Section B · Page 4
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, February 11, 1999
Commentary
Even at low point, Tyson still has fans
American society has fallen in love with the underdog. The classic idea of the rags-to-riches story has permeated every area of our culture, especially the world of sports. It seems as if every year, we learn of an athlete who clawed his way out of the depths to the highest levels of competition. May it be a result of our desire to see
nate succeed or our collective disgust with those people that have been handed everything all their lives. Either way, we, as a culture, want to see the meek inherit the earth.
sports@kansan.com
In recent months, we
Randy Withers
have seen several Cinderella stories draw the attention of the national media. There was Chicago Cubs slugger extraordinaire Sammy Sosa, a man who fought his way out of the poverty of the Dominican Republic to mount a legendary assault on the major league's home-run record. The Atlanta Falcons are another example. Here's a team that leveled its sights on the NFC, and when the dust had cleared, the Falcons had toppled the 49ers and rumbled to their first-ever Super Bowl.
The media spotlight has fallen on another of these stories, but because of a hero's tragic flaw, not his triumph. Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson was ordered to return to prison earlier this week for a parole violation. The once proclaimed "baddest man on the planet" is now a 32-year old convicted rapist whose career is in shambles and may be finished.
Tyson is among one of the most intriguing and beguiling figures in professional sports today. After being pulled from the streets of Brooklyn, N.Y., and into the gym by a social worker, his rise through both the amateur and professional ranks was meteoric. He was the youngest heavyweight champion ever at 20 years old and was the first man to unify the WBC, IBF and WBA titles since Muhammad Ali. Tyson was most-feared man in sports before he was of legal drinking age.
It all began to fall apart after the death of his mentor and adoptive father, legendary trainer Cus D'Amato, the only true role model he had
ever known. Without the only person that had ever looked out for him, Tyson fell victim to the seductions of money, alcohol, women and fame. Tyson's world came crashing down. In Tokyo, James "Buster" Douglas defeated Mike Tyson in 1990.
But the real troubles were yet to come for Tyson. He was convicted of raping a contestant in a beauty contest that he judged. The verdict was, at the very least, questionable. It was his word against hers — one of the most recognized men in sports versus an aspiring model with no evidence to support either party. True, Tyson's character and temper are prone to a lack of control, but those qualities don't necessarily make him a rapist. Guilty or not, he served three years in prison.
Tyson emerged from prison and immediately went into training. After a series of warm-up fights, he fought Evander Holyfield twice. The most notable thing to come out of the two losses was the chunk of Holyfield's ear that Tyson bit off during their second bout. As a result, Tyson's license was suspended by the Nevada Boxing Commission for a year. Then, in December, he was involved in a fender bender that led to a physical confrontation and, ultimately, his return to jail.
Tyson's tale of money, success and fame is unique. His is the ultimate rags-to-riches story, which is part of the reason people line up to see him. But it is also the self-destructive aspect of Tyson's personality that is so intriguing. It's sad, but spectators watch him just as much for his skills as to see what he will do next. People watch to see him destroy others as well as himself.
The blame for Tyson's attitude, his lack of morals and social skills, and his misunderstanding of society doesn't lie solely with him. That's not to say that we all had to be told not to bite a person's ear off. My point is that Tyson lost everything — his titles, his fame, his aura of invincibility and his dignity — all because he never had anyone to teach him how to be a functioning member of society. All he had was his trainer. He never had a father to teach him not to trust other people with his money. He never had a mother to teach him how to treat women. He never had a family to teach him compassion. He just didn't know any better.
Withers is a Shawnee sophomore in journalism.
Sampras powerful in return from 10-week break
The Associated Press
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Precise running forehands. Aces at up to 125 mph. Untouchable overhead slams. Pete Sampras hardly looked like a guy coming off a 10-second sabbatical.
Returning from his longest layoff since high school, Sampras had 11 aces — at least one in each of his service games — in a 6-4, 6-4 win against Galo Blanco that took exactly one hour Tuesday night in the first round of the Svbase Open.
Sampras, who had not played since Nov. 28, lost just one point on his first serve in the entire match.
"I really felt my tennis tonight was going to be up and down, because I hadn't played in a while. But it's like riding a bike, you don't forget how to do it," he said. "I was a little surprised. I thought I might struggle a little bit tonight."
Sampras went more than a month without picking up a racket during his break. Instead, he played golf, pumped iron and
took a vacation — his first in years — to Hawaii that included snorkeling and whale watching.
Exhausted after playing six straight weeks at the end of last year to protect his No.1 ranking, Sampras took the break to refresh himself physically and mentally. He said it worked.
"I'm fresh, and when I'm
fresh I'm dangerous, "said the top-seeded Sampras. "When I'm tired is when I'm vulnerable."
Third-seeded Mark Philippoussis slammed 13 aces, including second-serve aces at up to 116 mph, in a 6-7 (2-7), 7-5, 6-3 win against Sargis Sarsgian. The third set of the 2-hour, 11-minute match included anguished screams by Philippoussis and
Jim Courier, who once went to tennis tournaments confident he'd be playing in the late rounds, now struggles just to get past the first round. On Tuesday he lost 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) to 102nd-ranked John van Lottum.
racket throwing by Sargsian.
Once ranked No. 1 in the world, Courier knows reaching such a pinnacle again "would be close to a miracle now."
"I'm heading off into the sunset. I'm not sure how long my ride is going to continue," Courier said. "But this is my life. I'm enjoying the ride as I go along."
Van Lottum won five straight games to take control of the first set. In the second set tiebreaker, the Dutch player served and volleyed to reach match point, and then finished the contest with an ace and a scream of delight. Van Lottum said his strategy was to avoid trying to match Courier's still-considerable power.
"He plays well, but he plays with one rhythm. So if you know how to control his rhythm with slices
and high balls, he has difficulty with that," van Lottm said. "He's beaten a lot of good players, and he can still play top tennis on certain days."
The first time Courier played in this tournament, in 1992, he was on his way up. In fact, by reaching the final that year he became No. 1 for the first time in his career. He ended up spending 58 weeks at No.1.
Now he's ranked just 68th in the world, but Courier is not ready to think about the end of his career.
"I think I have some great stuff left, I wouldn't be out here if I didn't think I could still play good tennis," he said. "I just have to get the momentum going my way. Once I get (deep) into a tournament, I tend to play well."
Cecil Mamiit, one game from elimination, won the last five games of his match to rally past Kenneth Carlsen 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. Mamiit, the 1996 NCAA singles champion from Southern California, already has won two ATP Tour matches this year — equaling his career total before 1999.
McGwire ready to play, wants 500 career home runs
The Associated Press
ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Cardinals hope Mark McGwire isn't their one and only story line again.
McGwire's record-smashing 70 home run season took the focus away from an underachieving team that needed a big September to finish four games above .500. This year, there's the countdown to 500 career home runs as a distraction. McGwire needs 43, which should be a slam dunk considering he's topped 50 each of the last three seasons.
"It's a good number." McGwain said. "It's been my statement all along that I've surpassed any expectation I've ever set out to do. To reach 500 is just remarkable and God willing, it'll go on and on."
McGwire usually downplays baseball's obsession with numbers. Not this one.
"It's a prestigious number and nobody talks about it." McGwire said. "Eighteen or 19 players have done it. That's not too many out of the thousands that have played this game."
Still, this time around, no matter how many homers McGwire hits or how far they fly, the fans will probably want more.
"I like this club better than I've liked it the last two years," Cardinals' manager Tony La Russa said. "We're not a great club, but we're capable of playing very good."
McGwire generally approves of the Cardinals' offseason moves, except that they didn't fill their top need by signing a No. 1 starting pitcher and fell about $40 million short in the Kevin Brown sweepset. Matt Morris, 7-5 with a 2.53 ERA in about a half-season and entering his third season, is the nominal No. 1 on a fairly anonymous rotation that will also include lefties Donovan Osborne, Darren Oliver and Kent Mercker.
"We've got a really nice pitching staff, but for them to realy relax and fall into place we need a No. 1 work horse that'll take the pressure off," McGwire said. "If you put the label of No. 1 starter on one of those guys..."
La Russa is philosophical about the hole that wasn't filled. He knows the farm system should supply future potential star starters Rick Ankiel and Chad Hutchinson soon.
"I think for this year the gigantic starter would make us better, but I'm not sure it would be good for us down the road," La Russa said. "We've got these young kids coming."
"I don't know, to invest that kind of money might have really hurt our chances to round our club out every year."
The key everyday acquisitions in a lineup in which only McGwire and center fieldier Ray Lankford opened last season are shortstop Edgar Renteria, right fielder Eric Davis, second baseman Carlos Baerga and relicter Ricky Bottalico.
Renteria, a 23-year-old star on the Marlins' 1997 World Series champs, stole 41 bases last year and will bat leadoff. The only downside to Davis, the American League comeback player of the year after recovering from colon cancer, is his age: he'll be 37 in May. He was four in the AL with a .327 average and had 28 homers and 99 RBIs.
Baerga is a gamble considering his yearly slide in production since 1996 and his bloated appearance last year with the New York Mets. But he's only 30 and the Cardinals are hoping the salary cut he took (he just finished a six-year, $21.4 million contract and will make $1.25
million this season) will motivate him to regain the All-Star form he showed with the Cleveland Indians in the early to mid-90s.
Bottalico is healthy after missing most of last year because of bone chips in his elbow, and could allow Juan Acevedo, who led the team with 15 saves and didn't allow a run in his last 16 outings last season, to move to the rotation.
The other calculated risk is handing a regular job to left fielder J.D. Drew, who was impressive to say the least in a September audition (.417 average, five homers and 13 RBIs), but has just 14 games of major-league experience. Batting second ahead of McGwire gives him an excellent chance of succeeding because he should see plenty of pitches to hit.
"It wasn't a fluke," McGwire said. "He's got a nice stroke. People in St. Louis and around baseball will be impressed."
Darren Bragg, a free agent pickup who replaces departed utility man John Mabry, is expected to get plenty of playing time backing up Davis. Bragg hit .299 with eight homers and 57 RBIs last year for Boston.
The likely lineup card for the April 5 opener against the Milwaukee Brewers: Renteria, shortstop; Drew, left field; McGwire, first base; Lankford, center field; Davis, right field; Fernando Tatis, third base; Baerga, second base; Eli Marrero, catcher; Mornar, pitcher.
Pitchers and catchers report today, with the first full-squad workout Feb. 24. McGwire plans on arriving early, and he's not the only one.
"I'm always itching and to go," McGwire said. "What it tells me is I still love this game of baseball, and I want to play as long as I can. You always get excited at this time of the year."
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