Letters
Carlton Fisk
It is a shame that ability, dedication and style count for so little. Chicago White Sox catcher Carlton Fisk (Bitter Ending, May 31) has been and still is a class act—a true professional and an outstanding ballplayer. After all he has given to the sport, he should be shown more loyalty and respect and be allowed to play out his career.
NORMA J. ANOUSHEH
Front Royal, Va.
Not long after reading your article, I popped the 1975 World Series highlight tape into my VCR and was transported back to when Carlton Fisk personified baseball in Boston. The idea that the man who gave the game one of its more memorable moments is sentenced to finishing his career as a bullpen catcher seems to typify the state of baseball today. I suggest that American League manager Cito Gaston name Fisk to the All-Star team. Pudge and his fans deserve such a tribute.
CHRIS FASCIANO
Melrose, Mass.
Pudge deserves better? Here is a 45-year-old man who gets to put on a major league uniform every day. Do we hear about the excitement of being a member of a contending team? Or about the opportunity to watch and help young pitchers develop? No, we hear complaints about lack of playing time as that 45-year-old pursues Bob Boone's record for most games caught (2,225). For more than 20 years Fisk had the bullpen catchers on his teams dying for a chance to play regularly. How does he think those guys felt? Fisk once yelled at Deion Sanders to hustle. Take your own advice, Carlton, and show some enthusiasm for the game and your teammates. You'll find the end of your career won't be so bitter.
DANIEL B. HIRSCHHORN
Normal, Ill.
Since Fisk doesn't want to be in a Red Sox or a White Sox hat on his Hall of Fame plaque, why not have it engraved with his cap on backward? What could be a more fitting solution for a great catcher?
R. L. WHITESIDES
Stockton, Calif.
•Last week Fisk broke Boone's record and hinted that, after all, he might choose to be shown wearing a White Sox hat on his plaque. But that was before Chicago released him on Monday.—ED.
John Daly
Rick Reilly's article about John Daly (Sweet Redemption, June 7) addressed the trials and tribulations of Daly's private life with tact and honesty and without the judgmental attitude that writers often interject. Daly is fun to watch, and I hope that he continues in his efforts to address a disease that is all too prevalent and hushed up in our society, chemical dependency. Hang tough, John!
ROBERT L. GORHAM
Birmingham
My heart sank as I began to read the penultimate paragraph of the story, but my spirits were quickly lifted as I finished. Thanks for providing such good reading.
MIKE MITCHENER
Duluth, Ga.
Reilly seems to suggest that we should not be surprised if Daly's self-control fails and he resumes drinking. Either Reilly should have been more supportive of Daly's progress or he should have come out and directly questioned the depth of Daly's rehabilitation. I wish Reilly had given us more insight into what drives this troubled man.
MADELINE SHERLOCK
Belmont, Mass.
Well-rounded Wolverines
Although the accomplishments of Kansas's athletic teams over the past academic year were impressive (SCORECARD, June 14), in recent years no school's athletic success compares to that of Michigan's. In the past two years the Wolverines have twice reached the championship game of the NCAA basketball tournament, twice made the NCAA Final Four in hockey and twice played in the Rose Bowl, which they won this year. Each of these six teams finished its season among the top six in the nation. Moreover, in 1989 Michigan became the first school since 1951 to win a major bowl game and the NCAA basketball title in the same year.
When you also take into account Michigan's excellence in other sports, there is no doubt that the nation's premier athletic program is in Ann Arbor.
DANIEL A. RUDOLPH
Rockville, Md.
PHOTO
DAVID E. KLUTHO
The Wolverines won the Rose Bowl in 1993 and finished near the top in basketball and hockey.
PHOTO
JOHN BIEVER
[See caption above.]
PHOTO
BOB GALBRAITH/AP
[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.