4
Baseball
vs. Northwestern
Tomorrow, 1:00 p.m.
Ray Fisher Stadium
SPORTS'
Softball
vs. Akron
Tomorrow, 3:00 p.m.
Varsity Diamond
The Michigan Daily
Friday, March 31, 1989
'M'batters at
Wildcats up next
for baseball team
BY STEVEN COHEN
This weekend, the Michigan baseball team opens its Big Ten season with
consecutive doubleheaders against Northwestern Saturday and Sunday at
FiSher Stadium.
Michigan,13-6, faces a team in Northwestern, 5-13-1, which seems
headed in an opposite direction. The Wildcats finished tied for eighth in the
conference last year while Michigan finished first. Their pitching has been
woeful, striking out only 87 and yielding 135 walks in 133 innings.
In contrast, Michigan's pitchers have struck out 133 batters and walked
87, in 148 2/3 innings. Michigan coach Bud Middaugh tentatively expects
his starters to be Mike Grimes (2-1, 6.38 ERA) Ross Powell (1-0, 4.83,)
Tim Lata (3-0, 0.87) Russ Brock (2-1, 4.86) and Jeff Tanderys (1-0, 2.45).
The Wildcat pitching has been a bane to head coach Paul Stevens. "Right
now, I don't have any complaints with our position players," Stevens said.
"If we can get our pitching going I think a lot of good things will happen."
Michigan should make it difficult for Wildcat starters Dave Van Winkle
(7.14 ERA), Todd Krueger (7.71), Jim Robinson (11.91), and Tom Borgula
(13:19) to decrease their considerable ERAs.
Third baseman Doug Kaiser, who has been ailed by a shoulder injury,
leads Michigan with a . 567 on base percentage. Phil Price, Greg Haeger,
Matt Morse, Dave Everly, and Andy Fairman are all over .400. In addition,
centerfielder Jim Durham, with eight steals in nine attempts, should create
some action if the basepaths are flooded.
Wildcat first baseman Chris Beacom, who last season hit a team-leading
.365, has slumped to .230 this season. Shortstop Tim Buhe leads North-
western in hitting, batting .333 including four doubles and five homers.
Second baseman Todd Frese, a .298 hitter last season, is not expected to
play due to injury.
Despite the many factors in his teams' favor, Michigan coach Bud
Middaugh is reluctant to pass judgement on Northwestern or his own squad.
"At this point you really can't make judgments. All teams are contenders( in
the Big Ten). Last year they played us awfully tough but you don't know
how many people they're returning. We've had some good and bad
moments. I think we're improving.f
"Some players who were playing well don't play as well because you'reA
probably going to see better competition. Some players who haven't been Michigan rightfi
playing as well might play better. We'll have to wait and see." Saturday's win o
home
Page 10,
for weekend
am Akron on deck for
Blue softball team
t
BY PETER ZELLEN
The Michigan softball team, 20-6, will play the University of Akron
tomorrow, but the game may not be as easy as it might seem.
"They're (Michigan) an outstanding ballclub, but we're going after
them," Akron coach Jill Arrietta said.
A lot of people haven't heard of Akron but their well regarded in the
softball world. The team is 11-8, but is ranked fourth in the Mideast region.
The ranking system for softball works in the following manner: there are
seven regions in the country, and each lists their top five teams. Those 35$
are then voted on by the committee as to who will be in the top 20. I
Akron did not make the top 20 but remains one of the top 35 in thei
country due to their regional ranking.
Arrietta has taken the softball program a long way in its seven years of
existance. The team started the 1983 season in Division II and had
experienced much success.
Then in 1987 the team joined Division I play and now Akron will playx
its first season in the Northstar conference. Previously the team had always
been independant.
Akron's fiesty style of play is equal to their attitude towards improving-
their standing in the softball community.
"We play a bunt and run kind of game," Arrietta said. "We move the
runners around a lot and we like to make the defenses make mistakes."
The squad has no real stars but has a solid nucleus of players. Their
pitching staff is led by senior Teresa Parker. The lefthander from Ohio has a
record of 5-3 and sports an earned run average of 1.40. She should start thp
first game against the Wolverines.
The hitting is led by another senior, Kim Fausnight. She is currently,
hitting .246 but in 61 at bats she has four triples and six runs batted in,
Fausnight is a solid defensive player who patrolls rightfield and center.
Because a victory against eighth-ranked Michigan would mean a chance
to jump into the top 20, the Wolverines know that Akron will bedp,
emotionally propelled.
"They're going to be all pumped up to play us," said Michigan pitcher-
thirdbaseman Jenny Allard. "It would make their season to beat us." A
"Akron's a good program and they've got a good coach," Michigan coach,
Carol Hutchins said. "They've got some good kids and I'd look for this te
be a good series."
Arrieta thinks so too. "Any time they're (a ranked team) in striking di.-
tance, you have to go for them," said the Akron coach. "We can't be takep
lightly."
ROBIN LOZNAK/Ooily'
elder Phil Price rounds third base during last
over Eastern Michigan University.
Blue splits pair with Western
BY JAY MOSES
The Michigan baseball team tried its best Wednesday to reenact "How the
West Was Won."
There were only two problems. The matchup took place only as far west
as Kalamazoo, and the Wolverines only took one of two games from
Western Michigan.
The Broncos won the opener,10-4, despite committing six errors, and
Michigan took the nightcap, 4-3, in eight innings.
In the first game, Western Michigan (9-4-1) beat up on three Wolverine
pitchers. Sophomore left-hander Kirt Ojala was the starter and loser. First-
year player Eric Persinger also saw action, but he had a difficult outing,
giving up six earned runs in only 1 and 2/3 innings.
Sophomore Dave Everly led the attack, going 2-for-3 with an RBI. Matt
Morse also contributed, going 2-for-4.
In the second game, Russell Brock started on the mound for the
Wolverines, going five innings. The win went to junior Mike Grimes (2-1),
who went 2 1/3 innings, giving up one run and striking out four.
"It looks like Grimes has been throwing real well," head coach Bud
Middaugh said.
Michigan had to scratch and claw for almost all of its runs. This state of
affairs was helped by the Broncos' shaky defense and the Wolverines' hustle.
This was evident in the second game, when the Wolverines scored the
winning run in the eighth inning. Everly walked, stole second, and scored
on a Texas-league pop-up by first-year catcher Mike Matheny.
The University of Michigan .
School of Business Administration
Black Business Students Association
presents
WMets are mu chi too
73w tpg good for NL East
he Sortna vews+ th S~rtia VIWS theSD~tiI
BY ANDREW GOTTESMAN
Ok, every time I write about
baseball, tons of people get mad
because of my, well, slight New
York biases.
So this time, I'm not going to
tell you how good the Mets are or
by how much they're going to- win
their division.
Except for one thing - the NL
East will be a New York Feast.
Now that I've said that, we can
discuss^ who will follow the Let's
Goes, and you can't scream at me.
ALSO, I don't really want to
scrutinize the strengths and weak-
nesses of each team in predicting
NEED ADVICE IN
CHOOSING YOUR
CLASSES??
GET ADVICE!!'!
Free Guide to
Student Evaluating
on Professors and Classes
AVAILABLE AT
MASON HALL,
ANGELL HALL,
UGLI, & DORMS
NL EAST
what place they'll come in. If you're
not first, like the Mets are going to
be, there really isn't any reason to
belabor the fact, is there?
The Pirates seem to be the
popular favorite to unseat the Mets.
Uh-uh. No-way. Nope. Won't hap-
pen. Not in a million years. Can't
be done. Yeah, right. Maybe in your
dreams. Well, not this season,
anyway...
What the Bucs did has to be one
of the stupidest off-the-field moves
ever. In getting rid of general
manager Syd Thrift, they lost the
man who engineered their rise from
the cellar to prominence. And what
do they do? Force him out and
replace him with Larry Doughty.
That would be like firing Steve
PALESTINE
SOLIDARITY
COMMITTEE
Invites
Interested applicants to
pick up applications for the
1989 Delegation to the
Occupied Territories
-available at the MSA
Office, PSC Office (4203
Michigan Union), and at
The Michigan Daily
-deadline for pick up
Tuesday April 5, 1989
-for further information
call 665-9620
Fisher and rehiring Bill Frieder as
coach of the Michigan basketball
team.
Oh, and don't forget that the Mets
(just imagine that you're not
actually reading this right now) beat
Pittsburgh 12 out of 18 last year.
And thank heavens the Phillies
are in this division. Their starting
rotation won 19 games all last
season. (I won't mention at this
juncture that the Mets pitching staff
this season is once again the best,
featuring David Cone, Dwight
Gooden, Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez
and Bob Ojeda. The five won 77
games in 1988.)
AND THEN there's the Chicago
Cubs. Now here's a team I really
like. They play in a great, old
stadium in the middle of a baseball
city. There aren't parking lots
surrounding Wrigley, no retractable
domes over its top (too bad they
ruined the whole ambience by
playing in a spring training complex
called HoHo-Kam Park.
For God sakes, that sounds as if
it should be in my home state of
New Jersey.) Unfortunately, they
seem to be completely in the dark
about playing baseball. Oh, they are.
It's too bad they had to put those
lights in. Now the Cubs don't even
have tradition to go with mediocrity.
Well, maybe a losing tradition. Not
to mention (and I won't) the fact that
the Cubs only home run hitter will
be Andre Dawson while those New
Yorkers sport Kevin McReynolds:
(27 HR, 99 RBI's), Darryl Straw-+
berry (39, 101) and Howard Johnson'
(24, 68). And who knows what;
Gregg Jefferies can do in a whole:
season?
The Expos play in Olympic:
Stadium, now fully equipped with a
retractable dome. That's a fitting
name, since this is a team that:
might (and I stress might ) have a
chance against the Canadian national:
team in the next Olympics. The'
Canadian national hockey team, that
is. Now don't tell me how Montreal:
is perennially close. I've already said:
that second through fifth places don't:
count for anything.;
And what kind of name is the-
Expos ? What are they exposing,:
how terrible they are? Besides, they:
wear red, white and blue. Those:
colors should be reserved for real:
American teams, like the Mets.
(Sorry, short mental lapse.)
I'm going to tell you right out -t
no sugar coating - I hate the:
Cardinals. They play on that'
ridiculous artificial turf with track
stars (possibly from the Expos
Olympic team?), not baseball
players. I really wouldn't care if the
entire team got run over by the
Clydesdales on one of Augie Busch's
jaunts around the outfield. 4
Enough said.
I hope all of those readers from
anywhere west of the Hudson aren't'
offended. Well, yes I do.
Let's Go Mets!
I,
Looking Ahead,
Looking Anew
The Challenges for
Black Managers
In the Nineties
"The Challenges for Senior Managers"
Steven Lewis
Ford Motor Company
"The Challenges for Middle Managers"
Charlene Watler
Dow Jones & Company
"The Challenges for Entrepreneurs"
Loren Monroe
Pierce, Monroe, & Associates, Inc.
CLASSIFIED ADS! Call 764-0557
Chick Corea
Digs Eclipse
You Can Too
Eclipse has presented Jazz
legends such as Ella, Miles,
Ornette Coleman, Sun Ra,
Art Blakely, Modern Jazz
4