It seemed so unlikely a few months ago, but Washingto might get one of the two National League expansion teams, though probably for all the wrong reasons.
The expansion committee should pick the nation's capital because:
* The area has great revenue potential, especially after Congress passes a season-ticket tax subsidy.
* It will keep Dan Quayle away from Memorial Stadium.
* RFK is a better baseball park than Joe Robbie Stadium, particularly during monsoon season.
* The Orioles would really hate it.
But if the expansion committee does choose Washington, it will be because:
* Haggling between the two leagues over expansion money will cause the American League to vote down one of the two Florida candidates and preserve it for future AL expansion.
* Major League Baseball is tired of having its antitrust exemption waved in its face by vote-hungry members of Senate Task Force on Baseball Expansion (your tax dollars at work).
* Massive debt incurred signing washed-up free agents will seem reasonable next to the federal deficit.
* The ownership group has promised not to call the team the Senators.
The expansion committee isn't saying much, but speculation is rampant that the National League will come to some kind of accommodation with the American League over the $190 million in expansion fees, perhaps trading off one of the Florida markets (probably Tampa/St. Petersburg) for a much larger share of the cash. That would improve Washington's chances tremendously.
* The Tigers have gone to great lengths to assemble the most strikeout-prone lineup known to baseball, but the quixotic quartet (note clever windmill allusion) of Pete Incaviglia, Rob Deer, Mickey Tettleton and Cecil Fielder can do a little more than strike out. Booth Newspapers columnist Vern Plagenhoff points out that the fearsome foursome did whiff 635 times last year, but also hit 117 home runs, which is more than 11 major-league teams hit in 1990.
In Detroit's opening series against the New York Yankees, the four were a combined 8-for-33 with nine strikeouts, but drove in 10 runs as the Tigers won two of three games.
* The Express is overdue: The last time Nolan Ryan defeated the Baltimore Orioles was on April 20, 1976. He pitched a three-hitter for the California Angels that day, giving up two hits to shortstop Mark Belanger and one to third baseman Brooks Robinson. Ryan, who is scheduled to face the Orioles today, is the only player to appear in that game who still is active, but the Orioles will have one person in uniform who faced him -- coach Elrod Hendricks.
* The Angels were concerned about left-hander Chuck Finley after ran up a 9.00 ERA in spring training, but he answered the bell on Opening Day. Finley took a no-hitter into the fifth inning on the way to a 3-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners that kept him right on pace for the Cy Young Award that was predicted for him in this space only a week ago. He only needs to win about 24 more games to lock it up.
* Deja who? Minnesota Twins infielder Greg Gagne hit a home run and a double in the club's opener against the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday, April 9, at the Oakland Coliseum. Oddly enough, he also hit a home run and a double in last year's opener, which -- oddly enough -- was on April 9 at the Oakland Coliseum.
That's pretty curious, since Gagne isn't exactly your classic power hitter and the Coliseum isn't exactly a cozy ballpark, but the thing that's really strange is how often the Twins open the regular season in Oakland. Since 1972, they have opened there seven times and have opened in Minnesota only six times.
*
The one-hitter thrown on Opening Day by Dennis Martinez, Barry Jones and Scott Ruskin of the Montreal Expos was the first one-hitter on Opening Day since Ken McBride and Julio Navarro of the Los Angeles Angels combined to one-hit the Washington Senators, 4-0, on April 13, 1964. The catcher for the Angels that day was Buck Rodgers, now the manager of the Expos.
BONUS STAT: The one-hitter was the third for the Expos in their past 18 regular-season games.
*
Kansas City Royals starter Bret Saberhagen gave up three home runs to George Bell on Opening Day in 1988 and gave up a three-run home run to Sam Horn on Opening Day last year. So, he had to wonder after Albert Belle took him deep on Opening Day this year.
"A bell, a horn and a bell," Saberhagen said. "Hopefully, the next time I start on Opening Day, there won't be any musical instruments in the lineup."
There was no reason to fret (note subtle musical reference) this ++ time. Saberhagen still hung on to win and began another odd-numbered year on a winning note.
*
There were aging catchers popping up all over Florida and Arizona this spring, and a few of them -- most notably Rick Dempsey, Gary Carter and Ernie Whitt -- landed part-time jobs. But 43-year-old Bob Boone, the all-time leader in games played behind the plate, is sitting at home waiting for the phone to ring.
Even he knows that it probably won't.
"I'm reluctant to say I'm retired," Boone said, "because that means I've given up any chance of playing again, and I haven't done that. But it doesn't look like it's going to happen."
Boone tried out with the Seattle Mariners but was not offered a contract. He continues to work out but admits that his playing career probably is over. He is staying in shape just in case, but he's also looking forward to his first summer vacation since 1968.
"I'm disappointed that I don't have a job," Boone said, "but I'm also enjoying not having a job."
*
If you're waiting for the Oakland Athletics and their American League dynasty to disintegrate, it could be awhile. The A's might be showing signs of age, but the club also is giving indications that a successful youth movement is just around the corner.
When right-hander Eric Show went on the disabled list, the A's brought up minor-league prospect Joe Slusarski, who promptly threw seven shutout innings against the Twins in his major-league debut Thursday.
Slusarski was the team's No. 2 draft choice in 1988. Right-hander Kirk Dressendorfer, who was drafted out of the University of Texas last June, will pitch Saturday, and Todd Van Poppel, who was considered the best prospect in the the 1990 draft, is a few years away.
Reports of the A's impending demise apparently have been greatly exaggerated.
*
Before the Los Angeles Dodgers took the field for their opener, newcomer Darryl Strawberry called a team meeting to thank his new teammates for accepting him and to urge them to stick together throughout the season.
"I will not be afraid to call a team meeting myself this year," he said. "I know what can happen to a team when people get down. We have to be aware of that and pick them up. I've always spoken out. In New York, I always stuck up for the club."
But in Los Angeles, they have a guy who does that for a living. Manager Tom Lasorda is considered one of the best motivators in the game.
*
The California Angels had not won two straight road games to open the season since the Mariners' inaugural season, but they opened up this week with a three-game sweep at the Kingdome.
"Getting off to a good start is important in that everybody takes note," manager Doug Rader said. "Convincing other ballclubs you're legitimate is as important as convincing yourself."
*
Neion Deion update: When we last left the irrepressible Deion Sanders, he had just won a major-league job with the Atlanta Braves. But minutes before he made his Braves debut on Wednesday, he qualified for the Stupid Injury of the Week Award when he got too close to the batting cage mesh and was struck on the nose by a foul ball. The resultant fracture didn't keep him out of the lineup, but it might force him to have nasal surgery
after the next football season.
*
Incaviglia revisited: Inky has made his share of enemies over the past few years, which made Tigers manager Sparky Anderson confront him about his image.
"I told him when he got here what kind of an image he projected -- 'Who the hell is this jerk?' -- but he's different than I thought," Anderson said. "He's a good kid. He doesn't like trouble. He just wants to play."
Around the league in 80 seconds
* New York Yankees third baseman Kevin Maas, who walked eight times in his club's three-game opening series against the Tigers, really hasn't been around long enough to garner that kind of respect -- except in Detroit, where he is 11-for-31 lifetime against the Tigers with six home runs.
* Chicago White Sox outfielder Sammy Sosa, who had five RBI on Opening Day at Memorial Stadium, had only five RBI all spring.
* New York Yankees pitcher Scott Sanderson is 18-11 against American League competition, but he is particularly hard on the Detroit Tigers. He is 4-0 and has given up two earned runs on 14 hits in 25 1/3 innings against them.
* When the Tigers won on Opening Day, it was the first time the club had been over .500 in 917 days, dating back to the final day of the 1988 season.
* Cleveland Indians stopper Doug Jones recorded his 14th career save against the Kansas City Royals Tuesday night. Jones has a career 0.69 ERA (2 ER, 26 IP) against the Royals and has never given up a run at Royals Stadium.
* Yankees reliever Eric Plunk got off to a tough start. He faced 19 batters in his first two appearances and allowed 13 baserunners. He gave up three earned runs on six hits and seven walks, and also allowed all four of his inherited runners to score.
* Outfielder Hensley Meulens became the first New York Yankees rookie to start the season in left field since Hank Bauer in 1949.
* Talk about turnover. The California Angels roster has been shuffled so many times that 28-year-old Dick Schofield is the senior member of the team.
A salary comparison
If you think that there is no rhyme or reason to baseball's constantly changing salary structure, you're probably right. Consider the career numbers of Detroit Tigers outfielders Pete Incaviglia and Rob Deer entering this season:
... ... ... ... ... Incaviglia... ... ... ... ... .. Deer
At-bats... ... ... ... ...2524... ... ... ... ... .. 2454
Runs... ... ... ... ... .. 374... ... ... ... ... ... 335
Home runs... ... ... ... . 148... ... ... ... ... ... 125
X-base hits... ... ... ... 251... ... ... ... ... ... 258
RBI... ... ... ... ... ... 410... ... ... ... ... ... 390
Total bases... ... ... .. 1126... ... ... ... ... .. 1131
The difference in each category is statistically insignificant, yet Deer signed a three-year contract worth $6.05 million as a free agent during the off-season and Incaviglia -- who is three years younger -- got $500,000 for one year after being released by the Texas Rangers.
7/8