A’s Stay in Oakland After Sale

Developers Steve Schott and Ken Hofmann reached an agreement Wednesday to buy the Oakland Athletics in a deal that would keep the team at the Oakland Coliseum for the next 10 years.

The Haas family had put an $85-million price tag on the club--about $30 million less than market value--provided the new owners keep it in Oakland.

The deal must be approved by 10 of 14 American League owners and eight of 14 National League owners.

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Major league managers, coaches and trainers who work with replacement teams in 1995 will not lose their health, pension and licensing benefits, as has been speculated, union leader Donald Fehr said. Fehr called the speculation a scare tactic of management counsel Chuck O’Connor.

“We’ve never intended to take away existing benefits,” Fehr said. “But since health and pension are part of (the current collective bargaining) negotiations, we think it’s reasonable to ask any manager, coach or trainer who works with a replacement team that is designed to break the union if they want the union to continue representing them, if they want to remain in those plans in the future.”

Fehr will pose that question during a meeting with managers, coaches and trainers in Dallas on Feb. 6.

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Dodger and Angel pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to spring training on Feb. 16, with full squads due on Feb. 21.

The Angels are to play their first exhibition against Arizona State on March 1 at Tempe, with the Dodgers scheduled to open against the New York Yankees at Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., the next day.

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Catcher Mike Piazza and designated hitter Chili Davis were named most valuable player of the Dodgers and Angels, respectively, by the Los Angeles-Anaheim chapter of the Baseball Writers Assn. of America.

Olympics

The International Olympic Committee’s executive board, meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, rejected a demand by women’s rights activists to ban countries that exclude women from their teams.

Francois Carrard, the IOC’s director general, said the Olympic hierarchy wouldn’t respond to a letter from Atlanta Plus, a coalition of women’s groups seeking to bar Iran and other Moslem countries discriminating against female competitors, calling the letter “an attack against a religion for political purposes.”

Jurisprudence

Minnesota financier Irwin Jacobs has sued Fran Tarkenton, claiming the Hall of Fame quarterback misled investors about the financial condition of his Atlanta computer software company.

Two New Mexico basketball players who admitted taking part in a campus burglary last year were offered a chance to join a first-offender program or face prosecution.

Charles Smith and Cornelius Ausborne earlier this month admitted taking more than $2,000 worth of electronic equipment from the dormitory room of another student on May 7, 1994.

Football

The Rams can count on at least one vote for their move to St. Louis. Kansas City Chief owner Lamar Hunt said he is excited about having another team in Missouri and will campaign for a resumption of the “Governor’s Cup” series, an annual exhibition game between St. Louis and Kansas City for the unofficial championship of Missouri.

In St. Louis, officials said about 12,000 applications for personal seat licenses have been received, many presumably containing multiple requests. The Rams can void the deal if St. Louis doesn’t sell 40,000 such seats by March 10.

Meanwhile a Newport Beach attorney will fight the Rams’ move. Paul A. Wollam, who represents a group of season-ticket holders called “Fight for the Rams,” filed a class-action lawsuit against the Rams and the city of St. Louis in Orange County Superior Court.

John Walker, an assistant in the NFL Players Assn.’s research department, was dismissed for misusing $80,000 to $100,000 of union funds, the New York Times reported.

Miscellany

Baylor has promoted interim basketball Coach Harry Miller to the head coaching job and given him a five-year contract. Miller, 43, took over the program on Nov. 28 when Darrel Johnson was fired.

New engine restrictions by the International Motor Sports Assn. have prompted withdrawal of Porsche’s two cars from the 24 Hours of Daytona on Feb. 4-5.