COULD "THE CATCH" SIGNAL THE END FOR BASEBALL IN SEATTLE?

     Ken Griffey Jr.'s catch that resulted in wide praise and a
broken wrist Friday could be disastrous for local efforts to pass
a referendum in King County to build a new stadium for the
Mariners, according to many reports.  In this morning's N.Y.
TIMES, Timothy Egan writes that with Griffey's injury "went many
hopes for building a new stadium ... and maybe even for keeping
major league baseball in the Pacific Northwest."  Egan calls
Griffey the "not-so-secret weapon" in supporters' fight to
convince voters to approve a referendum on a tax for the new park
(N.Y. TIMES, 5/31).  In Denver, Tracy Ringolsby writes, "Baseball
will recover, but will Seattle?  This is a city that is on a
baseball life support system" (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 5/31).  Hal
Bodley calls Griffey's injury "devastating," and writes that
"seldom has one player meant so much to so many aspects of the
game" (USA TODAY, 5/31).  In St. Louis, Bernie Miklasz calls
Friday's event "one small catch for man, on giant leap backward
for baseball" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 5/31).  In Seattle, Laura
Vescey profiles Orlando's Norton Herrick, who would be interested
in moving the Mariners to Orlando. Vescey, on local support for
the stadium referendum:  "Joe Namath had more support wearing
those women's stockings than the proposal for the Mariners' new
stadium has received so far in Seattle" (SEATTLE POST-
INTELLIGENCER, 5/28).