It took several months for Governor William Donald Schaefer and Orioles owner Eli S. Jacobs to decide on a name for the new lottery-financed stadium. Oriole Park at Camden Yards may be a mouthful, but it accommodates both men's preferences -- Jacobs favored Oriole Park, while Schaefer held out for Camden Yards, a name that evokes the city's rich history as a railroad center.

But when a recent sketch of a proposed sign for the home-plate entrance to the park relegated Camden Yards to second billing, with much smaller letters than Oriole Park, the governor balked. "Camden Yards" must be as big as "Oriole Park," he decreed. Furthermore, don't leave out the "at." Good for Governor Schaefer. A deal is a deal, and a sign shouldn't tamper with it.