1 he P ortland O bserver « J anuary 24, 1996
P age B5
Griffey May
Leave
Mariners
Get By
Brandon,
Cavaliers
i
Ken Griffey Jr., the first (rue su
perstar of Seattle baseball, is consid
ering leaving the team when his con
tract expires at the end of the 1996
season.
The Seattle Times reported that
Griffey is wavering in his desire to
sign a long-term contract with the
fiscally conscious Mariners. Among
the concerns Griffey hasexpressed is
the weather in Seattle.
“I don’t like snow and I don’t like
cold rain, said Griffey, who has
spent this off-season with his family
in Orlando, Fla. “I like Seattle, the
Ians and all. But being here (Florida)
where we can go outdoors to hang all
the time every day is great.”
The Mariners reportedly can meet
his monetary needs but the composi
tion and competitiveness of the team
are major concerns.
“The Mariners are very much in
the ballpark fin an cially ,” said
Grilley sagent Brian Goldberg. “But
there arc other factors over which no
one has any control that will prob
ably figure in what happens."
The M ariners, the American
League wild card winners, have un
n s no nuKe that we ve won
I eight out of 10,” Robinson said.
I "W e’ve been playing together
I more as a team. Guys are getting
I more open shots and we re run-
I ning the offense a Io, more. It’s
I just a situation where now we’re
I looking for each other out there.”
1
Danny Ferry scored 20 of his
I career-high 29 points in the sec-
I ond half and Terrell Brandon
I added 25 for Cleveland, which
I wrapped up a seven-game road
trip at 3-4.
“All of us are tired but that’s
the nature of the game to be tired
but you have to find a way to fight
through it," Brandon said. "I think
it becomes more mental then
physical. You know we’ve been
on the road for two weeks but
every team goes on these type of
road trips and we just have to find
a better way to end them. Obvi
ously we didn’t do that tonight.”
Cleveland led 61 -55 after three
quarters but the Blazers took con
trol of the game with a 14-3 run.
Robinson started the burst with a
three-pointer.
dergone a payroll-reducing shakeup
this winter. Gone are first baseman
Tino Martinez, who enjoyed a break
through season with 31 homers and
111 runs batted in. Also gone arc
Mike Blowers, who had 23 homers
and 96 runs baited in, and setup man
Jeff Nelson, who sported a 2 .17 ERA
and struck out 96 in 78 innings.
"I hated to see us break up a good
hunch of guys,” Griffey said. “I care
a lot about who I play with. It hasn’t
helped me to see Tino and Blow go,
or Nellie. The Mariners are always
starting over, and that gets old.”
Griffey, who hit .252 with 17 hom
ers and 42 runs batted in 72 games,
missed most of the season with a
broken left wrist. He had a metal
plate and seven screws removed in
December and is expected to be at
100 percent at the start ol the season.
Griffey has talked about playing
in Cincinnati, has a fondness for
Florida, and his dad is the hitting
coach in C olorado. II the Mariners
can I sign Grilley he would almost
certainly bring back a package of
young players the Mariners can build
around.
Portland resident Terrel Brandon of the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Rose Garden Sunday.
___ ________
Steelers, Dallas
Jattle For
Superbowl XXX
The Pittsburgh Steelers arrived Monday night in Arizonaas the countdown
continues toward Sunday’s Super Bowl 30 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe.
The Dallas Cowboys arrived Sunday and will train at the Arizona Cardi
nals’ facility in Tempe. The Steelers will prepare for the game at Scottsdale
Community College.
The attention Sunday was focused on Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman,
who revealed that he faces possible elbow surgery after the Super Bowl and
will miss the Pro Bowl on February 4th.
Jerry Jones also filed a protest with the league asking that Kordell Stewart,
the third-string quarterback but all-purpose weapon, be prevented from
having communications equipment in his helmet.
Quarterbacks are allowed tocommunicate with the sidelines but Jones fears
that Stewart has an advantage when he lines up at wide receiver or in the
backfield. The NFL denied the request.
We talked to (Jerry) Seeman last Thursday and he promptly got with
commissioner (Paul) Tagliabue,” said Jones. “We (rules committee) never
intended for any player other than the quarterback to have any communication
with the sidelines. As a matter of fact the biggest concern of the commissioner
was a star wars concept. We don’t want to turn our game and make it so
technical to communicate to players as they try to make their decisions. We
were turned down rather promptly.”
“They're (NFL) reasoning for allowing him to wear the head set is he was
drafted as a quarterback,” said Cowboys coach Barry Switzer. “A lot of
players were drafted as quarterbacks and moved on to other positions. I was
talking to Jerry Seamon and I said we're gonna use Deion at that position. He
was a quarterback in high school, has a great arm and is a baseball player so
we’re gonna give him a shot at quarterback."
As for the Steelers, cornerbaek Rod Woodson continues to show progress
from knee surgery that has sidelined him almost all of the season Head coach
Bill Cowher said he will make a decision on Woodson’s status later this week
but at this time he is expected to play.
He practiced all of last week, said Cowher. “I list him as questionable at
this time but we are seeing no setbacks at this time. He has progressed to the
point where I think he can contribute but it won’t be determined until game
day.
The Cowboys-Steelers game will mark the firs, three-time meeting in Super
Bowl history. The only other rematches in Super Bowl history were Miami
against Washington, Buffalo versus Dallas and Cincinnati against San Fran
cisco.
The Steelers defeated the Cowboys, 35-31, in Super Bowl 13 and 2 1 - 17 in
Super Bowl 10.
The Cowboys are back in the Super Bowl for the third time in four years
while the Steelers make their first appearance in 16 years.
(Photo by Michael G. Halle)
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