Oriole Cal Ripken Jr. has filmed and recorded a series of
commercials for American Personal Communications Inc.'s Sprint
Spectrum wireless communications services, according to the
Baltimore SUN. The ad campaign is expected to begin in
conjunction with the start of the MLB season on Sunday. The
Sprint Spectrum brand competes with Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile
and Cellular One in the area. The TV spots will carry a voice-
over by Candice Bergen and will show Ripken using a Sprint
Spectrum handset to receive calls, pages and electronic messages
while he "goes about his everyday domestic activities" (Michael
Dresser, Baltimore SUN, 3/29).
THE MARKETING OF PIAZZA: The efforts of Dan Lozano to market
his client, Dodger Mike Piazza, are profiled in today's ORANGE
COUNTY REGISTER. Piazza hired the Beverly Hills Sports Council's
Lozano while in Double-A: "I had so much free time to analyze
things and see where others failed. I thought: 'If I do ever
make it to the big leagues or become a star, this is how I want
to come across, how I want to present myself.'" Piazza's salary
is $2.7M this year, but will reportedly make $5M in off the field
endorsements (Lawrence Rocca, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 3/29).
