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Show The Salt Lake Tribune A New Friday, January 18, 19S5 C9 Professional Baseball League by 1986? Are You Kidding? By Phil Pepe New York Daily News NEW V UKK The news to warm our chilled bones on tuese frigid mornings is the report of a new base- ball league, The North American Baseball League by name, to begin play in 1986. What this country really needs is another fast-foochain, another television soap opera and another baseball league. Were serious about this, says Lonn Bemey, a New York attorney who is the founder of the NABL and its acting commissioner. Were not kidding. Is he kidding? Just 15 months before they plan to begin play, the NABL has no ball d their good taith and their belief in the idea, have each placed $5 million in escrow major league baeha!!, with one notable exception There will be a New York representative, predictably to be called the Brooklyn Dodgers even though they hope to play their games in Shea Stadium parks, no managers and no ballplayers What it has is a commissioner. Or half of one. Sometime next week, a commissioner will be named. He is Paul Blair, whose qualifications for the job seem to be a pleasant smile, a winning personality, articulation and the ability (which he says he still possesses) to run down a fly ball in center field better than anybody who ever put a leather glove on his hand. Skeptics will immediately point out that this could be the only professional league in which the commissioner is a better player than any of its players. The plan is to start wiih a league, all in cities where there is no Five million bucks can buy a lot of good faith, but at the current market ballprice, it cannot buy a lot of exas And you might that, players. pect, is the biggest problem confronting the new league. Expansion has diluted the product so drastically that there aren't even enough players of major league caliber playing in the major leagues. Check out the Seattle Mariners, the Cincinnati Reds, the Cleveland Indians. This is not a new idea About a dozen years ago, Charlie Finley tried to start a new baseball league. He had the owners, the money, the cities and "I dont care if we play in Queens or tne Bronx, says Bemey. The New York team will be called the Brooklyn Dodgers. I decided that when I was a kid and the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles Other teams are planned for Miami, Buffalo, Mexico City, Denver, Washington D C., Tampa, Indianapolis, Vancouver and New Jersey. Ber-ne- y says he already has leases on ballparks in seven cities and owners in those cities who, as evidence of the ballparks What he didnt have were the players The league sig- ed only one and the league never got off the ground because it realized you cannot start playing any kind of game with only one player. You need at least two - Berney and Blair agree the future of their league will be in developing their own players, not in raiding the major leagues. That, they understand, will take a few years, but they are prepared to suffer those growing pains Initially, they will try to sign minor leaguers, released players, collegians and those who might have been judged not good enough for the major leagues. There are r lot of players out The Mseomnt that everybody understands! there who never get the chance to play professional baseball, Berney says America is the land of opportunity, a country where any one has the right to try, the right to fail, the right to lose J5 million, the right to look foolish. You don't need George Steinbren-ne- r kind of money to field a quality baseball team that can compete," says Berney Finding players is the easiest part of the puzzle. For two or three years, we wont be that great, but after that, I believe we'll be able to compete with the major leagues Most of our teams will be in cities where there is no major league team." Super Talk Pits Marino And Montana - SAN FRANCISCO (AP) The Super Bowl talk goes rouno and round and keeps coming back to Dan Marino versus Joe Montana. Weve got the teams with the two best records and the two best quarterbacks. Thats what makes it such a great matchup, Coach Don Shula of the Miami Dolphins said Thursday It would be nice to do well statistically, but the most important statistic is to be the winning team, said Marino, the Dolphins star whose touchdown pass total for the season is at 55 and counting going into Sunday's game. Well have to open up all the valves and put our foot to the floor, because that's what were up against with Dan Marino and that group," 49ers Coach Bill Walsh said. Weve seen film on a number of games, probably too many, because at some point this man Marino always is awesome. Walsh also has gone so far as to call e Marino, a artist, the greatest passer the game has ever seen. But wide receiver Dwight Clark of the 49ers says, "Joe Montana is the best that ever played as far as an quarterback. Thats not to take anything away from Dan Marino. Joe is great at scrambling out of the pocket and throwing on the run. Dan is great ai hanging in there and slinging it. The quarterbacks with the contrasting styles both began honing their skills on the proving grounds of Western Pennsylvania high school football fields. They were winners in college, Marino at Pitt and Montana at Notre Dame, but neither came into the National Football League as a d draft pick. On a scale of 10, theyre both 9.9. Theyre tremendous athletes and deserve to be where they are, says Joe Theismann, the Washington Red-sigquarterback who played in the last two Super Bowls and will be working this one as a television commentator. The Dolphins Marino has earned top billing for Super Bowl XIX. Even Montana of the San Francisco 49ers admits that. Hes probably the top quarterback in the league at this point, Montana said. But this point is before the NFL championship game at Stanford Stadium. In Super Bowl XVI three years ago at Pontiac, Mich., the 49ers faced the National Football Leagues leading passer in Ken Anderson of Cincinnati. Montana was named Most Valuable Player after a 1 victory over the Bengals. Marino broke NFL records by passing for 5,084 yards and 48 touchdowns in the regular season. In two postseason games, hes thrown for 683 yards and seven TDs. o beMontana, second team hind Marino this season, was No. 1 among National Conference passers with statistics including 3,630 yards, 28 TDs and only 10 interceptions. In the 49ers two NFC playoff games, Montana was intercepted five times. Ive thrown a couple of bad passes, but its nothing Im worried about, Montana said Thursday. Joe Montana is such a great player, its hard to be critical. Like Joe Namath, hell have days. That happens with a great talent, Walsh said. I think Joe will have a good game Sunday, not because of the Miami defense but because of Joe Montana. Marino turned 23 just last fall. Don Strock, the Dolphins veteran backup quarterback, said this week, I think hell continue to improve, although I dont know how much anyone can improve on 48 touchdowns. There have been no brash Super Bowl victory predictions, such as "guarantee in 1969, from Marino or Montana. Marino said, I think Ill have to play well for us to win, but I think everybody on our team will have to play well. Montana said, I don't think I have to produce more. Ive got two good running backs Wendell Tyler and Roger Craig to hand the ball to. We just have to control the ball, get it into the end zone, and not give them so much time with the ball. Still, as Shula said, before any Super Bowl, There have to be central figures. Enter Dan Marino and Joe quick-releas- SPECIAL OFFER! HUGE SELECTION OF BEKNHAMDT BEDROOM AND DINING ROOM GROUPS OFF at. SAVE 2 SOFAS o CHAIRS LOVESEATS V2 OFF V2 OFE I FINEST QUALITY , VELVETS HERCULON TEXTURES JACQUARDS & MORE! 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