SPORTS BUSINESS NOTEBOOK
9:57 a.m., Sat., Nov. 9, 1996.
BY DOUG MITTLER
Randy Levine was not the only hired hand in Major League
Baseball to have one of his deals publicly shot down by the
owners.
In an effort to catch up with the rest of the sports industry,
baseball this summer hired Gregory B. Murphy as the boss of the
newly created Major League Baseball Enterprises. Murphy, the
former president of Kraft Foods Bakery Companies who ran the
company's $1-billion-a-year baking division, has lined up a list
of impressive sponsorship deals, all contingent upon the
completion of a labor deal.
But even before the owners Wednesday turned down the deal Levine
negotiated with union boss Donald Fehr, they squashed Murphy's
proposed 10-year contract with Nike worth an estimated $200
million. Some of the owners were upsert with the way the money
would be distributed, with a small percentage filtered down to
individual clubs.
"We're disappointed that baseball still can't seem to get its
house in order," Nike spokesman Jim Small said. "When it does,
we would be interested in talking again."
Small should know. Before heading to Nike earlier this year, he
served as a spokesman for baseball's commissioner's office, and
was often faced with the task of putting a positive spin on
unexpected moves by his bosses.
Because of the pettiness, baseball will lose out on the benefits
of Nike's mammoth marketing machine. If Nike started flooding
the markets with baseball-related ads, rivals such as Reebok or
L.A. Gear would also feel compelled to join in the fray...
The owners clearly set themselves up for a host of problems with
Wednesday's decision in Chicago, but the idea that the sport
will shut down before next April are far-fetched.
The most likely scenario is that the 1997 season will be played
in its entirety under the status quo -- the terms of the expired
1993 collective bargaining agreement. That would be a palatable
scenario for the average fan, who does not care about who wins
the labor wars but only if the season goes on as scheduled.
Baseball owners don't have many alternatives. Under the terms
of an injunction issued in March 1995 by Federal Judge Sonya
Sotomayor, owners may not unilaterally change working conditions
without first convincing the judge that they have bargained to
an impasse.
Given the progress made in negotiations between Levine and Fehr
over the past few months, the impasse scenario seems unlikely.
Because of several unfair labor practice charges pending against
owners, the union could ask Sotomayor to extend the injunction
to prevent a possible lockout as well. The owners would need 21
votes to enact a lockout and it is unlikely they could that many
votes on anything at this point...
The Arena Football League's first performance on Broadway closed
after just a few uneventful shows.
The league Wednesday awarded a franchise to Madison Square
Garden in New York City that will be called the New York
CityHawks. It will be the second attempt in the Big Apple after
the New York Knights went 2-10 and finished last in the then
six-team league.
The team has hired hired Larry Kuharich, who won the ArenaBowl
in 1993 with the Tampa Bay Storm, as its head coach.
An expansion draft has been planned for November 21st with the
three expansion teams -- New York, an unnamed New Jersey team
and the Nashville Kats -- selecting free agents from the four
teams that have folded since last season.
The addition of a New York franchise is a bold step for the
11-year-old league, which has quietly found a niche competing in
smaller markets such as Iowa and Tampa Bay.
One day after announcing the move, the Arena Football League
named C. David Baker as its new commissioner.
Baker has served as the chairman of the league's board of
directors and managing owner of the Anaheim Piranhas this
season. He received the approval to become commissioner at the
annual meetings in Nashville, Tennessee.
The 6-foot-9 Baker replaces Jim Drucker, who stepped down
earlier this year in order to pursue a future expansion
franchise with the league...
David Kenin is out as president of CBS Sports.
The 55-year-old Kenin was dismissed Monday and the top candidate
to replace him is believed to be Sean McManus, a senior vice
president for Trans World International, the sports programming
unit of the IMG sports marketing group. McManus is the son of
ABC sportscaster Jim McKay.
Kenin came to CBS in 1994 shortly after the network lost
broadcast rights to the National Football League. During his
tenure, CBS regained rights to college football and part of the
bowl alliance, but the network was unable to hold onto the
alliance deal, which moves entirely to ABC next season. CBS
also expanded its motor sports coverage under Kenin.
Various reports claim Kenin, who came to CBS from USA Network,
may be asked to run CBS's new cable venture Eye on Sports.
CBS desperately wants to get back part of the NFL package and
the intention to bring in McManus, a top-notch negotiator, shows
it means business...
Ray Allen of the Milwaukee Bucks has been named the official
spokesman of the Schick Rookie Game, to be played February 8th
in Cleveland as part of All-Star weekend.
To promote the game, Schick will highlight Allen and other NBA
rookie stars in an advertising and public relations campaign...
MasterCard International this week announced the formation of
the MasterCard Lola Formula One race team. The company is
paying the cost of the sponsorship entirely with revenue
generated by the creation of a club of MasterCard cardholders.
In exchange for membership dues, cardholders will receive
benefits ranging from merchandise and apparel to access to
drivers and team cars. Terms of the four-year agreement were
not disclosed...
In other sponsorship news, Texas International Raceway and
Coca-Cola will present the inaugural Coca-Cola 300 at Texas
International Raceway, April 5, 1997.
The Coca-Cola 300 is part of the Inaugural Texas 500 NASCAR
Winston Cup race week and will be the first major stock car race
to be held at the 150,061-seat raceway...
Colts owner Robert Irsay took his NFL franchise from Baltimore
to Indianapolis under the cover of darkness in 1984. The
honeymoon is now long over for Irsay, who now is dropping hints
at another move since he is unhappy with his team's lease at the
RCA Dome.
City officials contend they have a firm lease through 2014, but
Irsay confirmed that team attorneys have been reviewing the
language...
Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith will wear the football
version of his new signature Reebok cross-training shoe in
Sunday's game at San Francisco.
The ES 22 is part of Reebok's new VizHex collection of shoes and
will be supported through TV and print advertising.
SENIOR EDITOR
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