Writer Views Arbitrator as a Lawyer Joke

Bob Verdi in the Chicago Tribune, writing on John Feerick, the arbitrator, who reduced the punishment in the Latrell Sprewell case:

“Mind you, Feerick is a highly decorated scholar who serves as dean of the Fordham University Law School. But he might as well be professor for Anarchy 101, the sports course of the ‘90s.

“Either that or this egghead is auditioning for the still-vacant post as commissioner of baseball.

” . . . Feerick no doubt would have judged John Hirschbeck at fault for allowing his face to interfere with the natural flow of Roberto Alomar’s saliva.”

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Trivia time: When did UCLA first play in the men’s NCAA basketball tournament and what was the result?

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Who’s on first? Orel Hershiser, now with the San Francisco Giants, has been reunited with Ron Perranoski, his former Dodger pitching coach.

“Perry understands the relationship between pitches in a pitcher’s repertoire,” Hershiser told the San Jose Mercury News. “He knows when a guy has a grade-A pitch and needs to develop a B pitch. He knows when a guy doesn’t have any grade-A pitches and needs to find a B pitch and turn it into a grade-A pitch.”

Get it?

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Ouch! ESPN’s Mike Lupica on Indiana’s being allowed to choose to pay a fine and avoid a suspension for Coach Bob Knight: “Who’s representing the Big Ten? William Ginsberg?”

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Trashing King: Jay Leno on the recent robbery of boxing promoter Don King in Mexico City: “They stole his $100,000 Rolex watch. It should be an easy watch to trace. It says on the inside, ‘To Mike Tyson, With Love, Your Wife.’ ”

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Lazy ball: Boston Red Sox catcher Scott Hatteberg on Pedro Martinez’s changeup: “It’s so slow you could swing twice.”

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Harsh assessment: Arizona guard Jason Terry on the NCAA basketball tournament: “Everyone said it was a fluke that we won it last year. This year, if we don’t win it, the whole season goes down the drain.”

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Real veterans: Mike Wise of the New York Times on the outlook for the Knicks next season if Patrick Ewing’s injury is completely healed:

“By then, he will be 36 years old on a front line that is not merely aging but will soon qualify as an archeological dig.”

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FYI: Bill Sharman, the Boston Celtic Hall of Fame player and former Laker coach, played in five NBA championship series and made 92.6% of his free throws, a record for finals competition.

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Looking back: On this day in 1979, 372 penalty minutes were assessed against the Kings and Flyers in the first period of a game in Philadelphia.

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Trivia answer: 1950. UCLA lost to Bradley in a 1950 first-round Western Regional semifinal game in Kansas City, Mo., 73-59.

The Bruins, of course, would later win 10 NCAA titles in 12 years under Coach John Wooden.

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And finally: Phil Rogers in the Chicago Tribune: “There are few stranger sights this spring than Eddie Murray hitting fungoes to Baltimore infielders. He’s about the last guy we would have expected to welcome a coaching career.

“For most of his 21 major league seasons, the sullen Murray was about as talkative as a bat rack. But now that he has joined the Oriole staff, you can’t shut him up.”

This will come as surprising news to writers who covered the Dodgers and Angels. They were usually ignored by him here.