Sen. Feinstein Sides With Baseball in First At-Bat : Congress: Taking part in subcommittee meeting, she says the sport should be allowed to keep its antitrust exemption.

In her first official appearance since taking office, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) sat on a Senate judiciary subcommittee panel Thursday and sided with major league baseball owners in a fight to preserve their unusual exemption from federal antitrust laws.

Feinstein said she recognized the “irony” in that the proceeding was held by the all-male Judiciary Committee, which came under fire by women’s groups for its handling of the Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill hearing last year.

Her participation in the committee business may extend into the 103rd Congress as Feinstein is considered the leading candidate to become the first woman to serve on the judiciary panel when committee assignments are announced next month.

Feinstein underscored the gender makeup of the committee Thursday in her closing line of a prepared statement: “Again, Mr. Chairman and men of the committee, thank you for this opportunity.”

The six-hour hearing of the subcommittee on antitrust, monopolies and business rights focused on the merits of baseball retaining its antitrust immunity, which gives owners enormous latitude in deciding where franchises will operate. Many of the 11 senators who attended the hearing expressed concerns about the state of America’s national pastime as well as skepticism about why baseball should be the only major sport that enjoys an antitrust exemption.

Feinstein joined San Francisco Mayor Frank Jordan in supporting the exemption. Without it, Feinstein said, the city of San Francisco probably would have lost the Giants baseball team to Florida this year.

“Baseball is not a box of Tide on a supermarket shelf,” Feinstein said. “Baseball is not a corporate asset to be sold willy-nilly to the highest bidder. Baseball is part of the fabric of the American city.”

Feinstein said it makes no sense for Congress to pass legislation that would permit a repeat of the “devastation” that occurred in Oakland when the Raiders football franchise moved to Los Angeles.

While supporting the exemption, Feinstein acknowledged that baseball needs to change its minority hiring practices, expand to other markets and make more games available on free television.

Feinstein also made it clear that she is not comfortable with the pace of baseball’s response to allegations that Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott made racially offensive remarks.

Feinstein took issue in an interview after the hearing with comments by Milwaukee Brewers owner Bud Selig, chairman of baseball’s Executive Council, that the Judiciary Committee would have reacted to the Schott episode in the same manner as the owners have.

“If I get on the committee, it would not be handled the same way,” Feinstein said. “You would have an investigation and a finding quickly.”

Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Joseph R. Biden (D-Del.) has indicated that he wants to add a woman to the panel. So far, Feinstein is the only one of four newly elected Democratic women who has expressed interest in the committee. She has said she hopes that her willingness to serve on the Judiciary Committee will enhance her chances of securing a seat on her first preference, the powerful Appropriations Committee.

Feinstein learned firsthand Thursday how the Senate operates on the basis of seniority. After each panel of witnesses, she had to wait her turn as the last senator to speak. As a newcomer, Feinstein was the only senator in attendance who was not identified by a nameplate. And Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.) referred to her as “Senator-elect Feinstein.” Simpson later corrected himself.

Feinstein assumed office immediately after the Nov. 3 election because she was elected to fill the unexpired six-year term of Gov. Pete Wilson.

Feinstein said she “felt a little overawed” entering the large committee room. She found her first hearing more tranquil than the government meetings in San Francisco that she was accustomed to.

After hearing testimony from numerous witnesses, including former Commissioner Fay Vincent, Feinstein said it became evident to her that the question of baseball’s exemption comes down to whether “you got a team or you don’t got a team.”

Both of Florida’s senators, Republican Connie Mack and Democrat Bob Graham, described the frustration of Tampa Bay area residents who saw an agreement to purchase the Giants wiped out by a vote of baseball owners. Both senators called on Congress to overturn the antitrust exemption that they said allows baseball owners to put themselves above the law.