The Michigan Daily - Sports Monday - October 23, 1989 - Page 3

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McLain
Talking pitching, prison and Pete Rose
with baseball's last 30-game winner



Richard Eisen

Last week, former Tiger star was terrific when we were under
Denny McLain, the last pitcher to pressure. But we had a number of
win 30 games in a season, brought guys like that, Norm Cash, Kaline
his radio show to the University of and Northrup and Stanley.
Michigan Union and talked with D: About that season in general,
various Wolverine personalities. what was the greatest part about that
When McLain came to the campus, year for you?
Michigan Daily sports writer Scott M: I think the most important
Erskine was there and fired many thing that happened that year was
questions in McLain's direction. that we were able to quiet down.
And here are the results: (There was) a significant amount of
Daily: What do you feel about turmoil in the city of Detroit and in
college baseball today? Do you feel the state of Michigan. Riots were
that players should go through going on at the time. We had people
4 college out of high school? dying, we had the whole half of the
McLain: Oh, I don't think it city on fire they estimated at one
makes any difference. If a young time. And that ball club really pulled
man's got a lot of talent and he can the city together. They gave every-
get a significant signing bonus, body a common cause to pull for and
namely close to a couple hundred to pray for and to cheer for every
thousand dollars, I think he should night. And I think that ball club
go. But if he gets anything less than really did a lot of saving of lives and
a hundred thousand dollars as a sign- property that year.
ing bonus out of high school, then D: What do you think about Bill
he's gotta stay in and get a college Freehan getting the coaching job
education. Get the degree, that's the here?
most important item in life, it M: Oh, I think he's the right guy
seems like today. for the moment. I'm not sure what
Because there are so few that kind of a coach Billy will be, but I
really experience success who play know he'll be intense and he'll be
baseball, football, basketball or very competitive. Freehan is a guy
;whatever. So you've got, putting with impeccable integrity. And the
,everything in perspective, the University of Michigan, for its base-
,number one item in everybody's life, ball program right now, at least
the number one item on their based upon the allegations, needs
agenda, should be getting the edu- someone with impeccable integrity.
'cation. And then if something else I'm not sure if he's gonna be the
happens that is nice, then it's a lot next Mao Smith or Casey Stengel,
easier to handle if it goes bad. and he's certainly got the ability to
D: Did you play in college at all? be, but the most important thing is
M: No, I never went to college, to bring somebody in, that if in fact
a program was out of line, to
I've got some pretty significant edu- straighten it out and Freehan will do
cation musically, I play keyboards, that.
piano. But the only additional edu-
cation I've had is music. D: What you were paid when you
D: What did it feel like to be on were in the majors?
.'the 1968 World Series Champion- M: I made a little more than
ship team? $400,000 in ten years.
M: Well, it was a great deal of
fun. You know, (I) played with a D: So what do you feel about the
bunch of good people. You've got pay of the baseball players today?
one of the people here now mana- M: I draw my pension now, I'm
'ging your baseball team, (Bill) Free- 45. I get my pension and I've got a
han, one of the better guys I ever serious pension for the rest of my
played agaunst. Not only because of life. It is an unbelievable amount of
his competitiveness, but because of money and it comes in every month,
is ability to think under fire, he the check is good. And because of
Finally! A student
section at Crisler
by Mike Gill
Daily Basketball Writer
Steve Fisher's Crisler Arena coaching debut won't be the only thing
new when Michigan starts its season November 14 against the Polish
.-National Team. A new student section will also be in place.
11 The student section will consist of some 3000 seats on the opposite end
of the player's entrance tunnel, extending from baseline to inline, and will
include both gold and blue section seating. The band will also be relocated
to this area.
"We need to make it fun," Fisher said. "I don't want it to be vicious or
something like that but we need them (the students) to go out there, have
fun, do crazy things and harass the opponent and get our kids a little more
excited. I think that adds to the atmosphere of college basketball."
Crisler Arena crowds in the past have been known as laid back and
lacking noise. Last year, two separate movements began in mid-season to
-have seats redistributed so a true student section would be established.
Students have long complained that alumni and athletic boosters receive the
choice seating, and then read books and newspapers during games.
In previous seasons, some students received lower bowl seating - based
on the number of years they had purchased season tickets - while most
were confined to the upward stretches of the arena.
Fisher hopes the new section will improve Michigan's home court
advantage. "If you had visited all the arenas in the conference and rated all
the crowds, Michigan would probably rate in the second division," Fisher
said. "But they're not bad. Sometimes the crowd gets the team excited.
Here, most of the time, the team gets the crowd excited."

When former Michigan coach Bill Frieder complained about the lack of
noise in past years, he instituted the "Frieder Meter" which would rate the
'fan's vociferousness each game. Fisher is unsure whether he will debut the
"Fisher Meter."
"I don't think so," Fisher said, but then paused and added, "Maybe we
will. I don't know. I haven't even given that a thought."

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the way the economy in baseball has
improved - the financial health of
it is just terrific - our pension
keeps going up every year. But we
were the ones that started all this, we
formed the union. We kept it strong.
We're the ones that went out on
strike in 1972, so the kids today are
receiving those benefits.
D: We talked about the high
points in your life. Is there any one
low point that you would want to
talk about in your life?
M: I've had a number of things
happen in my life, the most serious,
of course, I had a conviction. I went
to jail for thirty months and then the
case was reversed. But thirty months
away from my wife and my children
was a very tough thing, especially
based upon the type and the nature of
the case it was. But, you know,
that's all behind me. I've never been
happier than I am now. I've never
had more fun than I'm having now.
And it's just terrific to get up every
day and see the sun shine.
D: Do you feel that when you
were in prison that you got special
treatment because you were such an
excellent player?
M: No. Absolutely not.
D: You were treated just like one
of the other people?
M: Not necessarily saying -
there were exceptions both good and
bad. It just depends on what kind of
a moron you would run into on a
particular day. If you go into that
form of lifestyle, into that society
with people who are in jail, the
majority are violent people. You
cannot help but to have violent
incidents while you are in prison.
And you are gonna meet some of
those people, but fortunately, if
you're able to either talk your way
out of it or able to defend yourself
then at least you'll be able to come
out with both arms and both legs.
But it's a violent world.
D: I'm sure you've heard of the
Pete Rose incident and having gone

through something similar what do
you feel about the decision that they
made?
M: It was the only decision they
can make. All of the evidence is
overwhelming. I read all 2,000 pages
of the report. Pete made a serious
mistake, and he's gonna pay for that
mistake. My own personal predict-
ion is he'll never be allowed back
into baseball. I don't think now he'll
get into the Hall of Fame regardless
of what some of the writers said at
the moment. I think before anyone
will give him any consideration at
all he's gotta show a significant
amount of remorse before they allow
him to get into the Hall of Fame,
and he's got a better shot at getting
into the Hall of Fame than he does
getting back into baseball.
D: Being one of the best pitchers
in the past 4 or 5 decades, do you
feel that your chances of getting into
the Hall of Fame were hurt because
of what happened?
M: Well, sure, my lifestyle. I
think there was a lot of petty
criticism of my lifestyle when I
played and after I played. If people
want to judge people on their
lifestyle off the field, then I think
it's time for the Hall of Fame select-
ion committee to go back and take
out the people that don't belong
there. Babe Ruth certainly doesn't
belong there. Ty Cobb may be the
worst person in the entire - he may
have been as bad as Charles Manson.
He knifed everybody. This guy
knifed more people than the Boston
Strangler. We've got Dizzy Dean.
An unbelievable gambler, I mean
huge, major league gambler.
And if in fact they're going to
keep people out because of lifestyle
then these guys must come out and
let them replace guys that they think
have a lot more integrity. I suggest
that those type of people do not
exist. There is nobody in their life
that has not made some serious mis-
takes. The difference is that a lot of
these guys didn't get caught and
some of the others did.

Spartans, lies and
videotape for Perles
Last Monday, at his weekly press conference from that tunnel of love
we call East Lansing, Michigan State Spartan coach George Perles
sounded more like Steven Spielberg than a football coach.
You see, Perles whipped out some videotape last Monday. And instead
of talking of winning and losing and moving on after his loss to the
Wolverines, he talked more of mise-en-scene and montage.
In an unprecedented maneuver, Perles used film to prove his point
with the press. Much like a child who loses rock, paper, scissors and then
calls pennytax, Perles wanted to show the press that Michigan center
Steve Everitt was "rocking the ball" on purpose before the snap.
This "rocking" motion, Perles said, caused defensive back Todd
Murray to jump offsides on a J.D. Carlson field goal attempt. The kick
was wide and because of the penalty, Carlson rekicked the ball and
knocked it through the uprights.
And guess what? Michigan won by three points. Shucks. What a bad
break for George.
"Watch this," Perles said to the press, showing a picture of Everitt
"rocking" the ball. "Nice eh? Probably an accident." Gee, is George being
sarcastic here? Does he have the capacity for sarcasm?
"I don't know why we got a guy (referee) on the sideline," the
potential Academy Award winner said from the Duffy Dougherty Football
Building.
How ridiculously childish was this? How come Perles can't put his
tail between his legs and accept this loss? Why must he use this petty
film attack to assuage the pain of yet another loss to the Wolverines?
Because he's bush league. That's why.
After losing to Notre Dame for the third straight year, no one heard
Michigan coach Bo Schembechler complain about some technicality. He
didn't do some hack job on Lou Holtz on Monday. He's still upset about
it, though.
"I'd rather have a victory over Notre Dame," Schembechler whispered
when asked how he felt to be a best-selling author. Notice he didn't show
a documentary explaining how upset he was.
Along with the film, Perles did what most children do when they're
pissed: talk to themselves even though there's a room full of people.
"What's the rule, George?" Perles asked himself, not waiting for the
press to put forth the question. (Supposedly, he waited a few minutes to
answer because he forgot he was talking to himself.) "The rule is one,
continuous motion -verbatim."
Perles claimed that his little film display was for the benefit of redshirt
frosh Murray. Now, that would have been pretty noble for a coach to do.
And it would have been pretty noble for Perles to have made his point
without the use of film.
But he didn't. Perles' excuse of helping Murray with the private
screening was completely undercut by his statements concerning
Schembechler's post game comments.
"I guess the most profound statement of the weekend was, 'The better
team won,"' the profound Spartan director said. "It's a nice humble
statement."~
There's that wonderful Perles sarcasm shining through again. Guess he
can't help himself.
Ahem.
Pardon me, George. But the best team did win that day. Michigan's
defense played wonderfully as Michigan's blocking backs and receivers
shut down linebacker Percy Snow completely. It was obvious that Perles
still seethes from the Wolverine victory.
And he used his press conference to vent his frustrations.
"When you've got something.on my mind like I do, the first place I
can't wait to get to is to see you guys," Perles told the reporters. "It's
like being baptized. It's like being cleansed, ready to go again. I don't
have an axe to grind, and I feel real good."
Somebody should throw water on Perles. Throw cold water to wake
him up. Of course, he has an axe to grind. It's called frustration of losing
to the same team constantly. If Demetrius Brown wasn't color blind on
that seven-interception-day two years ago, Perles would still be without a
victory over Michigan.
Check out this axe to grind: in the last seven years, the Spartans have
scored only four touchdowns against the Wolverines. And Perles gets
upset when Schembechler claims the better team won that day.
Interestingly enough; Perles broke his own 24-hour gag rule that he
places on his players. Trying to keep his players from griping after a
loss, Perles tells them that they have 24 hours to talk to the press after a
game. Not being a hypocrite, George obviously has no axe to grind.
While Perles does have the capacity of being gracious, he chose the
very low road with this situation. He could have made some subtle
statement concerning his unwarranted anger and waited for next year.
Maybe he could have even spoken out against his disgusting fans that
decided to light the town red last Saturday night. Instead of complaining
about "rocking the ball" maybe Perles could have been a true campus
leader and condemned those Renaissance individuals who thought it was
cool to loot the town and light couches on fire.
Notice that when Michigan fans loot the town, they do it after their
team wins. But those wacky Spartan fans, they'll ignite the town even if
they lose.

But no. Perles broke out the videotape and whined, whined and
whined.
Write Rich Quick
The Daily's own Richard Eisen wants to hear what you think about the
world of sports. Is George Steinbrenner on your mind, or do you just want
to shoot the breeze about ESPN's Dream Season? Does the prospect of
Wrestle-mania XXV intrigue you? And what about those Russian hockey
players? Don't say, "Nyet!"; Write Rich Quick!
If you've got an opinion, Eisen wants to know about it. Yes, write
Richard Eisen at the Student Publications Building on 420 Maynard
because he wants to hear your opinions about players, coaches, rules or
anything else that's bugging the heck out of you about sports in general.
Sports Capsule
Five Years Ago - Saturday, October 27, 1984
Right off the back, Jack Trudeau knew he was in for a long, long day.
On the first play of the Michigan-Illinois game, Trudeau watched his
pass bounce off Wolverine Kevin Brooks and into the waiting hands of
linebacker Rodney Lyles at the Illinois 13-yard line.
It was just the break Michigan needed to get back on track in conference
play. The 104,916 Wolverine watchers in attendance were treated to a 26-18
victory over a respected Illinois squad.
25 Years Ago - Saturday October 24, 1964
Michigan held off a kicking-till-the-end Minnesota offensive rally in the

This Michigan fan will now get to sit with other crazies like himself at
Michigan home basketball games thanks to the new student section.


TAYLOR
Continued from page 1

Minert says the right knee currently is at about
60-65 percent.
"With Kirk," Minert adds, "he has
exceptional leg strength. If you compare it with
a normal person, he would already be normal,
but with Kirk's ability, you have to be super
normal."
Taylor comes from a family of super-
athletes- isi faither w n etatm ,."h ; , ,.

The injury though, has helped put sports in
its place. Taylor says he does not feel cheated,
but rather points to the positive aspects the past
few months have had on him.
"I think this injury helped me out a lot,"
Taylor said. "It helped me put a lot of things in
perspective. A lot of athletes who play a sport
think their sport is God. It's not true. You have
to face reality. I faced reality. I'm on a comeback.
It just gave me a whole new outlook."
On the otherside, Taylor does not like the

The possibility of being redshirted this year is
not out of the question, but Fisher and Taylor
now point to playing. "I don't know. We aren't
talking about that now," Fisher said. "I'm sure
it's always a possibility. I think Kirk may be
talking about that a little more than we are. But
we think Kirk Taylor can help this basketball
team."
However, Taylor will have to fight for
playing time, with Mike Griffin, Sean Higgins,
Demetrius Calip and newcomers Michael Talley
and Tony Tolbert.
All that, on top of an injury.

I