Page 11- The Michigan Daily -Monday, September 11, 1989 Richard Eisen Boris Becker grimaces as he sends a forehand return back towards Ivan Lendl in yesterday's U.S. Open final. The victory was Becker's fourth straight over Lendl and evened their career series at nine wins apiece. Becker wins U.S. Open in four sets over Lendl NEW YORK (AP) -Wimbledon whiz Boris Becker won his first U.S. Open on Sunday, staking his claim to the world's No.' 1 ranking by beating top-seeded Ivan Lendl 7-6, 1- 6, 6-3, 7-6. In blistering head that had Becker frequently icing his legs and eating fruit during breaks, the second seed from West Germany took his fourth Grand Slam title. He won his third Wimbledon crown in July. That double success won't be enough to lift him past Lend in the computer rankings. But Becker's strong serve and improved court command were enough to outlast the three-time Open champion in the 3 hour, 51 minute battle in temperatures that reached 110 degrees on the court. For Lendl, it was a second straight long and disappointing Open final. After winning three straight titles form 1985-87, Lendl lost in five sets to Mats Wilander last year, surrendering the top ranking that he soon recaptured. Becker, 21, now has won four consecutive meetings with the 29 Cardinals top Lions, Sanders PONTIAC (AP) - Al Del Greco's 33-yard field goal with 13 seconds left upstaged the impressive debut of Heisman Trophy winner Barry Sanders as the Phoenix *'Cardinals beat the Detroit Lions 16- 13 in an NFL opener Sunday. Sanders, the All-American from Oklahoma State who held out until Thursday because of a salary dispute, entered the game with 5:34 remain- ing in the third quarter and the Lions began a surge that gave them a 10-6 lead. He then ran for successive gains- of 18, 3, 5, and 3 yards, breaking a 0 tackle at the two as he sliced into the end zone with 3:01 remaining. Sanders, who also had a 26-yard run in the fourth quarter, finished with 71 yards on nine carries. Del Greco's winning field goal was his third of the game. He hit from 29 and 23 yards in the second quarter. Phoenix quarterback Gary Hoge- boom, who played college ball at Central Michigan, completed 21 of 35 passes for 264 yards, including a 15-yard strike to Roy Green for the Cardinals' only touchdown. J.T. Smith caught ten of Hogeboom's tosses for 121 yards. Lions' quarterback Bob Gagliano, directing a run-and-shoot offense, completed only 7 of 20 passes for 116 yards. Detroit gained 258 yards S total offense. (Women's Varsity Softball Tryouts) September 14 and 15 at Varsity Softball Diamond Contact: Carol Hutchins 747-1269 As a campus representative you'll be responsible for placing advertising materials on bulletin boards and working on marketing programs for clients 0 such as American Express. year old Lendl. They arc 7-7 lifetime. Becker's win gave west Germany a sweep of the singles championships at Wimbledon the Open. Steffi Graf also won both. It was Becker's first Grand Slam final anywhere but Wimbledon. His best previous showing at Flushing Meadow was reaching the semifinals in 1986. Lendl tied an Open record with his eighth consecutive final, something Bill Tilden did form 1918-25. The Czech, who now lives in Greenwich, Conn., less than an hour from the National Tennis Center, lost to Jimmy Connors twice, John McEnroe once and Wilander in previous Open finals. Becker won $300,000 while Lendl earned $150,000. After the first-set tiebreaker, won 7-2 by Becker after moving ahead 5- 0, Lendl easily tookhe second set. But Becker got a decisive break in the eighth game of the third set - just after Lendl had broken him - to take a two sets to one lead. Becker was up a break in the fourth set, but couldn't hold serve in the eighth game. They went to another tiebreaker, which Becker won on a service winner,'7-4, after losing the first two points. As he did at Wimbledon, Becker threw his racket in the stands after winning the final point. Like some old, cataract ridden dog that can't hold its gas, the American League East is finally coming to a merciful end. Throughout the entire year, the AL Deceased has lumbered around the country's ballparks with its mediocre brand of baseball. And, thankfully, it will all be over soon. From top to bottom, the division has little talent and no pitching. What was once a division of titans has now been reduced to a laughing stock. And that's a shame. Fans can all remember when this division was baseball's best. No doubt about it, too. In 1980, the New York Yankees won the division with 103 wins. The Baltimore Orioles finished in second with 100. Year after year, the fourth place team would be good enough to win the American League West. It seemed to be the norm. George Steinbrenner was a mental midget. The sun rose in the East. And the East was better than the West. Now, Steinbrenner is still a mental midget but the pitiful Baltimore Orioles are the ambassadors of the AL East. Just the fact that the Charm City Clown Princes of Baseball might go from the worst team in the world last season to winning the division is proof of the East's mediocrity. Look at the cold, bare statistics. The Oakland Athletics have more pitchers (4) with 15 or more wins than the entire Eastern division (3.) When you include the rest of the Western division, the East loses the 15-plus wins race by six pitchers, 9-3. And those New York Yankees lead the charge. When you think of the Yankees pitching staff, you think off that old, cataract ridden dog. In fact, a rancid smell would come to my mind. Once upon a time, hurlers like Whitey Ford and Allie Reynolds graced Yankee Stadium. Now, Steinbrenner parades these players on the Diamond Vision screen after every inning messed up by current Yankee pitchers. Gotta wonder how long George can hide behind tradition. Close ahead in pitching, but further behind in the standings are the incredibly pathetic Tigers. Only two years ago, Tigers fans boasted that their team had the best pitching staff in the division. Now, they have is the Adam Benson Hedging My Bets A 1975 George Brett rookie baseball card is worth $60.00. I've heard it said that the card may become the most valuable card of the 1970s. Baseball cards have become big business. Independent entrepreneurs venture into these sports memorabilia stores to make a living off of trading baseball cards. Baseball card exhibits at shopping malls and in hotel lobbies appear more and more frequently. People want them, maybe more so than ever before. I'm sure many collectors would want my Brett card in their set, but dollars can't estimate the value of that card. Baseball cards once represented childhood. They served as an opportunity for younger people to take a piece of the game home with them. Wherever your home may be. In New York, one may find a Don Mattingly card underneath that thin stick of plastic-like bubble gum. I'm sure that a Mattingly would be the prize of any Yankee fan's collection, something to show to the entire block. In Chicago, a kid may have to give up two Andre Dawsons if they want to get a Jerome Walton. Dawson was great, but Walton is an up-and-coming player. It could be a bargain to get a Walton rookie card now, even if a Dawson card is a sure thing. In Los Angeles, Dodger and Angel fans could exchange Orel Hershiser for The division of Kingpins finds itself in the gutter best staff of warm bodies. And their hitting. Tiger management should set off fireworks every time a Tiger hits the ball out of the infield. Moving up the ladder in AL Least - and we don't have to move very far - come the Cleveland Indians. In the off-season, Cleveland traded Julio Franco (.309, 13 HRs, 90 RBIs) for Pete O'Brien (.265, 12 HRs, 53 RBIs) and Oddibe McDowell (talentless loser). That trade smells worse than the Yankee pitching staff. Next we find the Milwaukee Brewers, who should be winning the division. After muddling around the .500 mark for the entire season, the Brew Crew finally got its act together and won eight straight games. Then, inexplicably, the wheels fell off the wagon. With Teddy Higuera, Chris Bosio, Dan Plesac and Robin Yount, there's no reason for the Brewers to lose this lame division. And then there's Boston. This team hits the cover off the ball. Unfortunately for Red Sox fans, the opposition does the same. The Sox put Wes Gardner out on the mound every fifth game. 'Nuf said. Ah, Baltimore. Who's sick and tired of hearing about how great the Orioles are from B-City fans? This horrible division masks the huge Oriole weaknesses. Like hitting (.252 team BA). And pitching (4.04 team ERA). With this record last year, the Orioles would be in the middle of the pack. And then we wouldn't be hearing a thing from Oriole fans - except griping. The Toronto Blue Jays are on top of the division and deserve to be there. With Fred "The House" McGriff hitting dingers like crazy and Jimmy Key pitching well down the stretch (3-0, 1.77 ERA in his last three starts), the Blue Jays should rightfully win the division. But in this possesed division, there's no telling what will occur. Maybe the sun will set in the East. Actually, this year, I can't wait for that to happen. Richard Eisen will be the featured columnist every Monday in Sport Monday, which begins a week from today. Baseball cards lost in , .r the world of big business Jim Abbott by the pool side. Those days are long gone, drifting almost as far away as a Mickey Mantle home run. The value of a card is no longer measured by the pleasure it provides, but by dollars and cents. Before you accuse me of listening to too many Don Henley songs, consider what we are talking about. This is baseball. This is the game that inspired movies like Field of Dreams and The Natural. Kirk Gibson and Carlton Fisk gave fans coronaries after creating some of their own drama, making moments people will remember forever. Kevin Mitchell left street gangs and turned his life around so he could play this game. Dave Dravecky fought to save his and pitch in the major leagues. These are the reasons to buy baseball cards. To get a little closer to the magic that baseball has. The object was never to swing a profit. I never wanted to know someone who looked upon baseball cards as if they were stocks and bonds. It was buying a memory. Baseball cards evoke images of a past spent as a worshiper of baseball. Or at least they used to. Baseball cards seemingly have another purpose now than simply being snapshots of our heroes. But maybe this reflects a new trend in a changing game. Ethical and legal disputes taint the image of America's pastime, pulling away the headlines from the performances. For every dramatic home run, there seems to be a drug scam. Even so, drama doesn't bring as much lasting glory as it used to anyway, but it could earn you a big contract. And if you make it that far, maybe you can gamble it away. The fans have learned to follow the lead of the players and the owners. Home runs, stolen bases, and earned run average translate in dollar signs. As for George Brett, isn't is sad to think that people might forget the pine tar incident, or how his hemorrhoids made the front pages of newspapers during the 1980 World Series, or the home run he hit to put away the Yankees in 1980 American League playoffs, but they will remember what the card is worth? CLASSIFIED ADSI Call 764-0557 POWERHOUSE GYM * School Special* $179.00 - Now until May 1, 1990! ANN ARBOR - Open 7 days a week - 6000 Sq. 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