Letters

If Jordan wants to leave because of problems with management,
then shame on the front office for not repaying him for all he
has done for that franchise.
--ROB DEL MURO, Greenlawn, N.Y.

THE BULLS

Thanks for Rick Reilly's article on what may be the end of the
Chicago Bulls dynasty (Last Call? May 11). Reilly brilliantly
portrayed the complicated, difficult life of being the most
famous athlete on the planet. I applaud Michael Jordan for
handling his celebrity like a champion. If this is his last
season, I hope some of the NBA's younger stars are taking notes.
ANDY ROSE, Warwick, R.I.

In 1990 a friend and I were finishing up a workout at a downtown
club in Chicago. We had the gym to ourselves. In walks Michael
Jordan and his personal trainer. Out of respect, we did not say
a word to Jordan but worked out for another hour to be "part of
it." I felt that long session for another week and will remember
it forever.
BILL GABRIEL, Richmond

I was expecting an in-depth article about perhaps the greatest
sports dynasty. All I got was another Jordan piece. There was
more about Gus Lett than about Phil Jackson, Scottie Pippen and
Dennis Rodman combined.
SYLVESTER VAUGHNS, Charlotte

SELFISH BASEBALL

On May 6 the Rangers' Juan Gonzalez showed how true your article
on selfish baseball players is (Enough about Me. What Do You
Think of My Stats? May 4). Gonzalez hit a line drive off the
glove of Chuck Knoblauch of the Yankees. Two Texas runs scored
on the play. When Knoblauch was charged with an error, Gonzalez
was angered and spent the rest of the game pointing and yelling
at the official scorer because he felt he was robbed of a hit
and two RBIs. (The scorer later changed his mind and gave
Gonzalez a hit.) Whatever happened to being happy that your team
scored?
TIM BLUM, Macedon, N.Y.

How can Richard Hoffer suggest that Cal Ripken was driven by ego
when he broke Lou Gehrig's consecutive game record? That the
1995 season was not Ripken's best, and that on occasion he
played with back pain, does not mean he should not have played.
Ripken is one of the most selfless and modest athletes in pro
sports. His dedication to the game and the fans is something
seldom seen today. Sure, I know many people would like to see
Ripken quit baseball. They're all Yankees fans.
ANTHONY HARRINGTON, Blacksburg, Va.

Tony Gwynn is very much a team player. He may have won the
National League batting title eight times through excellent
individual effort, but he has been quoted as saying that he
would trade all those silver bats for a World Series ring.
FRED ENGLE, Minneapolis

I would like to inform SI and especially Richard Hoffer that, as
the pitcher who threw the ball Vic Wertz hit and Willie Mays
caught in the 1954 World Series, I didn't say "I got my man" on
the mound, as Bob Costas has said I did, or in the dugout, as
Hoffer and Ken Burns have said I did. I said it in the clubhouse
after the game was over and won. There was no smugness involved.
It was a humorous remark made to Giants manager Leo Durocher in
front of Mays, who lockered next to me. After pitching to Wertz,
I did not return to the dugout. I left the field by walking
across the outfield to the Polo Grounds clubhouse, which was
located beyond centerfield. As I passed Mays, I said, "That was
a hell of a catch."
DONALD E. LIDDLE, Mt. Carmel, Ill.

FREE AGENT MORRIS

Poor Bam Morris. He had sleepless nights in jail (Scared
Straight, May 4). I'm not sorry he could not sleep. He knew, or
should have known, that probation violations would put him in a
cell. It must have been tough to go on a Mexican vacation after
his release to recover from that stress.
JOEL HUENEMANN, Cary, N.C.

When a high-profile owner such as Art Modell says that someone
convicted of carrying five pounds of marijuana is not a bad kid,
the NFL is in serious trouble.
MICHAEL SOUTER, Chicago

COLOR PHOTO: MARVIN E. NEWMAN [Bob Gibson in game]

FLAWLESS GIBSON

While I agree that Juan Marichal was a great pitcher, the
comment by Keith Olbermann in INSIDE BASEBALL (May 11) that he
was better in the clutch than Bob Gibson (left) is not supported
by the facts. Olbermann says that Marichal was a clutch
performer during the mid-1960s, when the Giants were World
Series runners-up five years in a row. In two of those five
years the Cardinals won, and Gibson's overall Series performance
was nearly flawless: He completed eight of nine starts, pitched
81 innings while striking out 92 batters and allowing only 55
hits, and had a 1.89 ERA.
BILL STABLER, St. Louis