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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 3, 1995)
P age B2 M ay 3, 1995 • T he P ortland O bserver BENSON WINS MEET m D \ nns B ell BASKETBALL Collins To Coach Pistons Doug Collins will replace Don Chaney as the coach o f the Detroit Pistons. Collins, who now serves as the color analyst for TNT cable network, said that he had agreed to terms w ith the Pis tons. He w as r e p o rte d ly w ill m ake $1 m illio n a y ear on a five y ear c o n tra c t. C o llin s has been out o f c o a c h in g sin c e b ein g fired from the C h icag o B ulls a fte r 1989. Eddie Lincoln who played bas ketball for the Benson Techmen, came out last Wednesday on the Grant High School track and equaled a state record for the fastest time in the high hurdles, helping Benson contin ue their unbeaten mark. Lincoln won three events, lead ing the Techmen past Grant, 8 1 -64 in a battle o f two 4-0 track and field teams. The w in puts Benson at the head o f the pack for the Portland Inter scholastic League dual meet champi on. The girls competition was a dif ferent story, with the Grant girls team defeating the previously undefeated Benson team 8 1 -64. That pullsG rant into a first place tie with Benson, both posting 4-1 records. Grant sprinter Emily Pokorny, won the 100 meters in 12.9 seconds, the 200 in 26.8 seconds and anchored the w inning 1600 relay team. Team mate Megan Faris, a sophomore, won both hurdle competitions. Their combined efforts were enough to negate the performance of Benson’s Shei'm eka Newman who won the longjump, javelin and triple jump. Lincoln, a senior who turned out late for track because he also played in Benson’s Class 4A semi-finals in basketball, was the pivotal factor in deciding Benson’s win. Posting a time o f 14.5 seconds in the high hurdles, then winning the longjum p at 21 feet 1.5 inches and the 300 meter hurdles in 4 1.3 seconds. ” 1 didn't think the 14.5 seconds was that fast when I was done,” Lin coln said. "I don't think I'm as good as I can be.” Benson's coach Leon McKenzie agreed. “Technically, it was not a good race for him. He’s only been out a month too, so he's not in top shape yet," McKenzie said G rant’s Kenny Carter was able to com e from behind and pass Benson's Russell Jackson in the final yards as the Generals lowered their state best 400 relay time to 42.3 seconds. Carter also bettered Jack- son in the 200 meters, but Jackson was able to get the better ofhim in the 100 meters. Eddie Lincoln of Benson High School is out front in the hurdles. (Photo courtesy of the Oregonian) Pack Injured Point guard Robert Pack o f the DenverNuggets has re-injured his knee and missed games I and 2 o f the playoffs. Denver lost both games. PSU PITCHER EYES MAJORS b \ FOOTBALL Sapp Signs W arren Sapp w hose stock fell in the N FL d ra ft a fte r te s t ing p o sitiv e for a d ru g te st sig n ed w ith the T am pa Bay B u c c a n e e rs . T h e fo u r y e a r c o n tra c t is w orth $ 4 .4 m illio n , a lot low er than if he w ould have been se le c te d in the top fiv e as ex p e c te d . He w ill have to su b m it tw ice w eekly to ra n dom d rug tests as p art o f his a g re e m e n t w ith the team . BASEBALL Arbitration A fter sp e n d in g n early a y e a r try in g to e lim in a te a r b i tra tio n , the ow ners w ere cou rt- o rd e re d to go th ro u g h the p ro cess. T h irty -n in e p lay ers have e x c h a n g e d fig u re s w ith th e ow ners. C a lif o r n ia 's C h ili D avis asked for the most at $ 5 .1 million and St. Louis pitcher Ken Hill asked for $5 million. Greg Wooten, star pitcher for Portland State University. BOXING WBU Upholds Foreman Win A fter v iew in g the v id e o tap e o f the G eo rg e F orem an. A xel S ch u lz fight the W orld B o x in g U nion C h a m p io n sh ip c o m m itte e u n a n im o u s ly ag re e d the o ffic ia ls w ere b e yond rep ro a c h Possible Rematch G e o rg e F o r e m a n 's n ex t fight may very w ell be w ith A xel S ch u lz in G erm an y in S e p te m b e r The p ro m o te r for F o rem an . Bob A rum , said th at such a fight c o u ld m ean $30 m illio n for Forem an who m ade ¡10 m illio n in his last fight w ith Schulz Greg Wooten at 6 foot 7 inches is an athlete, but not the sport usually associated with players of that stature. Instead o f being on the basket ball court, he’s an ace pitcher for the Portland State University baseball team. The alert, astute, and observant 21 -year-old sophomore is already one ofthe premiere pitchers in the North ern Division o f the Pacific 10 Con ference. Wooten possesses the natu ral attributes o f a pitcher and is de veloping techniques to take him all the way to the big leagues. “ I was offered scholarships to Mt. Hood Community College, W il lamette University and Linfield Col lege to play baseball and basketball,” he said. “ But I decided to go to Portland State because it has a Divi sion I (baseball)school, and I thought I had a better chance o f making it in baseball.” Emulating the Seattle Mariner 6 '1 0 " p itc h e r R andy Jo h n so n , Wooten uses his height to his advan tage on the mound. “ It helps a lot to be tall," Wooten said. “Your arms are a lot longer and that helps you throw harder. My height is also in THE GAME IS BACK A Home For The Devil Rays T am pa B a y ’s new b a se ball team . The D evil R ays, has got the go ahead to a 3 0 -y ear lease for the T h u n d e r D om e. O p e ra tio n s are e x p e c te d to begin in Jan u ary 1998. D anny B ell by E ric N oon For being called a thinking m an’s game, baseball and the peo ple who run it should have thought a little more about people who sup port it before coming back. Professional sports are big businesses and full o f greed and selfish people that so often come along with large amounts o f reve nue and earnings. Many fans are very disgruntled over the way base ball has handled the strike on both sides o f the fence. T here's a lot o f fingers that can be pointed, but the bottom line is, it's the fans, not the play ers or ow n ers, that suffer the most from this still unresolved dispute. The game has so many prob lems that many fans are to wits end and are not supporting the game that made them fans from their ear ly childhood. The fans think about how they can get back at what the game has gave them recently. The record low opening day crowds is an indication that many o f the long time fans and biggest supporters o f the game are stay ing away in sup I port o f their views, that the games should be punished for its actions. It’s easy to see the point the fan’s are making by not attending major league baseball, and in a lot o f ways the owners or the players don’t deserve the support that they’ve had in the past. They still don't have an agreement. The umpires are replace ments. Rosters have shuffled so much that one’s favorite team can have lost identity over the winter. The number o f reasons baseball is in very deep trouble is troubling in itself, to the owners, players and fans. The num ber o f reasons that the game will survive and make it through the times o f turmoil is much smaller. It only takes one reason for base ball to survive, and that is the game itself. They, the owners and players, have taken away an enormous amount away from the fans and have done damage bey ond repair But the point is the game is back The reason fans are upset are understandable in a lot o f ways, but these are still the best players in the world. The quality of baseball is as good as it gets. The best players in the world are playing one o f the oldest and greatest sports o f all time and that remains for now. A 144-gam e se a so n , lo st records from last year, no true pen nant race, and an unclear future give the fans a clouded view o f the game today. But for now, we have to take what we can as fans and support the game as a game, not as a business. Ken Griffey Jr. is still one o f the greatest players in the game and for now he sti 11 plays not far away in Seattle. Maybe Griffey w on’t be in Seattle forever, or even the Mari ners due to the way they are losing money. But the fact is baseball is back and the same love for the game that got so many fans frustrated will bring them back if this is true. To have a true love for the game o f Major League baseball, one has to understand the history , the strategy, and the talent it takes to play on the level the Major League plays. True love can be taken away and let go. What you do with it when it comes back is the biggest question. Just having it back isn't alway s enough, but know ing it is there will be aw ful tempting for even some o f the big gest fans whose heart has been bro ken b\ the eame. timidating to hitters because they don’t see a 6 ’7" pitcher everyday.” Intimidating is an understate ment. Wooten has won his last five decisions and is 8-3. He has earned a 1.11 eamed-run average which leads the division. With 93 strike-outs in 97.67 innings and four shut-outs, he has displayed a significant improvement over his freshman year. In his freshman year, he was 6'4" and had 2.55 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 113 innings. “ H e’s 6 foot 7 inches, but he was like 5' 5" last year,” said Portland State Coach Dave Dangler. “ He would hunch way down. During the off season, we talked to him about taking advantage o f being 6'7" by standing tall and driving the ball to the plate with better leverage.” His im proved statistics and height have caught the attention o f major league scouts. Because o f his size, leverage and arm angle, he’s going to miss a lot o f bats,” said Gary McGraw, an area scout for the Mar iners. “H e's got movement on his fastball that will make batters miss. Based on his physical size and strength, he is potentially a No. I or 2 starter in the major leagues if he continues to improve.” Wooten said his best pitch is his fastball, followed by a slider. H e's developing a split-finger fastball and change-up. “ My strong suit is that I have tremendous location with my pitch es,” said Wooten who has walked only 21 batters this season. “ I have total confidence o f throwing a strike when I need it. and I have the most confidence when I get into trouble with men on base. That’s when I really bear down and almost always get through it.” Expectations are that Wooten will be drafted in the June draft. “ I’m unsure o f whether or not I would sign this year or go on and graduate by the end o f next year,” Wooten said. "It's atough decision. It depends on where I get drafted and by what team .” W ooten's current attentions are focused on helping the Vikings mak ing a run for the division title. They got off to a bumpy start, but now are in the hunt for first place. Coach Dangler commented that in spite o f poor hitting by the V ikings as a team early in the season, W ooten has pitched brilliantly all season. Naturally for anyone 6 ’7". the idea o f aw kwardness and clumsiness comes to mind. But W ooten's expe rience in basketball has helped him with his coordination. "B eing a heck o f an athlete doesn't hurt," McGraw said. “ You need a guy who can field at his posi tion. Greg is a guy who can handle himself on the mound, and he's got a chance to help him self by being a good field end pitcher With his size and arm strength, mental confidence and athleticism, you've got a great package.” YOU'LL LIKE THIS GAME! Greyhound racin g is your ticket to non-stop action! May 3rd - September 30th Group facilities, p a ck a g e s an d discounts available. O n /i/ 15 minutes East of downtown Portland and 10 minutes West of Multnomah Falls NE 223rd & Glisan • Wood Village. OR (503) 667-7700 General Information
