Northwest Herald from Woodstock, Illinois • Page 10

ON THE TUBE Wimbledon tennis COMPUTE TV AND IANO LISTINGS IN FINE PRINT GET OUT AND WATCH The Cubs play host to the New York Mets at Wrigley Field, 1:20 p.m. POM Tuesday, June 26, 2001 Sports Briefs On Campus 1 I 1 DAY St John makes name for himself at Aurora U. Baseball O's claim Batista, dump DeShields BALTIMORE -The Baltimore Orioles gave up on struggling outfielder Delino DeShields on Monday and He is taking three classes at Aurora this summer to finish the coursework for his bachelor's degree in marketing. "(My classwork) is the first thing I need to do," said St John, who plans to work for an advertising agency. "I'm glad to be finishing Zr r.n I2i C3 claimed third baseman Tony Batista on waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays.

Voted the Orioles' MVP last season after batting .296 with 10 homers, 86 9U1UU1. 1 UVCl counted on playing baseball the rest of my life." named to the NIIC's Academic All-Conference team. Wieczorek was 3-1 this season on the mound with a 7.59 ERA Knox honors: Cary-Grove graduate Mark Burke and Jacobs grad Paulette Lebda were two of 20 Knox College athletes to earn academic honors this spring. Burke and Lebda were named to the Midwest Conference All-Academic team for spring sports. Burke is a member of the men's tennis team, while Lebda competed for NCAA Division III Knox's women's track team.

Athletes must have at least a 3.2 grade-point average to be considered for the squad. Bottino is a sports copy editor for the Herald. He can be reached by calling (815) 459-4122, Ext. 4545. or at sportsdesknwherald.com via e-mail.

schedule, also has kept him from visiting pro tryout camps. "I had planned to try out for a couple of teams," St John said. "I miss it." Now, any return to baseball will have to wait until next year. "It would be hard to get back into shape," St. John said.

"I would have to take a lot of (batting practice), get back into the weight room. It would be a lot of work." St. John, who shared the conference award with Concordia University outfielder Mike Fulkerson, helped Aurora (27-15 overall, 19-4 NIIC) to the conference's regular-season and tournament championships. In conference games, St. John batted .471 with nine homers, 39 RBIs, an .865 slugging pescentage and a .537 on-base percentage.

McHenry graduate T.J. Wieczorek, a senior pitcher for Aurora, was Baseball has been a major part of Matt St John's college years. The Crystal Lake South graduate made the most of those years, helping Aurora University to the NCAA Division III postseason three times. This spring, St. John's senior season earned national recognition.

The outfielder hit .387 while leading the team in home runs (14), RBIs (61) and slugging percentage (.748) to earn third-team All-America honors from the American Baseball Coaches Association. "I was excited," said St. John, who also was named the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference's co-Player of the Year. "I wasn't expecting it." St. John finished his career as Aurora's all-time leader in RBIs (199) and tied for the record in home runs (42).

For now, though, baseball is not what is keeping St. John busy. Barry Bottino Batista St John has been hampered since late in the season by an injury to his right (throwing) shoulder. Strained muscles around his right rotator cuff have hindered his throws, said St. John, who plans to visit a doctor this week.

"At the end of the year, I didn't take infield or outfield (practice)," he said. The injury, along with his course Eye Openers RBIs and 37 stolen bases, DeShields hit .197 with three homers, 21 RBIs and 1 1 steals in 58 games this season. Baltimore has 1 0 days to trade or release DeShields, who is in the final season of a three-year contract Batista, 27, was on the AL All-Star team last year, when he hit 267 and had career highs in home runs (41) and RBIs (1 14). But, like DeShields, he struggled this season. He hit only .207 in 72 games with the Blue Jays, but the Orioles want him for his power he had 13 homers and 45 RBIs.

No one on the Orioles has more than nine homers this year. Wrigley, original Comiskey honored Olympics to air live, except on West Coast I 11 1 By ALAN ABRAHAMSON Los Angeles Times Only months after enduring a storm of criticism for tape delaying its broadcast of the Summer Olympics from Sydney, Australia, NBC and its affiliates announced Monday the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake will be shown on tape delay on the West Coast. The rest of the nation will see the Salt Lake Games next February on live TV, typically airing from 8-11 p.m. on the East Coast, which would be from 5-8 p.m. in the West.

Instead, NBC will broadcast the Games on delay on the West Coast from 1 p.m. most nights. Network executives in New York fought for months with the affiliates to show the Games live across the nation. Dick Ebersol, chairman of NBC Sports, said in a statement Monday that showing the Salt Lake Games on delay intne West is a "mistake." But the network's 187 independently owned affiliates, and most importantly a jority of the 23 in the Pacific time zone, argued viewers would not be best served, by showing the Games so early. NEW YORK -Wrigley Field, old Comiskey Park, New York's Yankee Stadium and Boston's Fenway Park are among 10 ballparks that will be commemorated with stamps issued by the U.S.

Postal Service as part of its "Baseball's Legendary Playing Fields" stamp series. The 34-cent adhesive stamps will be unveiled at Yankee Stadium before Wednesday's game between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians. They will go on sale nationwide Thursday, according to a press release from the postal service. The other ballparks that will appear on their own stamps are Cincinnati's Crosley Field, Pittsburgh's Forbes Field, New York's Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field, Philadelphia's Shibe Park and Detroit's Tiger Stadium. St.

Louis's Sportsman's Park will appear at the top of the 20-stamp sheet Football AP photo Forget About It Marty Prather of Springfield, lets San Francisco's Barry Bonds, know how he feels Sunday in St. Louis about Bonds' pursuit of the single-season home run record held by the Cardinals' Mark McGwire. IMs mm ftrarawd The 11-and 12-year-old teams will play in the American Youth Baseball Hall of Fame Invitational Tournament, and the 13-year-olds will compete at the Oneonta Baseball World Invitational Tournament The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown sponsors both tournaments. Royer worked with the players on throwing the ball around the horn this week. There will be a timed race for teams in the tournament for throwing the ball around the horn.

Teams will be guaranteed eight games in each tourna- ment. After the first five, they will be seeded in other groups and will play at least three more games. "This will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience," Ormseth said. Hurricanes Continued from page 1 Royer coached at Harper College and Whea ton College before returning to his home state to take the Kutztown job. Royer has had seven players drafted in the last five years.

He will leave Crystal Lake on Wednesday for San Francisco to watch former Kutztown player Ryan Vogelsong pitch for the Giants. The Hurricanes may be able to put some of Royer's techniques to use later this week in New York. Members of the three teams each raised money for their trips with various community service projects. Mitroff said the players solicited pledges, cleaned up parks, washed and waxed fire engines and performed other services to raise the money. lion investment in Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball might become worthless if Barry Bonds breaks the mark this season.

"Yeah, I'm getting those calls already," McFarlane told the East Valley Tribune in Mesa, Ariz. "I'm the village idiot the fool who will have a $4 baseball if Bonds hits 7 1 BEST-CASE SCENARIO Detroit Tigers first baseman Tony Clark, when asked after his first triple in four years what it would take for him to get an inside-the-park home run: "Two outfielders would have to fall down. And when they throw the ball in, the guy catching it has to lose it in the sun. And then I need a generous call from the official scorer." Cubs i By ART DUNN Los Angeles Times New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza sported a shocking new 'do when he showed up at Wrigley Field for Monday night's game against the Cubs. His long, dark hair is gone, replaced with a short, spiky cut that's bleached bright, bright blond.

How bright? Think Day-Glo. "Bring back Billy Idol!" Piazza said, laughing. "It's not a big deal. There's no statement or nothing, I'm just having fun." With a few hours to kill before the game, Piazza went to a salon downtown. His initial plan was just to cut his hair short, figuring it would be cooler now that the weather is getting warmer.

But as he sat in the chair, he decided to dye his hair too. And not just a highlight here and there. No, he went for the whole thing. "I don't usually do things halfway," he said. "I was getting a little bored.

Figured I'd liven things up a little bit I figured the worst thing it could do was change our luck a little bit" The Mets are 1 1 games below .500 and 10 1 12 games back in the NL East Piazza, who did not play Monday, is batting .265. The Mets lost, 2-1. TRIVIA TIME Who is the only major leaguer to collect 500 hits with four teams? COUXCTCR'S K1SHTMARE Todd McFarlane is well aware his $2.7 mil Continued from page 1 TRIVIA ANSWER Rusty Staub with the Houston Astros, Montreal Expos, Mets and Tigers. Machado struck again in i enth when Todd Zeile homered on a 3-1 slider off Tavarez. Todd Dunwoody, who replaced Rondell White in left field after White left with a groin injury, claimed the ball never cleared the basket.

Baylor joined the argument, but replays showed the ball hit the wall beyond the basket. "On the field, I had it as a home run," third base umpire Dan Iassogna said. "I thought it cleared the fence." Kyle Farnsworth pitched a perfect eighth inning for the Cubs, and Tom Gordon a hit-less ninth to pick up his 12th save. the seventh inning, when he broke a 1 -1 tie with solo home run to center field to put the Cubs (44-30) ahead. "He's not a home-run guy, but he swings for It all the time," Baylor said.

"He ran into one at the right time. I'll take singles from him, but every now and then he'll catch one." Before Machado's home run, the Mets (33-44) evened the score in the top of the sev AND FINALLY An ancient Roman field was transformed into a jubilant sea of red and yellow Sunday as tens of thousands of soccer fans, many barechested and bikini-clad, celebrated AS Roma's first league tide in 18 years with a daylong party. The official Roma celebration, capping a week of late-night, car-honking parades through the capital's streets, culminated Sunday with an evening concert and a promised strip-tease by die-hard Roma fan and movie star Sabrina Ferilli. "My gift to the city," Ferilli said. steeiers extend punter's contract PITTSBURGH -The Pittsburgh Steeiers gave punter Josh Miller a five-year contract extension through the 2006 season.

Miller, 30, averaged 43.8 yards with a net average of 37.5 yards last season. Soccer Two MLS keepers jcin U.S. team CHICAGO -MLS goalkeepers Nick Rimando of the Miami Fusion and Tom Presthus of the Columbus Crew were added to the U.S. national team for Sunday's World Cup qualifier against Mexico. They replaced backup goalkeeper Brad Friedel, who U.S.

coach Bruce Arena said requested time away from the team after Wednesday's match against Trinidad Tobago to celebrate his recent wedding. Minor League Baseball Cc-crs fell again GRAND CHUTE, Wis. -Wilfredo Quintana's two-run double with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning broke a 2-2 tie and lifted the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a 4- win over the Kane County Cougars on Monday night Cougars (3-2 second hal 50-23 overall) have lost two straight on the Timber Rattlers' home turf. Wisconsin (5-0, 47-26) won its 12th game in a row and closed to within three games of Kane County for the best overall record in the Midwest League. Compiled by staff, wire reports Winning baseball returns to Brooklyn I Island Aquarium to the stadium.

The route was a throwback to the days when a post-Labor Day parade helped extend the summer season for beach businesses. For those not among the lucky 6,500 with tickets to the sold-out game, it was being carried on the team's Web site, on a local college radio station, on New York City's public television station, and on local-access cable. The founding of a Mets affiliate in Brooklyn helped balance the pull exerted by a recendy created Yankees affiliate in Staten Island. The Cyclones played at St John's University in Queens last year. A Class A affiliate of the Mets, the team was 3-3 after six games on the road before its home debut Michele Durney, 40.

"To get to the last minute, put you on the edge of your seat, and with one hit, the game is over." On hand was Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, who threw out the first' pitch. Giuliani was influential in getting the $39 million ballpark in Coney Island built "Having come to Coney Island from the time I was 2 years old with my grandmother, it's wonderful to see the ballpark here," Giuliani said "I can't tell you how much this means to New York City." Thousands of people, including numerous Little League ballplayers, joined Giuliani, Mets owner Fred Wilpon and his son, Cyclones CEO Jeff Wilpon, in a pregame parade, from the Coney By CHAKA FERGUSON The Associated Press NEW YORK The borough that never got over losing the Dodgers celebrated the return of professional baseball to Brooklyn on Monday with the home opener of the Cyclones. Brooklyn, used to having its heart broken, cheered as the Cyclones rallied for a 3-2 win in 10 innings on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly by Michael Jacobs. In the bottom of the ninth, the Cyclones stormed back from a 2-0 deficit, with a two-run, two-out homer by Edgar Rodriguez that tied the game and forced extra innings. That's exactly what the whole game of baseball is about," said AP photo The Brooklyn Cyclones' Michael Jacobs (17) gets a hug from pitcher David Byard after hitting the game-winning sacrifice fly Monday..