IN THE NEWS: Two spring training games today use experimental rules. DPHers Ty Cline (Expos) and George Spriggs (Royals) both bat ninth and go 0 for four in Fort Myers. John Orsino (Yankees) bats 6th (1 for 4) and Jim French (Senators) bats 9th (0 for 3) in Pompano Beach. Orsino has the first hit as a DPH. Five of the nine games on March seven use the DPH. The Angels' Dick Stuart reaches base four times against the Padres and the box score has three different pinch-runners for him(none scored). Boog Powell is the Orioles' DPH(hit 9th) and doubles in the 5th. The PR, Stanley Martin, scores, and Powell singles in the winning run in the 7th to beat the Twins, 2-1. The DPH idea will be dropped on March 26.
IN THE NEWS: National League President Warren Giles and Commissioner Bowie Kuhn say the Rusty Staub deal stands, that
Donn Clendenon belongs to the Expos, and that Montreal and Houston will have to come to agreement on further compensation.
IN THE NEWS: In addition to this year's lower mound and tightened strike zone, the majors try an experiment ball with 10% more resiliency for a spring training game between the Mets and Tigers in Lakeland. It has an all-rubber center instead of a cork and rubber core, and the seams are higher than the regular ball. The Mets' Don Cardwell surrenders three homers in the 4th to Dick McAuliffe, Norm Cash, and Gates Brown in the Tigers' 7-4 win. Tomorrow, in Phoenix, the same ball is used in the Giants 13–1 win over the Angels, with Bobby Bonds hitting the only two homers (off George Brunet). The players agree the ball is definitely livelier and sounded louder coming off the bat.
IN THE NEWS: A plane crash in Maracaibo kills 155 passengers including Carlos Santeliz, the Venezuelan League Rookie of the Year, on his way to the Braves spring training camp. Another fatality is Nestor Chavez, enroute to the Giants camp. Chavez (1–0) was 12–5 with Waterbury in 1967, including seven shutouts. Pablo Torrealba was also scheduled to take the flight, but missed it, and took a later one.
IN THE NEWS: St. Louis trades 1B Orlando Cepeda to Atlanta for C/1B Joe Torre. Torre will knock in 100 RBIs in each of the next three seasons topping it off with the MVP Award in 1971.
IN THE NEWS: The Cubs purchase Charley Smith from the Giants, which had acquired the well-traveled third sacker last December 6. Smith will reinjure his knee and retire after a few at bats.
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