Games In Baltimore

Wrapping up another week's sports media notes while wondering why I don't hear Allan Sherman's "God Bless You, Jerry Mendelbaum" along with other seasonal favorites on the radio: Didn't it seem a bit odd Wednesday while ESPN was reporting the twists and turns of Bill Parcells' apparent return to the NFL that we didn't actually see Parcells himself? After all, he does work for ESPN. It speaks to the way some sports figures end up moving between being part of the media and the subject of media reports.

Offering an old arena (built in 1962) with limited seating (12,903) and convincing officials of the NCAA that it could serve as one of the staging locations for the first two rounds of its basketball championship was an upset in itself. Now Baltimore wants to do it again, requesting the same event be held here when open dates are next available.That means Baltimore must stand in line for 1999 because the NCAA schedules four years in advance. However, if some city that has been selected encounters complications during the interim, the NCAA knows it has an option it can go to in Baltimore.

Oklahoma State's Randy Rutherford hasn't been hyped as one of the NCAA tournament's great guards. The 6-foot-3 senior, who faces Drexel in the opening round of the East Regional tonight at the Baltimore Arena, has been overshadowed by his mammoth teammate -- 7-0, 290-pound Bryant Reeves.But Rutherford, an All-Big Eight choice, was instrumental in leading the Cowboys to a 23-9 record. He averaged 19.8 points and 6.2 rebounds, but his forte is three-point shooting. He converted 129 of 308 three-pointers, including 11 against Kansas two weeks ago, when he scored a career-high 45 points.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Maryland Stadium Authority has steered clear of hosting NFL preseason games in Baltimore for two principal reasons:(1) The city has a proven track record for supporting the Colts during their glory years;(2) Because the authority wants to conserve its resources within the business community.Now perhaps the authority will have to re-examine its position on preseason football.Two NFL executives who requested anonymity suggested yesterday that the city might enhance its chances of gaining one of two expansion franchises in 1994 by holding an exhibition game at Memorial Stadium.

If it's any consolation, the Bullets love it here, from team president Susan O'Malley to general manager Wes Unseld to star forward Chris Webber.O'Malley says the crowd at Baltimore Arena is louder than the one at USAir Arena, adding, "there are never visiting fans up here -- ever."Unseld remembers his glory days with the team, the games that were "just blood baths but honest blood baths."And Webber prefers the inner-city atmosphere, something he'll get 41 times next season when the Bullets move to Washington, D.C., permanently.

The frenetic, jumping-up-and-down joy of Ravens fans gave way to Super Bowl fantasies yesterday - and that's when reality set in. Just try getting tickets to The Game, seats on a flight to Tampa, Fla., and a hotel room at this late hour. Oh, yes, they can still be had, but only for a hefty price. Towson Travel was selling packages yesterday with three nights' hotel stay, airfare and game tickets for $3,449 a person, said travel agent Sharon Prajzner. Tickets from Baltimore to Tampa alone were going for $559.

M&T Bank Stadium will play host in 2014 and 2016 to the Army-Navy football game, a rivalry long associated with Philadelphia that is expected to generate as much as $22 million per game for the Baltimore-area economy. The annual, tradition-rich game will also come for the first time in 2011 to FedEx Field in Landover, home of the Washington Redskins. It was last played in Baltimore in 2007. Baltimore, which has been host four times since the series began in 1890, had particularly sought the 2014 game, which will coincide with the bicentennial celebration of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Burke's absence 'unbelievable'Unbelievable. That was my reaction to Tim Burke's absence from The Baltimore Sun's All-Metro football team.Tim finished the season No. 2 in the area in passing, with a completion rate of 70 percent. He led his team to an 8-2 record (16-4 over the last two years) and ran an offense ranked among the area's top 10 throughout the entire season.Two of his teammates, Mike Graebner and Tex DeLeon, respectively, finished in the area's top 10 in receiving and rushing.

The Andorsky family faced a tough but interesting choice this week. The Ellicott City family has two boys, Dan and Nathan, heading to the Jewish Community Center Maccabi Games that start today in Columbus, Ohio. But the games also are taking place in Rockville this week, and daughter Lilly is taking part there. Parents Claudia and Richard Andorsky had little trouble choosing where to go. "We are going with Lilly, because Lilly has schlepped all over the place to watch her brothers," Richard said.

The toughest stretch of the season stands just ahead, and the Orioles are in a slump.Not a major slump. They have lost four of their past six games and have struggled to create any offensive excitement. But it is a definite change in direction for the team with the best record in baseball.The New York Mets cuffed left-hander Jimmy Key around in the early innings and took the deciding game of the three-game interleague series, 4-1, yesterday on an overcast afternoon at Camden Yards.Bernard Gilkey hit a bases-empty homer in the first inning and Butch Huskey hit a two-run shot in the third to lend a helping hand to the crosstown rival New York Yankees, who pulled to within 6 1/2 games of first place in the American League East with a 3-2 victory over the Montreal Expos at Yankee Stadium.