Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner, on the five-game
suspension handed down to Yankees P Mike Stanton by AL
President Dr. Gene Budig after Stanton hit Orioles Eric
Davis with a pitch in Tuesday's game: "I respect [Budig's]
position. Whether he is the right man for the job ... I
like Budig, he is a nice man. He is an educator with a
briefcase. I don't know if there is a jockstrap in there,
but he has a briefcase" (N.Y. POST, 6/18)....WNBA President
Val Ackerman is profiled by Athelia Knight of the WASHINGTON
POST under the header, "Her League On The Rise, Ackerman's
Having A Ball" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/18). Also in DC, Thomas
Heath examines the WNBA and its marketing partnerships. WNBA
Exec VP & CMO Rick Welts, on the league's partners: "What
speaks more about where women's sports are is the list of
companies who bought in. These are mainstream sports
advertisers who believe they are reaching a very mainstream
sports audience. One of the benefits is that they have
passionate female consumers" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/18).
A "moratorium resembling a no-lockout, no-strike
pledged was discussed" Wednesday during an NBA collective
bargaining session as a way to reinstate the 12 players who
were removed from the U.S. World Championship team,
according to an AP report by Chris Sheridan in the SALT LAKE
TRIBUNE. Sources told Sheridan that a "moratorium extending
into mid-summer ... was discussed in broad terms," which
would allow for the return of the 12 players. After meeting
yesterday, the league and the union agreed to meet again
"early next week" (AP/SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 6/18).
DREAM TEAM TURNED INTO NIGHTMARE: In Denver, Mark
Kiszla writes, "Caught in the crossfire of a labor war
between the NBA and the league's players, the Dream Team is
dying. Let it fade away. The Dream Team, a tired concept,
has a duty to die. ... Good. No more Dream Team means no
more stars wrapping themselves in Old Glory for corporate
gain. No more pampered athletes" (DENVER POST, 6/18).
NEXT PLEASE: In L.A., Greg Johnson surveys sports execs
who say that the NBA "will be hard-pressed to crown an heir
apparent when Air Jordan grounds himself." Rick Burton, Dir
of the Warsaw Sports Marketing School at the Univ. of OR:
"Hero appreciation is driven by superhuman performance, and
now to be a hero you have to be a champion to the level that
Jordan has set the bar at." DC-based attorney Lon Babby,
who represents Grant Hill and Tim Duncan: "You're never
going to duplicate Michael Jordan, because he's a once-in-a-
lifetime phenomenon. And I don't think anyone is seriously
aspiring to duplicate him. But there is an opportunity out
there for someone who can be the next iteration of an
important spokesperson for the league" (L.A. TIMES, 6/18).
Bud Selig, who has served as MLB's acting commissioner
for nearly six years, "has decided to accept the job" on a
permanent basis, according to Murray Chass of the N.Y.
TIMES. Chass' piece was teased on the front page of the
paper and featured above the fold in the Sports section.
Two sources, one a "high-ranking" MLB official and one who
"is not in baseball but has close contacts with people in
the sport's hierarchy," said that an official announcement
"could be made by" the All-Star Game on July 7. One owner
said the announcement "could be coming in two to four
weeks." Chass writes that the naming of Selig as
commissioner "should surprise no one," and that despite his
statements of non-interest, "[o]verwhelming support from
owners for him to take the job made it possible for him to
agree to take it." Several sources said that "only two or
three" owners were opposed to Selig taking the post. All of
Chass' sources named White Sox Chair Jerry Reinsdorf as one
who opposed the appointment. Giants Owner Peter Magowan and
the Cubs' Tribune Co. were also named as being opposed to
the Selig appointment (N.Y. TIMES, 6/18).
NOT EVERYONE'S BUD? Chass writes that "[o]ne problem"
Selig might have is "public acceptance," since he was the
"face that fans saw" throughout the '94-'95 strike. Another
possible problem may be management's relations with the
MLBPA, as the relationship between Selig and MLBPA Exec Dir
Donald Fehr "deteriorated badly" during the labor dispute,
"reaching the point where Fehr didn't even want to talk to
Selig." Selig's acceptance of the post has prompted some in
MLB to "question whether he was really sincere in his
repeated insistence that he didn't want" it. One senior
club exec said he thought "the whole thing was orchestrated.
[Selig] was telling a small group of people from day one he
wanted it but told everyone else he didn't" (N.Y. TIMES,
6/18). Selig, asked about the report by Tom Haudricourt in
WI said, "There's always been a great deal of speculation on
this matter, but at this point in time I can assure you
there is nothing definitive" (JOURNAL-SENTINEL, 6/18).