Page Four THE MICHIGAN DAILY Thursday, May 28, 1970 Page Four THE MICHIGAN DAILY a r f _. I A nostalgic look at dying ballparks By LEE KIRK Summer Sports co-editor Growth is good. This old adage is as American as apple pie, and since baseball is also as American as apple pie, it is hardly surprising that baseball club owners firmly believe that growth is good. Baseball began to grow when the Giants and the Dodgers moved to the west coast in the late fifties. That seemed okay. New York didn't really need three teams (do they need one?), and besides, LA and Frisco certainly deserved to have teams. In the early 60's, both leagues expanded from eight to ten teams. Sure; ex- pansion thinned the original clubs and the expansion teams got unproven youngsters and graying veterans, but the Mets did win the pennant (as if that is any consolation). And last year, both leagues fielded two new entries, but at least they broke it into divisions to add a little suspense. But baseball did not content itself with adding franchises. They had to meddle with things more sacred than the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Kansas City Athle- tics. Instead of being content with carrying the horse- hide gospel to the hinterlands, baseball club owners have set out to destroy the old houses of worship where so many experienced the dynamics of conversion. This is all to say that old ball parks are quickly being replaced by sterile new structures, circular hunks of steel and cement; pyramids to our age of opulence. Three new stadiums will be in operation in the National League by the end of this season, but they can never substitute for the charm and memories of the stadia they will replace. CROSLEY FIELD in Cincinnati will be replaced by a new riverfront stadium, and you can bet your bippie -that the new stadium will not have a terrace. Way back when Crosley Field was built, people didn't place as much faith in warning tracks as they do today. So in order to let a scurrying outfielder know he was about to scamper right into the fence, they put the fence at the top of a small rise. The terrace not only makes a player realize that he's nearing the fence, it helps him slow down. As a fringe benefit, the outfielder can also stumble and fall upon it, and he can also have the ball roll down the terrace away from him after he's reached the top. In Philadelphia, a new circular stadium is going up in the down-river district, and the Phillies will vacate Connie Mack Stadium. In the first place, it somehow doesn't seem right to leave a stadium named after a man who played and managed for 50 years, even though Mr. Mack was associated with the old Philadelphia A's and not the Phils. But there was more than a name to the charm of Connie Mack Stadium. The walls in the outfield were modeled after the great wall of China; they zig and zag with abandon at angles that must sorely offend modern thinkers. And lo, in right-center, there is perched a massive scoreboard that pleads for hitters to belt the ball off it. And they do. And once the ball hits the scoreboard, there is no guarantee which way it will bounce down, or whether it will bounce down at all. And venerable old Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, a relic of the last century (oh horror of horrors), will soon have no tenant. Forbes Fieldi is a place of mammoth proportions and glorious history. A ball hit between the outfielders seems to be getting constantly goosed as it meanders towards the 400-foot sign. And where else can a batter do his thing against a backdrop of majestic oaks. And above all, who can ever forget Bill Mazeroski's home run that won the 1960 Series. ALL THE NEW stadiums around the league look like Astrodomes without the dome. They are identical in all main respects, so alike, in fact, that even the ball- players themselves may soon find themselves forgetting where they are. Ours is an age where uniqueness is not as important as it once was. Another (dis-) advantage of the new parks will hit the fan where it counts most; in his derriere. No longer will the partisans be kept on the edge of their seats solely because of hard wooden chairs and benches. Now he will have a chaise fit for royalty, and may indeed get so comfortable with his brew in the plush comfort that he will finally go to sleep. Discomfort can be ignored, but comfort can lull even a fanatic. Detroit appears to be headed towards a river-front stadium, too. Admittedly, Tiger Stadium is a lousy place to watch a football game and the Lions should have a new den. But let the Tigers stay where they are. A stadium built for both baseball and football, as all the new ones are these days, serve neither well. And everybody (except pitchers) loves Tiger Stadium. Those who cry fdr the preservation of the good old values could propably find no better monuments to the past to preserve. SATURDAY and SUNDAY Matinees Only 1:30-2:50-4:10 Adults only $1.50 not continuous with THE MINX" berman BERGMAN'S BIBI ANDERSSON LIV ULLMANN 0.5 A AUTtO "T .OPERT PICTUPRES CORPORAT~Of4 "INGMARB E RGMAN proves that a fully clothed woman telling of a sexual experience can make all the nudities and perver- sions" that have been splottering the s c r e e n lately, seem like nursery school sensualities." -World Journal Tribune PoTH aFrUM 1"PTN lA'JENUK A? LIBERTY DOWNTOWN ANN ARBOR INFORMATION 781-9700 11 EI(ERBUNY Q0USB presents THE JEWELTONES Rock your mind with jeweled kosmic magic. Learn that the earth is in the key of F. "It will probably go sharp in this warm weather."-G. Covender FRIDAY AND SATURDAY SHOWS TODAY AT 1:00-3:40-6:25-9:05 FEATURE 15 MINUTES LATER -PRICES LISTED BELOW- "You will enjoy 'AIRPORT' immensely. and you will find yourself talking about it enthusiastically to your friends." -Denver Post THE #1NOVEL OF THE YEAR MOTION '' PICTURE! a I BURT LANCASTER I t DEAN ARTIN~ Major League Standings AMERICAN LEAGUE East Division W4 L Pct. GS Nixon turns down offer to join Daily Sports Staff I... __ _ . . . - - -- - _ - _ - A ROSS HUNTER ',o BURT LANCASTER DEAN MARTIN JEAN SEBERG JACQUELINE BISSET GEORGE KENNEDY HELEN HAYES VAN HEFLIN MAUREEN STAPLETON BARRY NELSON LLOYD NOLAN MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY EVENINGS .... $ FRIDAY AND SATURDAY EVENINGS ...........$ ALL DAY SUNDAY.........................$ MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY MATINEE ......$ J i Baltimore 32 13 .711 New York 25 21 .546 Detroit 20 21 .489 Washington 20 23 .465 Boston 18 24 .429; Cleveland 14 25 .350 West Division - Minnesota 28 12 .700 xCalifornia 28 14 .667 xOakland 22 21 .512 Kansas City 18 25 .419 Chicago 17 27 .386 Milwaukee 13 28 .317 x-late game not included Yesterday's Results New York 4, Detroit 2 Washington 7, Boston 5 Kansas City 4, Chicago 3 Baltimore 5, Cleveland 4 Minnesota at Milwaukee, ppd. Oakland at California, inc. Today's Games Oakland at California, night Milwaukee at Minnesota Only games scheduled NATIONAL LEAGUE East Division 71% 10 11 12'A 1512 14 11% 13 15 / (ED. NOTE: Earlier this year, President j Nixon mentioned that as a young boy, his ambition was to be a sportswriter. Those of us so loyal to him here at The Daily Sports Desk greatly empa- thized with his plight. We are in con- stant contact with the glamorous fa- cade of sports and are used to being 7 envied. A few of our writers were so moved by the President's plight that we sent a letter to the White House offering him a position as a Sports Staff traing ee. In the letter, we informed the President that although we would be awed and flattered if he Joined our illustrious circle, we felt that we could extend him no special priviliges in spite of his high office. In other words, he would have to start out as a train- ee like everybody else. It is with a heavy heart that we come before you with this reply.) THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON May 20, 1970 Dear Sports Fans: On behalf of the President, I wish to thank you for your letter of April 2. We are delighted to W L Pet. GB Chicago 22 18 .550 --. New York 22 21 .512 114 St. Louis 20 21 .489 214 Pittsburgh 21 24 .466 3% Phila.delphia 18 25 .419 5% Montreal 16 26 .381 7 'best Division %Cincinnati 32 14 .696 - xLos Angeles 25 18 .581 514 Atlanta 25 18 .581 5% xSan Francisco 21 24 .467 10% Houston 20 26 .435 12 xSan Diego 21 28 .429 12% x-late game not included Yesterday's Results Pittsburgh 4, Chicago 0 New York 3, St. Louis 0 Atlanta 8, Houston 1 Philadelphia 3, Montreal 0 Los Angeles at San Francisco, inc. Cincinnati at San Diego, inc. Today's Games Philadelphia at Montreal, night St. Louis at New York Pittsburgh at Chicago Los Angeles at San Francisco Only games scheduled BILLIARDS Table Tennis BOWLING Football MICHIGAN UNION OPEN THIS WEEKEND KEEP AHEAD OF YOUR HAIR ! * NO WAITING " 8 BARBERS * OPEN 6 DAYS Arborland-Campus Maple Village The Dascola Barbers GET YOURMAWIThA Want Aj know of all the expertise in Ann Arbor. I know the President will ap- preciate the offer of a job but his current contract with the Amer- ican people has some time to go., With best wishes, Sincerely, Herbert G. Klein Director of Communications for the Executive Branch P.S. He enjoyed your humor. BACH CLUB presents RECORDER MUSIC of Morley, Telemann, Hindemith & Stoeps j performed by JOHN FORBES, JIM PIERSON, & JOHN FINK on various kinds of recorders Also, on election of officers Refreshments & FUN afterwards THURS., MAY 28, 8 P.M. Canterbury House 330 Maynard EVERYONE WELCOME!! (No musical knowledge needed) 663-2827, 761-7356 " i 769-6540 ANN ARBOR NETWORK gala RE-OPENING 5 P.M.-2 A.M. 7 DAYS EVERY WEEK If you need information or help -Youth Information Center General Information -Be creative, invent a problem --Call us, we're lonely 769-6540 0 I I Daily Classifieds Bring Results Now Showing SHOWS AT 1-3-5-7-9:05 Cable Hogue says... DIAL 668-6416 t 1:JL1LLi'ZJ TONIGHT, AT 6:50 and 9:05 mwmmmmmmm swmv.r i mmd r $2.25 $2.50 2.25 $1.75 M ANGC THEATRE CORPORATION A NATIONAL GENERAL COMPANY 1 F5OMLH aS4O .. .. . r:: 'WOMEN IN LOVE' is EXTRAORDINARY. In par- ticular, the sexual encounters have both a power and a tastefulness that we rarely see in today's sexually frenzied filmsI!"-Life Magazine between sensual people is limited:; They must find:. anew way~.. LARRY KRAMER arnd MARTIN ROSEN present KEN RUSSELL'S firm of D. H. LAWRENCEVS "WOMEN IN LOVE" ®COLOR by DeLuxe United Ar turt e "IMAGINATIVE SEXSATION" --Variety "qbFRANKLY EROTIC"1 -Film Bulletin "REMARKABLE-0,.. EXPLICIT" -N.Y. Times 41 'I. MON.-FRI.-7:20-9:30 SAT.-SUN.-1:00-3:00 5:10-7:20-9:30 An Ingo Preminger Production Color by DE LUXE PanavisionO 1 ',I I 4r .. V NUMBDAH RUGS. .. . come from Kashmir, and are embroidered in wool with flower and animal motifs. We have just V Qi received a large shipment with three sizes. COME IN AND BROWSE! INDIA ART SHOP 330 Maynard Street --y O C1 <--y3G O<--t. fCO<-y >O< =.<- G-:> <-6 "Seek...and ye shall find:' sendfortree sample A * D LLADtOr WESTWOOD PHARMACEUTICALS INC. Buffalo, New York 14218 o NAME n~u STREET R CY 4SAZIP CODE TECHNICOLORe From WARNER BROS. N r> c . :i j. .r e ' 1 4 wi I T 1l a F" ii :- . I k f T . iiJ .f -' k f F Dinner served until 2am. (closed Mondays)-211 N. Main 663-7752 ight accross from the oid Post Office) 69/70 NEW CAR LEFTOVERS ,aiir £fr4tjan 4 *too OFFICE HOURS CIRCULATION - 764-0558 COMPLAINTS- 9a.m. - 11:30a.m. SUBSCRIPTIONS - 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. CLASSIFIED ADS - 764-0557 10 a.m. - 3 p m. DEADLINE FOR NEXT DAY - 12:30 p.m. DISPLAY ADS - 764-0554 AA1PR V - ., ^" i z 69 69! 691 69. 69 European Motor Service 331 So, Fourth Ave. 663-5403 Ann Arbor 663-0110 Simca 1204 Wagon Front Wheel Drive Simco 1118 4 Dr. Sedan 70 Sunbeam Alpine G. T. Automatic 70 Sunbeam Arrow 4 Dr. Automatic 70 Sunbeam Arrow 4 Dr. Standard Shift II $1982.45 1686.52 2507.58 2113.58 1949.58 4 01 I s: i -I I '4- ~.