Letters

Coach K (Cont.)
I was a reporter for the Duke student newspaper, The Chronicle, from 1986 to '88, but I graduated before the well-publicized meeting between Coach K and The Chronicle sports staff took place (Blue Angel, March 16). It's too bad that the incident occurred, and I feel sorry for student sportswriters who haven't had the opportunity to personally report on, interview or simply talk basketball with one of the legends of the game. Some of my fondest memories of Duke are of sitting with Coach K in his office, in the midst of a busy February schedule, discussing everything from Danny Ferry to the three-point shot to the Krzyzewski family. Coach K always had a special relationship with Duke's students, and it was no less evident in his dealings with The Chronicle. It is a shame that the bond between them has been broken.
ASHOK S. REDDY
Durham, N.C.

Before you rush to canonize Mike Krzyzewski, please pop a tape of how this saint works the officials into the VCR. He sure has learned his lessons well from mentor Bobby Knight when it comes to having a foul mouth. I am weary of guys like this being glamorized while we are subjected to TV close-ups as they spew their filthy language. How they stay in the game is beyond me. It looks as though the rules have changed so that officials overlook gutter talk, thereby keeping the marquee coaches in the game. If I want a foul mouth on my screen, I'll watch an Eddie Murphy movie.
J.L. JEANGUENAT
Fairview, Pa.

Sandberg's Contract
Tim Kurkjian's article about Chicago Cub Ryne Sandberg (Rolling a 7, March 16) implies that it is somehow bad that Ryno is a nice, quiet, unassuming man. In an age in which players constantly whine about their contracts instead of worrying about how they are playing, it is a delight to watch one of the best second basemen in the history of baseball quietly play his way into the Hall of Fame.
RICHARD J. CHO
Lincolnwood, Ill.

Say it ain't so, Ryne. Your salary of $28.4 million crushes the Cubs right out of me. Like all true Cub fans, I have rooted for the team through the years, often in the agony of defeat but occasionally in the thrill of victory. All of it was fun. But now the fun is gone.

I'm trying to analyze my feelings: Is it jealousy? Envy? Anger? Or is it that these men, my sports heroes, played for the Game, and now they play as overpaid mercenaries? I feel that they are on a different planet. No more heroes, no more fun. Oh, I'll follow them because I'm hooked, but no longer are they my beloved Cubs.
MURRAY HYDE
Castle Rock, Wash.

I hereby confess to the world the foolishness of my career choice. Seven years of university will produce two degrees (B.A. and M.A.), a teacher's certificate and an annual salary slightly above the amount Sandberg will average every day of the week for the next four years. Unfortunately, we teachers not only lack salary arbitration, but we also don't have negotiable contracts. It must be nice to play for a living.
J.P. GREEN
Lexington, Ky.

Double Standard
Kudos to you for your courageous moral stand in turning a thumbs-down to JoAnne Morgan for her "151-page guide to '197 of the Hottest Single Athletes in the NBA' " (SCORECARD, March 23). Geez, what will these 'women want next? A swimsuit issue?
MICHAEL E. ROSMAN
Hoboken, N.J.

All in the Family
In Like Father, Like Son, Like...(March 23), Austin Murphy wrote about two Mariners prospects, infielder Bret Boone and catcher Jim Campanis, who have both fathers and grandfathers who played in the majors. What Murphy didn't mention is that Seattle's No. 1 pitching prospect, Roger Salkeld, is the grandson of Bill Salkeld, a fine catcher who played for the Pirates and the Braves after World War II. In the 1948 World Series, Salkeld drilled a tremendous home run off Cleveland's Bob Feller. It looks as if the Mariners might need more than rosters and biographies in their stadium programs in the coming years. What with Boone, Campanis and Salkeld all in Triple A, Ken Griffey Jr. in the Seattle outfield and his father in the front office, family trees might be more appropriate.
BILL BOLDE
Valencia, Calif.

PHOTO

AP

Everything's relative with the Mariners: Salkeld is the grandson of a former major league catcher.

PHOTO

OTTO GREULE JR./ALLSPORT

[See caption above.]

Letters to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED should include the name, address and home telephone number of the writer and should be addressed to The Editor, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, Time & Life Building, Rockefeller Center, New York, N.Y. 10020-1393.