 1 Last won in 1940 Source: Sports Features Syndicate TANK MCNAMARA I GOTTA HAVE UUKX TO PAY tor fiit OWTCWPRt) h-J 0 (WMZfltf, I'll. Vo Sr yoo one.

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