The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 37

37 Foxboro rescue? "Sarkis signs lease agreement with chopes of bringing diorse racing back to track. Page 38. Also Inside Racing 46 Scoreboard 46 Deaths 50-51 TV and Radio 53 Comics 54-55 FOXBORO FOXBORO GLOBE STAFF FILE PHOTO FRANK O'BRIEN THE BOSTON GLOBE THURSDAY, JUNE 7, 1990 Spirits 'Dent dimped jy Yaunkees Another summit meeting Auerbach talks withKrzyzewski By Peter May ft 1 f. I GLOBE STAFF PHOTO FRANK O'E Stump Merrill climbs toward his first assignment last night as Yankees manager. Boddicker keens Sox By Nick Cafardo GLOBE STAFF The Wall wore a grin yesterday.

Bucky Dent was fired. From Natick to Nantucket, Red Sox fans felt some semblance of retribution. Dent's greatest moment as a player and his worst moment as a manager came in Boston. Leave it to Yankee boss George Steinbrenner to compound the drama of his 18th managerial change in 18 years by doing the deed in Boston. And then naming a New Englander, Carl (Stump) Merrill, a native of Top-sham, Maine, as the successor.

Though Dent, who broke New Englanders' hearts in the 1978 American League East playoff game with a three-run homer off Boston's Mike Torrez that led the Yankees to the divisional title, had more on his mind than the irony of it all. "I'll always get a special thrill out of Fenway Park," said Dent, who was stopping in New York on the way to his Boca Raton, home. "That will never change." Dent's quick exit was expected. He managed 40 games at the end of last season and 49 this year. His first Yankee managerial tenure will show a 36-53 record.

When all was said and done, Steinbrenner basically named his Joe Morgan as the new Merrill is a 14-year Yankee organizational veteran who once coached with the parent team and managed at various levels in the minor league system. Also fired were third-base coach Joe Sparks, hitting instructor Champ Summers and bullpen catcher Gary Tuck, all Dent Wrings. Merrill will inherit Buck Showalter, who had been the team's "eye-in-the-sky" coach and has shifted to third base; Marc Hill, the organization's catching coach, who will become bullpen catcher, and another former DENT, Page 41 Morgan files appeal of ban By Steve Fainaru GLOBE STAFF The Rac Slider era lasted but a few minutes yesterday, long enough for Red Sox manager Joe Morgan to walk into the clubhouse and announce he was appealing his three-day suspension for inflammatory comments relating to Sunday's brawl with the Cleveland Indians. The suspension, announced Tuesday by American League president Bobby Brown, was scheduled to begin with last night's game against the Yankees and MORGAN, Page 42 lose out Murdoch top coach ously, I'm a little disappointed because this chance doesn't come by too often for me. But I'm honestly happy for Mark.

The guy who won it deserved it" When he learned of the margin of Mes-sier's victory, coach Mike Milbury asked, "Can you believe that? That six guys didn't give him a third-place vote? That's some kind of a joke. When the winner was announced, I said, That's all but when I saw the vote, I got fighting mad. There's something wrong with the system." Milbury did not win the Adams Award as coach of the year. It went to Bob Mur- NHL AW RDS, Page 38 rolling GLOBE STAFF "'-Z The courtship of Mike Krzy-zfwski intensified yesterday, pro-Slicing further evidence that the Deities are seriously interested in turning over the NBA's most storied Jeam to the highly successful Duke coach. Two days after Krzyzewski met in Durham, N.C., with Celtics basketball boss Dave Gavitt, the two reunited in Washington, and were joined by club president Red Auerbach for lunch at a restaurant near National Airport.

Auerbach said the two-hour-plus meeting went smoothly "it was very amiable" but that nothing was finalized. Gavitt left to fly to Chicago for the annual pre-draft camp. He was to have breakfast today with Celtics assistant coach Chris Ford, who also is a candidate for the head coach's job but has yet to be formally interviewed. Krzyzewski was scheduled to return to Durham. Duke athletic director Tom Butters said last night he was planning on talking to his coach today.

"Mike has a very serious decision to make about how he spends the next few years of his life," said Butters, who added he had spoken to Krzyzewski Monday night after the first meeting with Gavitt. "And I don't think hell drag it out." Asked for a gut reaction, Butters said he had none. He added, however, that "any time you involve a man of Mike's ability with an obvious temptation, there is some concern. Especially a temptation made special by the magic of the Boston Celtics and the capable leadership of Dave Gavitt" As for the meeting, Auerbach said the three basketball men talked and little else. "There were no specifics about CELTICS, Page 44 HSEBSSEBBBBBIHBBflBBBBSSBBflBflSBBE Inside I Pistons pass board exam: Rebounding key in Game 1 victory over Trail Blazers.

Page 44. Muster, Gomez ad- vance: Both make first trip to a Grand Slam semifinal. Page 44. Collins column: Payoffs come into play before play even be-i gins. Page 44.

Moore gets revenge: She helps Wellesley oust New Bedford. I Schools, Page 45. i GLOBE FILE PHOTO Ray Bourque tied for most MVP first-place votes but came op short overall. onto his and ft GLOBE STAFF PHOTO TOM HEDRE Boston has had great significance in Bucky Dent's life. His back was against the wall HE GHOSTS ARE falling fast around here.

On Tuesday, Bill Buckner was sent home. Yesterday afternoon Bucky Dent was fired as Yankees manager while he sat in his hotel room in the shadow of Fenway Park's left-field wall. Something tells me this would be a good time for Johnny Pesky, Mike Torrez and Denny Galehouse to watch their backs. Rich Gedman shouldn't take any phone calls. Producers of "No, No, Nanette" shouldn't plan a revival.

Poor Bucky. Did it have to happen here? Couldn't George Steinbrenner have waited until the Yan-'ees got to Baltimore? Bucky Dent Fired in Boston. Isn't life strange? The Diamond Gods must be crazy. Dent downplayed the irony. He said it was no big deal that it happened here.

But you wonder what hell say five years from now. If Bucky's playing "Password" with Kitty Carlisle, and Carlisle says, "Boston," will Dent think of his 1978 playoff home run or will he think of the executioner's song? If Dent had been fired in Seattle or Milwaukee, this would have been just another event in an endless line of George's jettisons. But it happened in Boston and the nightly news had its hook. Bucky Dent getting fired in Boston is like Phyllis George getting arrested in Atlantic City. Bucky Dent getting fired in Boston is like Neil Armstrong tearing his Achilles' doing the moonwalk.

A lot of good men have gone be-SHAUGHNESSY, Page 41 GLOBE FILE PHOTO Mike Milbury was second to Winnipeg's Bob Murdoch in Coach of Year voting. UJh. i A By Steve Fainaru GLOBE STAFF The sudden attention drawn to seemed to create an atmosphere, albeit artificial, befitting a Yankee-Red Sox series. Dozens of cameras caught new manager Stump Merrill's first step the field, and Merrill exuded the sense that the team was ready to make a new beginning. "The problem was, we ran into Mike Boddicker," said right fielder Jesse Barfield.

As the night unfolded, the Yankees looked distressingly familiar, and the Sox looked every bit as charged as they have recently, beating New York, 4-1, in a game that revolved around Boddicker and the way he can manipulate a baseball. The righthander, who was last defeated April 25, got sixth consecutive victory as the Sox widened their American League East lead to VA games over Toronto Milwaukee. He allowed two hits, both in the second inning, then retired 18 of 19 batters. The only batter to reach after the second was Alvaro Espinoza, whose routine grounder was bobbled by shortstop Luis Rivera in RED SOX, Page 43 Fenway GLOBE STAFF PHOTO FRANK O'BRIEN Joe Morgan says he needs to know the facts. Milbury Bourque had a second-place vote edge of 26-24.

Messier had 10 third-place votes to two for Bourque. It's hard nay, impossible to believe that six voters (members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association) didn't think Bourque deserved so much as a third-place vote. It was the closest vote in the history of the award. Bourque was gracious in defeat, but there w-as disappointment in his voice. "You lose, you lose," he said.

"Two votes? You might think about that a little. When it's that close, it can go one way or the otlr. Obvi rVt? Soiiirqiie, Defenseman gets Norris but Messier MVP; By Francis Rosa GLOBE STAFF TORONTO Forget Heartbreak Hill. Remember Hart-Break Night. Last night the National Hockey League staged its annual Celebration of Excellence awards ceremonies and first place, the best goals-against average, meant nothing to the people who vote.

There was more than one miscarriage of justice. Ray Bourque did not win the Hart Trophy as the most valuable player. It went to Mark Messier of Edmonton by a mere two points, a differential based on third-place votes. Both received 29 first-place.