A pair of roundtables on the SIUC campus featuring former professional team and SIUC baseball team members highlight the school’s celebration of the American pastime.

The roundtables are conducted in recognition of the 30th anniversary of the Saluki baseball team’s first appearance in the College World Series and the inauguration of the Writing Baseball series at SIU Press.

The first roundtable, set for 7 p.m. Monday in the Lesar Law Auditorium, will feature four former major league officials and players who will discuss baseball policy. Participants include Gene Callahan, former director of government relations for Major League Baseball, John Haddock, co-producer of Black Diamonds, Blues City:Stories of the Memphis Red Sox, Josh Johnson, former Negro League player, and Jerry Mileur, former owner of the minor league Harrisburg Senators.

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Richard Peterson, editor for Writing Baseball, will serve as moderator. A screening of Haddock’s 56-minute movie is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m.

The second roundtable, 10 a.m. Tuesday at the University Museum Auditorium in Faner Hall, features four current and former SIUC team members who will discuss college baseball. Participants include Dan Callahan, SIUC baseball coach, Brad Benson, Saluki senior baseball player, Itchy Jones, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign baseball coach and former SIUC baseball coach, and Kevin Waldrop, former professional baseball player and member of the 1977 SIUC College World Series team.

SIUC Sports Information Director Gene Green will serve as moderator. The Salukis battle UIUC at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Abe Martin Field.

For information, contact 453-6824. These events are co-sponsored by the SIUC Athletic Department, the Public Policy Institute, Black American Studies, the College of Liberal Arts and SIU Press.

Rule change to quicken pace of games

Even baseball admits its games are a drag. In an effort to cut 15 minutes from the average time of nine-inning games, owners said Wednesday that pitchers must throw the ball within 12 seconds after a hitter settles into the batter’s box when the bases are empty.

We’re trying to cut some of the dead time, said Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, a consultant to acting commissioner Bud Selig.

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The unions for players and umpires already have agreed to the new procedures, outlined in a Feb. 13 memo obtained by the Associated Press.

Baseball pushed for a speedup in the middle of the 1995 season, but the initiative was largely ignored in 1997. The average time of a nine-inning game was 3 hours, 1 minute in the AL last season, up from 2 hours 52 minutes in 1991. In the NL, it was 2 hours 52, up from 2 hours 46 minutes in 1991.

The Unfinished Symphony’ had a better chance of finishing before that game last night, Selig said after watching Game 3 between Florida and Cleveland take 4 hours 13 minutes.

Umpires should not grant time for batters to step out of the box unless, in the umpire’s judgment, it is absolutely necessary, the memo stated. When given permission to leave the batter’s box batters may not step more than three feet from the batter’s box.

If pitchers do not throw the ball on time, umpires have the option of calling a ball, Robinson said. If batters do not stay within three feet of the box, umpires could call a strike. Hitters are being told to give bat boys second bats to have ready to eliminate delays caused by broken bats.

Michigan receives permission to talk to Amaker

The University of Michigan has received permission from Seton Hall to talk to basketball coach Tommy Amaker about the Wolverines’ coaching job.

Seton Hall Athletic Director Sue Regan stated Wednesday that Michigan officials had requested permission to talk to Amaker and Seton Hall had agreed to it.

However, we are confident that the commitments made by Seton Hall and by Tommy Amaker are for the long term, she said.

Michigan Athletic Director Tom Goss has said he has five people in mind for the job, including Brian Ellerbe. Ellerbe was a Michigan assistant who took over as interim coach after Steve Fisher was fired by Goss just before practices were scheduled to begin in the fall.

Ellerbe guided the Wolverines to a 25-9 mark, the title in the Big Ten’s inaugural tournament and a seven-game winning streak that ended Sunday when the Wolverines lost to UCLA in the NCAA Tournament.

Amaker was an All-American point guard at Duke and then joined Mike Krzyzewski’s staff for nine years. Amaker was hired by Seton Hall and led the Pirates to a 15-15 record and their first postseason appearance since 1995. The Pirates lost to Georgia Tech 88-78 last week in the first round of the NIT.

Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson has said he plans to meet with athletic officials in Michigan and Virginia about coaching jobs.