PIRATES PICKED IN NL EAST:
Nobody
By GEOFF LARCOM
Since divisional play was instituted in 1969, a
baseball ,team can lead its division for a whole
summer - possibly winning 100 games in the
process - and still not participate in the World
Series.
The National League East has specialized in win-
ning these half-pennants, but failing to get to the
Fall Classic. This, courtesy of the Cincinnati Reds
and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This summer the Philadelphia Phillies go for
their third straight divisional crown, which would
equal the feat of the Pittsburgh Pirates of 1970-72.
PREDICTION: THE BUCS will keep their record
intact while the Phils tag closely behind. Montreal's
Expos will open some eyes, while the Cardinals and
Cubs fight the sub-.500 blues. Ya gotta believe the
Mets are in for a long summer:
After winning 96 games last year and still
finishing five games' back of the torrid Philly pace,
the Pirates feel that their time is at hand.
. The, off-season trade of hard-hitting Al Oliver
brings former Texas Ranger Bert Blyleven to the
Bucs, who combines with lefty John Candelaria
(2.34 ERA, tops in NL last year) to give them the
best 1-2 pitching punch in the division. .
Strong years from Jerry Reuss, Jim Rooker,
Bruce Kison, and free agent Jim Bibby should spell
doom for Philadelphia chances.
THE ONE QUESTION mark is the bullpen, where
Kent Tekulve, Grant Jackson and Elias Sosa will
have to replace free agent departees Terry Forster
and Rich Gossage.
High-scoring will continue to be a Pirate feature,
with NL batting champ Dave Parker, leftfielder Bill
Robinson (.304, 104 RBI) and rejuvenated bomber
Willie Stargell ready to provide the lumber.
Jackrabbits Omar Morena, Frank Taveras
(league-leader with 70) and Rennie Stennett com-
lined for 151 stolen bases last year, complete the
Bucs thunder and lightning run-scoring system.
passes ti
THE PHILADELPHIA Phillies have won 101
regular-season games for two years in a row, the
best record in the NL. Small wonder. Philly boasts
the majors' best 1-2 homerun punch in left fielder
Greg Luzinski and third baseman Mike Schmidt,
with 39 and 38 round-trippers respectively. Captain
and Admiral Crunch are assisted by a class infield
of Larry Bowa at short, Ted Sizemore at second,
and first-sacker Richie Hebner. Speed merchants
Bake McBride and Garry Maddox round out the out-
field.
The Phillies are three-deep behind the plate with
Bob Boone, Tim McCarver and Barry Foote, and
four-deep in the bullpen : Tug McGraw, Gene Bar-
ber, Warren Brusstar and Ron Reed combined for a
2.60 ERA last year.
The Pirate-Phil difference lies in the Phil's star-
ting rotation, where aging veterans Jim Kaat and
Jim Lonborg, along with second-year man Randy
Lerch must provide needed depth. Cy Young award
winner Steve Carlton (23 wins) and Larry Christen-
son (19) are the aces in the Philadelphia hand.
The addition of lefthanders Ross Grimsley, Rudy
May, and Darold Knowles has Montreal Expo fans
thinking .500 for the first time in their ten-year
existence.
Outstanding catching prospect Gary Carter direc-
ts a veteran infield of Tony Perez at first, Dave
Cash at second, shortstop Chris Speier (remember
him?) and Larry Parrish or Wayne Garrett at third.
ADD A YOUNG run-producing outfield of Ellis
Valentine, Andre Dawson, and Warren Cromartie
and the Olympic Stadium shouldn't be quite so cold
this year.
While all-time base-stealing leader Lou Brock
made his mark on baseball history last year, quiet
superstars Ted Simmons (catcher) and shortstop
Garry Templeton (.332 BA) led the St. Louis Car-
dinals to respectability, as they won 83 games.
But as second-year manager Vern Rapp asserts,
"They'll go as far as their pitching will take them."
lie Bucs
Twenty-game winner Bob Forsch begins and ends
the Redbird mound strength as Eric Rasmussen,
John Denny and Pete Falcone must rebound from
disappointing years.
HARD-THROWING Mark Littell and Pete
Vuckovich will be relied on to replace the effec-
tiveness of departed Mad Hungarian Al Hrabosky.
Third baseman Ken Reitz, (79 RBI), along with
outfielders Jerry Mumphrey (287 BA) and Jerry
Morales anchor a lineup capable of putting men on
base. Driving them in is another matter as the Car-
ds still lack a bonafide power hitter and must scrat-
ch for runs.
With a healthy Bruce Sutter (1.35 ERA) in the
bullpen, the Chicago Cubs actually led the division
by eight and a half games last year. However, Sut-
ter was injured and the Cubs faltered badly, even-
tually finishing fourth. Sutter is back now, but
things don't look much better.
Along with Sutter, the Cubs feature 20-game win-
ner Rick Reuschel and a lot of unprovens. Another
.starting pitcher is badly needed.
BOBBY MURCER remains in the outfield, while
a versatile infield of Bill Buckner at first (.284).
Manny Trillo (.280) at second, Ivan DeJesus (.266)
at short and Steve Ontiveros (.299) at third should
get on base often. Speed is a problem here as
DeJesus' (24 steals) represented over a third of the
Cubs' last place total in '77. The addition of feast or
famine slugger Dave Kingman (143 strike-outs) will
add excitement, but few notches in the win column.
The New York Mets have run the gamut, from
chumps in 1962, to champs in '69 to the bottom again
in '77.
John Matlack and Tom Seaver are gone, leaving
only Jerry Koosman from what was once the best
pitching staff in baseball. Last season the Mets
were last in the league in batting average, runs and
homers. Ed Kranepool, a veteran of the Casey
Stengel glory days of '62, will experience deja vu
with this year's team. The Mets need help.
The Michigan Daily-Wednesday, March 29, 1978-Page 7
Blue linksters await
sprgin tourney
By BOB EMORY
Led by smooth-swinging seniors Doug Davis and John Morgan,'
Michigan's golf team will participate in its final southern warm-up, before}
resuming play up north in two weeks.
The 14th annual Cape Coral Intercollegiate, in Cape Coral, Florida;
which begins today and runs through Saturday, will feature twenty teams,
mostly from the south, in a 72-hole competition. These teams are expected to
provide ample competition for the still-rusty Wolverines.
'We've only played in one tournament so far," said assistant coach Jim
Lipe, "while most of these teams have been playing all winter long.
"Even with that advantage, I would still like to see us finish in the top Y
five," he added.
Each team is allowed to use six players, with the four lowest scores ofU
{ each day counting toward the team total. While emphasis is mostly on team
r finish, there will be trophies given for individual low scores.
One Wolverine golfer who has his sights set on winning the individual
competition is Davis. "I've got myself to a point now where I go in looking to
r win," he said. "My third place finish over spring break in the Carolina
Classic tells me that I'm ready."
The course, a 6,865-yard layout, dotted with many small lakes and,{>
waterways, seems to suit Davis well. "It's a fine course," he said. "The
weather has always been good to us and I've managed to do well here in the,.
past."
Besides Davis and Morgan, the other four Michigan golfers will be
juniors Frank Sims and Rod Pafford, and two freshmen, Tom Pursel and Ed
Humenik.
Although freshmen have a reputation for.not playing well in their firs
few tournaments, coach Lipe and Davis both agree that this shouldn't be any
trouble.
"Sure, freshmen scores can go sky high, but these two guys (Pursel and
Humenik) have impressed me immensely," said Lipe. "They both have had
plenty of junior tournament experience, so I'm not worried."
Teams expected to place high are Florida, Miami, and the University of
Southern Florida. Big Ten rival Indiana will also be participating, giving
some insight into the coming Big Ten season. Michigan, Ohio State and In-
diana are pre-season favorites.
After this tournament, the linksters will head back to play in the Kepler
* Invitational, at Columbus, Ohio, on April 14th. This is the start of the "real"
season for the Wolverines, in which players and teams will determine if they
deserve an invitation to the NCAA Championships in June.
While the weather may not be very warm when they return, the players
themselves should be. In addition to the 72-hole tournament, each golfer will
play a couple of practice rounds, and that should be enough to get all the win
ter kinks out.
. .
I
SCORES
i
NHL
DetroitT, Buffalo 0
NBA
Detroit 123, Buffalo 118
Cleveland 112, Seattle 100
Atlanta 105. Los Angeles 104
I
SPORTS OF THE DAILY
0
Guards lead Pistons by Braves
From Wire Services
BUFFALO, N.Y.-Eric Money and
Chris Ford led a late Detroit rally last
night as the Pistons defeated the Buf-
falo Braves 123-118 in a National
Basketball Association game.
Money scored 14 of his 31 points in the
final priod. Ford added 11 more in that
quarter as the Pistons-caught the
Braves with 4:05 to go.
Buffalo, in front 92-84 after three
quarters, went ahead 112-109 on Smith's
basket with 4:59 remaining. Detroit
tallied nine unanswered points, four by
Money, and the Pistons were in com-
mand 118-112 with a little over two
minutes left in the game.
Ford scored the go-ahead basket on it
long shot that made the score 113-112.
Then Money scored twice, Ford hit
again and Money added a free throw to
give Detroit a 121-116 lead with just 21
seconds remaining.
The Pistons hit 16 of 23 shots and out-
rebounded the Braves 13-7 in the final
period.
Leon Douglas, replacing the injured
Bob Lanier, contributed 22 points and 16
rebounds. Former Braves John
Shumate and Jim Price had 14 and 13
points respectively and M.L. Carr 12 as
Detroit kept its slim.playoff hopes alive.
Randy Smith paced Buffalo with 29
points, 25 in the opening half and Swen
Nater had 28 points and 16 rebounds.
Bird Averitt added 22 points.
York Knicks to a 106-103 ,National
Basketball Association victory over the
Denver Nuggets.
The loss trimmed Denver's lead over
Milwaukee in the Midwest Division to
3%1 games.
The triumph, accomplished despite
the absence of starters Bob McAdoo
and Spencer Hayward, put the Knicks
one game above the.500 mark and kept
them one game in front of Cleveland in
the race for the fourth best record in the
Eastern Conference.
Cutdown time
LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) - The
Detroit Tigers dropped nine players
yesterday from their spring training
roster and announced plans for three
others to get down to the 25 player limit
before leaving Florida on April 4 for the
upcoming baseball season.
Optioned to Evansville of the
American Association and scheduled to
report immediately were pitchers
Sheldon Burnside, Ed Glynn, Jack
Murphy and Bob Sykes; catcher Bruce
Kimm and infielders Tom Brookens
and Chuck Scrivener.
Optioned to Montgomery of the
Southern League and scheduled to
report immediately was pitcher Steve
Viefhaus.
Pitcher Fernando Arroyo, recovering
from a knee operation, was placed on a
21-day disabled list.
General Manager Jim Campbell, who
announced the moves, also said pitcher
Jack Morris and catcher-first baseman
Bob Adams are being optioned to Evan-
sville, but will not report until the end of
spring training,
The one non-roster player who wad,
still in camp, outfielder Dave Stegman,
will also remain with the club until the
end of camp and then be assigned,
Campbell said.
Probably the most notable of the cuts
were Sykes and Scrivener. Sykes, a left-
hander, was a rookie last season and
spent the entire season with Detroit. He
had a 5-7 record and a 4.41 ERA, and
pitched a two-hitter in one start.
Scrivener has been the Tigers' utility
infielder for the past two seasons.
COUPON
COLOR COPIES
REG. .95 NOW .60
SLIDES 1.20 NOW .75
T-SHIRTS 1.90 'NOW 1.25
DOLLAR BILL COPYING
ABOVE BLUE FROGGE
Featuring XEROX 9200 and 6500
BRING COUPON expires 4/5/78'
AP Photo
Buffalo Sabre defenseman Bill Hajt tries to clear Red Wing forward Bill Lochead from the Sabre goal crease in last night's
7-0 Red Wing rout.-Hajt was unsuccessful as Lochead's teammate Terry Harper got the puck to Lochead and the third year
forward deposited it behind Sabre goalie Don Edwards. The Wing victory moved them ahead of Los Angeles for the second
place spot in the Norris Division.
FIRST WINGS SHUTOUT, 7-0:
Wings soar past Sabres
last two goals of the second period,
By PAUL CAMPBELL
Special to The Daily
DETROIT - Respectability is no
longer an issue with the Detroit Red'
Wings. Their new goal is superiority.
The Wings destroyed Buffalo 7-0 at
Olympia l'ast night, reaching the .500'
mark for the first time in 1978. They
achieved their first shutout of the year,
and they slipped into second place in
the Norris Division, one point ahead of
Los Angeles and only 47 behind the
Montreal Canadiens.
But, if the Canadiens don't feel
threatened, the rest of the league just
may. Buffalo is no shoddy outfit, being
one of only four teams to pass the 100
point mark this year.
Seven different Detroit players beat
Sabre goalie Don Edwards, the win-
ningest goalie in the league, to give the
Wings their 30th win.
Four of those goals came in the first
period, possibly the best 20 minutes of
hockey Detroit has played all season
Reed Larson and Bill Lochead san-
dwiched tallies between goals by two of
the Dennis', Hull and Hextall.
Before the 16,052 disbelieving fans
had a chance to wonder if it was a fluke,
Paul Woods pumped in his 16th goal
moments into the second stanza to lift
the lead to 5-0.
Dale McCourt and Thommie
Bergman finished the scoring with
goals in the final period. Larson
assisted on both goals bringing his
.niarth' toa tonn nal and four
inducted into the Red Wing Hall of
Fame earlier in the night. Another of
the six inductees, Marcel Pronovost
was not thrilled by Larson's perfor-
mance. Pronovost is the coach of Buf-
falo.
Wing' goalie Ron Low spent most of
the first two periods watching his
teammates raise their arms in triumph
at the other end of the ice. But, when
Detroit relaxed with the big lead later
in the game, Low was sharp and recor-
ded 13 third period saves to seal the
whitewash.
The Wings are hot, and the question is
no longer whether they'll make the
playoffs for the first time in seven
years, but how high they will finish
among the 12 teams that will be battling
for the Stanley Cup.
If Detroit can maintain its lofty perch
in second place, it will probably face an
easier opponent in the first round.
Chicago, three points ahead of the
Wings, is the next team to pass. Doing
so could enhance Detroit's position in
the second round of the playoffs.
Cap-ties
LANDOVER, Md., (AP) - Guy
Charron's second and third goals of the
game enabled the Washington Capitals
to overcome a 4-2 third-period deficit
and earn a 4-4 National Hockey League
tie with the Boston Bruins Tuesday
night.
The Caps, who have never beaten
scored 47 seconds into the final period
to give the Bruins a 4-2 lead. But the Knicks slide
Caps, who have won only 13 games all NEW YORK (AP) - Lonnie Shelton
season, rallied to tie on Charron's two fired in 31 points and Earl Monroe ad-
goals - the first on a power play. ded 25 Tuesday night, leading the New
FALL HOUSING
inr
Resildence Halls
Applications will be available
MONDAY APRIL 3, 1978
THE HOUSING INFORMATION OFFICE
1011 S WDENTACTIVITIES BUILDING
A drawing will be used to
establish priority for assignment.
Apply anytime between
8:00AM and 4:30PM
April 3, 1978