Dodgers Owner Peter O'Malley "emphasized the urgency of
hiring a commissioner but said Wednesday that he won't be among
those urging that acting Commissioner Bud Selig be retained,"
according to today's L.A. TIMES. Asked if he would support Selig
for full-time commissioner, O'Malley "paused, asked for the
question to be repeated and then slowly answered." His response:
"My answer is no. Two letters. One word. No." O'Malley said
he would withhold further comment until a collective bargaining
agreement is in place (Bob Nightengale, L.A. TIMES, 4/20).
SPEAKING OF WHICH: The need for a long-term settlement is
the focus of a CHICAGO SUN-TIMES examination of the labor
situations in the NBA, NHL and MLB. Dave Van Dyck writes, "If
nothing else, the seemingly endless baseball war should have
served as a reminder to other pro sports of how not to conduct
negotiations" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/20). NL President Leonard
Coleman was interviewed during last night's Reds-Phillies game on
ESPN. Coleman, on the need for a long-term labor agreement: "It
is of critical importance. Fans ought to be able to enjoy the
game and not have to sit back and worry about management labor
issues. The game has already had enough disruptions, so
hopefully we can get something long term so the fans can look
forward to worrying about batting averages and ERA's rather than
what's happening in the negotiating room" (ESPN, 4/19).
