, May 22 (UPI) -- Piazza: "I am not gay"
PHILADELPHIA, May 22 (UPI) -- Veteran superstar Mike Piazza, in an effort to silence growing rumors about his sexuality, Tuesday night declared publicly that he is not a homosexual.
Piazza met with a group of reporters before he and the New York Mets played the Phillies in Philadelphia on Tuesday night to respond to an article by the New York Post and yet-to-be released story by Details magazine. Speculation has been running rampant in New York and the sports world about his sexual preferences.
On Monday, Mets Manager Bobby Valentine was quoted as saying that he felt Major League Baseball was ready for an openly gay player. Many people felt that it likely was a setup to ease an expected flood of negative public reactions when one of his own players came out in the near future about his sexuality.
The Post article did not name the player, but said the magazine points out that "one Mets star who spends a lot of time with pretty models in clubs is actually gay and has started to think about declaring his sexual orientation."
Most of the callers to New York talk radio shows in the past couple of days openly asked whether Piazza was the player to whom Valentine was referring.
"Obviously, the rumor was brought to my attention, and all I have to say is that I'm not gay. I am heterosexual," Piazza said. "That's pretty much it. That's all I can say. I don't need to address the issue further. That's just a part of being a public figure. Things come up; rumors get started. I don't know how or where, but these things do not apply to me at all. I said what I have to say. I can't control what people think, but I am heterosexual, I date women, end of story."
Piazza added that he did not think it would be a big problem for today's players to accept a gay teammate.
"In this day and age, it would be irrelevant if the guy was doing his job," he said.
Piazza is a nine-time All-Star and has the highest lifetime batting average for a catcher in Major League history.
In response to the Post article, Valentine said, "I think it was libelous, because it was done maliciously. It was unprofessional for this guy (Post gossip columnist Neal Travis) to read into (quotes to Details) and say I had some ulterior reasons to say what I did. I
answered a question, which is something I do. It's what I believe. I think we are all big boys, and I think the world has progressed enough to handle many different situations."
Prior to make MLB debut
CHICAGO, May 22 (UPI) -- With their season quickly slipping away, the Chicago Cubs have decided they can wait no longer to get a look at highly-touted pitching prospect Mark Prior.
Despite having less than two months of minor league experience under his belt, the 21-year-old righthander makes his major league debut Wednesday afternoon when the disappointing Cubs entertain the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Prior posted a 5-2 record in nine games at Double-A West Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa, striking out 79 over 51 innings.
He also showed a flair for the dramatic, homering twice in his first game with Iowa.
Prior did not pitch in the Cubs' organization after signing with the team last year. By comparison, Kerry Wood, the Cubs' top pick in 1995, spent three years in the minor leagues before making his major league debut in 1998.
Wood did pitch in 57 2/3 innings for Iowa just in 1997 in a rehab assignment.
The Cubs are hoping Prior can provide some excitement in what so far has been a dismal season. They are just 15-28 after splitting a doubleheader with Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
Rocker again demoted by Rangers
ARLINGTON, Texas, May 22 (UPI) -- In what could very well be his last chance to succeed with the Texas Rangers, controversial reliever John Rocker has been optioned to the minors for the second time in just over a month.
He has 72 hours to report to Oklahoma City or be placed on the restricted list.
The Rangers expect him to join the RedHawks on Friday. They have called up lefthanded reliever Randy Flores to take Rocker's spot on the roster.
"Obviously, we still believe in John Rocker and he still has immense talent," said Rangers General Manager John Hart. "We think spending time in Oklahoma is the thing he needs to do. When he succeeds, it has been sporadic."
The 6-4, 225-pounder previously was optioned to Oklahoma City on April 17, but did not report before being recalled on April 23. Instead, Rocker spent a week in San Diego working with pitching coach Tom House. He allowed six runs in 8 2/3 innings since being called up from Triple-A.
For the season, opponents are batting .350 (21-60) off him, with left-handed hitters producing a .440 (11-25) average. He is 0-1 with a 7.53 ERA in 14 1/3 innings and had one save in four chances, when he was forced into the closer role because on an elbow injury to regular closer Jeff Zimmerman.
"We want John Rocker to go to Oklahoma City and work on getting left-handed hitters out and be much more consistent than he's been here," said Rangers Manager Jerry Narron. "Then we want him to come back and be a successful Major League pitcher. We are begging for John Rocker to be successful here."
Flores, 26, is 0-1 with a 5.02 ERA in nine relief appearances with Oklahoma City this season. He was previously with the Rangers from April 23-May 9, compiling a 2.45 era in seven appearances.
Detroit-Colorado series moves to Denver
DENVER, May 22 (UPI) -- The NHL Western Conference finals shift to Denver Wednesday night, where the Colorado Avalanche host the Detroit Red Wings in Game Three of the best-of-seven series at the Pepsi Center.
On Monday, Colorado evened the series at one game apiece when Chris Drury scored 2:17 into overtime, giving the Avalanche a 4-3 victory.
The Red Wings have eight goals in the first three games of the series, but six have come from somewhat unexpected sources.
Darren McCarty had a trick in the series opener and Kirk Maltby, Boyd Devereaux and Tomas Holmstrom also have scored.
"Our big guys have to get going," said Coach Scotty Bowman, casting an eye toward star players such as Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille.
Hull is the only member of the Red Wings' top two lines to score.
Bowman said Tuesday he would consider a juggling of the top three lines, depending on the status of center Igor Larianov, who could return Wednesday after missing the first two games of the series with a sprained knee.
Marcum named interim AD at Marshall
HUNTINGTON, W.Va., May 22 (UPI) -- In a move connected to an administrative reorganization at Marshall University, the school's President, Dan Angel, has announced several personnel changes in the Department of Athletics, Alumni Relations and the Capital Campaign for National Prominence.
Most of the changes will take effect on July 1 of this year.
Among them is the naming of Bob "Kayo" Marcum, a Huntington native and Marshall graduate, to the post of Athletic Director on an interim basis.
Earlier this month, Marcum announced his retirement after nine years as athletic director at the University of Massachusetts.
He will serve for at least one year, Angel said.
Lance West, MU's Director of Athletics since June 1996, is being promoted to the position of Vice President for Alumni Development. He will join Keith Spears and Carolyn Hunter as Directors of the Capital Campaign. West also will serve as an Assistant to the President.
Under West's guidance, Marshall moved from the Southern Conference to the Mid-American Conference and jumped from Division I-AA to I-A in football. The school has played in five bowl games in the past five years, winning the past four. Also, Cam Henderson Center, home of Marshall basketball, underwent a major $5 million renovation; Marshall Stadium was expanded to more than 38,000 seats; a new video replay board was installed at Marshall Stadium; and graduation rates among student-athletes climbed steadily.
"Our alumni base is sizable and growing," Angel said. "We think Lance will be ideal for this position. He is a known commodity around the country. We want to utilize his skills and knowledge in developing the alumni base and in making sure our capital campaign reaches its goal. Bob Marcum brings a wealth of experience and knowledge. Bringing him in gives us a chance to have an outside eye review our program. He'll serve as an expert internal consultant and help us plan our athletic future."
Marcum's retirement from UMass is effective June 14.
Since 1997, Marshall's first year back in Division I-A, athletics have excelled with dozens of record-setting performances and championships.
The football team has set 29 teams records and 30 individual records, while winning four MAC titles. The women's track team has set 25 school records, and the men's track team has set 23. The softball team has set 26 team and individual records, and the baseball team has set 25 team records and 23 individual season or career records.
Marcum graduated from Huntington High in 1955 and Marshall in 1959 with a bachelor's degree in social studies and physical education, and from the University of Akron in 1970 with his master's degree in education administration.
He served as Associate Athletic Director at Iowa State University from July 1971 through August 1978, Director of Athletics at the University of Kansas from August 1978 through January 1982, and Director of Athletics at the University of South Carolina from January 1982 through March 1988.
Marcum went to UMass, located in Amherst, Mass., from his post as Vice President and General Manager of the Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he served from October 1990-February 1992. He was Vice President of the Charlotte Motor Speedway from July 1988-October 1990.
Marcum was the 1999 Northeast Region I-AA Athletic Director of the Year.
Raiders sign WR Hatchette
OAKLAND, May 22 (UPI) -- Matthew Hatchette, who was a bust in his only season with the New York Jets, Wednesday signed as a free agent with the Oakland Raiders, according to his agent.
The 28-year-old Hatchette caught a career-high 16 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns in 14 games for the Minnesota Vikings in 2000 as their third receiver behind Cris Carter and Randy Moss. But he never became a factor in the Jets' offense, catching just two passes for 44 yards.
In four seasons with Minnesota, he made 43 catches for 640 yards and four TDs, and added six receptions for 49 yards and two TDS in seven playoff games.
In his five NFL seasons, the 6-3, 205-pounder out of Langston University of Oklahoma has totaled 45 receptions for 684 yards, a 15.2 average, and four touchdowns in 59 games, with a long of 80 yards.
Sol, Fire make WNBA deal
MIAMI, May 22 (UPI) -- The Miami Sol Wednesday boosted their frontcourt by acquiring forward Vanessa Nygaard from the Portland Fire for guards Marla Brumfield and Katrina Colleton.
Nygaard averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per contest in 31 games with Portland last season. She was selected by the New York Liberty
in the fourth round of the 1998 draft, but missed that entire season. After being waived by New York, she signed with Cleveland in May 1999.
The 6-1 Nygaard was waived by Cleveland and assigned to Portland and averaged career highs of 7.9 points and 3.8 rebounds in 2000.
Brumfield averaged 1.6 points and 1.2 assists in 27 games with Miami last year.
"We are very happy to bring Marla Brumfield into our camp," said Portland Coach Linda Hargrove. "She is a great athlete, is extremely quick and is a very good defensive player. I'm
looking for her to challenge for a position at the 2-guard spot."
Former NHL great named Stars' assistant
DALLAS, May 22 (UPI) -- Andy Moog, who spent the last three seasons as a goaltending consultant for the Vancouver Canucks, Wednesday was named a goaltending coach for the Dallas Stars under new coach Dave Tippett.
Moog posted a 372-209-88 record and 3.13 goals-against average in an 18-year NHL career, winning three Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers in the 1980s as Grant Fuhr's backup. He ranks ninth on the NHL's all-time wins list.
Moog was an original member of the Dallas Stars, playing in 175 games for the team from 1993-97. He retired following the 1997-98 campaign.
"We are happy to bring Andy back to the Dallas Stars organization," said Dallas General Manager Doug Armstrong. "He proved to be a winner throughout his playing career and will be able to draw from his wealth of knowledge to work with our goaltenders on a daily basis."
Since 1998, the 42-year-old Moog has been president of the Central Hockey League's Fort Worth Brahmas, a position he will now relinquish. He also served as a goaltending consultant for Team Canada, which captured the gold medal at this year's Winter Olympics.
"This is a great opportunity for me," Moog said. "My involvement with the Canucks and Team Canada has really sparked my interest in the coaching side of the game. I am extremely fortunate to be given this opportunity with the Stars."
