UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, April 18, 1996
3B
Carew's daughter loses leukemia battle
No marrow donors found despite national search; alternatives also failed
The Associated Press
ORANGE, Calif. — The daughter of baseball Hall of Famer Rod Carew died yesterday after a seven-month struggle against leukemia.
Her appeals for a bone-marrow donor drew 70.000 responses but not one match.
Michelle Carew, 18, died at Children's Hospital of Orange County, with her father, mother, Marilyn, and other family members at her bedside, said Orman Day, a hospital spokesman.
"Our daughter, Michelle, lost her brave battle against leukemia this morning," the Carews said in a statement expressing gratitude to the thousands of people who became interested in marrow donation.
"Yet, although we have lost Michelle, we can take solace in the fact that, because of Michelle, many lives have already been saved by the increase in marrow transplants performed in the weeks subsequent to our appeal."
The family was allowed by Michelle's bedside as death neged.
"The previously sterile environment of her
Michelle died of cardiac and respiratory failure, said Mitchell Cairo, her oncologist and director of the hospital's blood and bone marrow transplantation program.
oncology intensive care room was opened so she could be embraced by family and friends," Day said.
Michelle had undergone an umbilical cord blood transplant March 22 to try to rebuild her depleted immune system. It was tried as an alternative to a bone marrow transplant because matching marrow could not be found.
Her battle against the disease had been followed by people nationwide after her father, a California Angels batting coach, issued a public plea for bone marrow donors because Michelle's type was rare.
"She became more famous than her dad and we talked about that a lot," said her father at an emotional news conference. "When this started she just wanted me to do it not only for her but for the other kids."
The baseball great, who had appealed publicly for marrow donations, called Michelle a very unique kid.
"It's amazing when I think of the lives that she touched." he said.
The plea resulted in more than 70,000 responses to the national donor program, Day said.
"That unprecedented response, no doubt, will
save the lives of other cancer patients in the future." Day said.
"This family has been with her virtually 24 hours a day for seven months." Day said.
Angels owner Gene Autry and his wife, Jackie, were touched by Michelle's courage.
"Michelle was a fighter throughout her entire illness. She displayed an immense amount of courage as did the rest of her family," Autry said in a statement.
People with African ancestry and other ethnic minorities are under-represented in donor pools. That made it more difficult to find matching marrow.
Michelle was diagnosed in September. Her doctor said then her survival probably depended on a transplant from a donor with matching bone marrow. A match was never found.
Michelle's two sisters and her parents were incompatible. Michelle's father has West Indian and Panamanian ancestry, while her mother has Russian Jewish roots.
Chemotherapy was used to kill the cancerous cells, but it left her body blistered and raw.
Carew, who retired as a player in 1985, played for the Angels and Minnesota Twins, where he was a seven-time American League batting champion.
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Tricks often exist with first-round picks
NFL draft typically produces high picks who waste potential
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — The New York Jets, who have the No. 1 pick in Saturday's draft, know how easy it is to bumble a high draft choice.
Just mention one name: Blain Thomas, on whom the Jets used the second overall pick in 1990. That was the same year another running back — Emmitt Smith — went to Dallas as the 17th pick.
First round busts are the rule in the NFL — odds are that one-third to one-half of the 30 first-rounders in Saturday's draft won't meet expectations. Some will take their teams down with them.
This was the case with the Dallas Cowboys of the '80s, devastated by the picks of Rod Hill and Billy Cannon Jr. The New York Giants have declined in the '90s because of picks like Jarrod Bunch and Derek Brown, and Tampa Bay hasn't had a winning season since 1982 largely because of a succession of bust draft picks, most of them in the Top 10.
"This isn't an exact science," said
Bill Poliian, who built a team in Buffalo that won four Super Bowls, and now is the general manager of the Carolina Panthers. "There are a lot of excellent talent evaluators in this league who have made a lot of big mistakes."
Some examples:
— In 1989, a lot of people thought the best player in the draft was offensive tackle Tony Mandarich.
Dallas had the first pick, but Jimmy Johnson bypassed Mandarich for Troy Aikman. Aikman has been the winning quarterback in three Super Bowls, Mandarich, out of the league for four years, is now attempting a comeback in Indianapolis with Lindy Infante, the coach who drafted him as the No.2ick overall for Green Bav.
— In 1986, Tampa Bay drafted Bo Jackson with the No. 1 pick, even though Jackson said he'd play baseball rather than play for the Bucs. Jackson did play baseball, then went to the Raiders the next year.
—In 1987, the Bucs drafted Vinny Testaverde with the top pick to replace their starter, 26-year-old Steve Young. Young was traded to San Francisco, Testaverde set a record for interceptions in Tampa, and now, with the Baltimore Ravens, is somewhere in the middle of the NFL's quarterback pack.
— In 1981, the New Orleans Saints had the first overall pick. Bum Phillips, hoping to recreate Earl Campbell, took running back George Rogers.
Rogers had a decent career, but the second player chosen, by the Giants, was linebacker Lawrence Taylor, whom everyone but the Saints would have taken. The eighth pick overall? Defensive back Ronnie Lott.
Look out for draft trends.
New Orleans, for example, picks 11th overall; not a good place for them to be. The last two times the Saints picked 11th they took Shawn Knight in 1987, and Russell Erxleben in 1979, who could make anyone's list of the all-time worst No.1 picks.
Kansas City,meanwhile,has had little luck with drafting running backs.
In 1895, the Chiefs took Ethan Horton in the first round.
Horton wasn't the answer to the Chief's woes, and finally became a decent tight end with the Raiders, who love to resurrect other teams' busted No. 1 picks. Two years later, the Chiefs drafted Paul Palmer, who was last seen trying a comeback in the World League.
vey Williams in 1991 and Greg Hill in 1994. Williams finally found his niche with the Raiders, no surprise, and Hill has shown only glimpses of his potential.
More recently, they've taken Har-
Some teams look for insurance with later-round draft choices.
The Giants, in need of a running back, used their first pick in 1982 on Butch Woolofl, then chose Joe Morris in the second round.
In 1988, seeking an offensive linemen, the Giants used the 10th overall pick on Eric Moore, just before Dallas took wide receiver Michael Irvin with the 11th pick. In the second round, New York grabbed left tackle Jumbo Elliott, whose offensive work on Buffalo's Bruce Smith helped them win the 1991 Super Bowl.
Bobby Beathard, one of the most accomplished draft pickers ever, hates first round picks and has had his share of second-round busts, such as Tory Nixon and Walter Murray when he was in Washington.
In 1900, he arrived in San Diego to find himself with the fifth overall pick in the draft.
"I don't think I know what to do with a pick this high," Beathard said.
He took Junior Seau. Apparently, he knew.
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April 14 - 20
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