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NEW YORK POST, SUNDAY, JULY 16, 2000
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Bob Costas is:get1ing :~re ' ','
his third ~OI ' ics~:,gearing ·~u.P ·~~Q
. ~_', :~;" produ ~ ',' ",\ on"':bfi1},"':' .'
, '_'Nightnne ,~,,~ , oh;:"yeah
'tryin seball.
I· ~'~ ~
'a" and J
,to cele,
the ,sPort.
latest accom­
plishment for the Queens
native whose career is filled
'with them. , ., " ,
, Oostas, first made a name
, for himself covering' the old
ABA basketball league and
then the Chicago Bulls.
But. he made his reputa­
tion, hosting baseball's
"Game of the Week", with
Tony" Kubek during, the
'SOs, _, ,_
A, flurry, of activity fol­
lowed: NFL pregame
shows, a nationally syndi­
cated radio show, the
,Olympics in Seoul, and the
interview show "Later,;
where Costas' excellent
baton back to Marv Albert, interviews with Bruce
ijusf published a book "Fair:' Springsteen and other pop
'Ball"'de'scribing '-'-'iii detail:' cultural .. figures' showed
',:~'hdw -:'and"'why baseoall "people he didn't just follow
',imist, change,'is prepping a ' sports.
'show HBO lind' Accolades followed,
I"j~ettin -ri"Te"i!v host the Including 11 Sports Emmys
; ': in ' and being named
--Sportscaster of the Year by
, his. peers a record seven
times,
Perhaps best of all for this
die-hard "baseball fan,
Costas has become linked
witn that sport as indelibly
, as any player,
His eulogy at Mickey
Mantle's funeral was_pitch,
perfect. his'commonta'1lltln "
Ken-,:Burine',-"BasebaIP \ series was stirring -and his
thoughts about how to res­
cue the sport are taken
seriously at, as they say, the,
highest levels:
~I've gotten reaction from
a Illtimber, of owners and' a :
mimb'er::Of, ,managers,,~ ,
','J.rd :1' ~~.I:.' r. ~ 'I', -, i . . 1.1 ...... :.
• _ .' ..... ,:-t'1.f!,J.
some. small markets, some al manager said to me; 'Ydu,,',
middle, and' some 'Iarge ,~ . know, what? ,If I had my,:;
says Costas about his best-' druthers, I'd do what, you,,'
seller, "Fair -Ball"' -which" suggest or substantially "
argues for_salary caps,'prof-' what you suggest tomorroW: ,
it sharing'.and re-aligning ' Even though in the shoq,-:
diviSio~s ,UJl\:: f:£ ·s'".:l1l...i .,d.JJI term it won't help my teamf11
~One-Jarge'm8Pketcg,e{ier' ,! I know it's best for baseball,,,,
-':',""'0 iJ(.·,~ '':'lyx.1.d {f ei c;,u"!w . ,,!','. ... -'. :1' <)0 +
I,
I ,
!' ·. ' .. ~:.: ,._ ; .. ~ ·.r
mitt, With a ~tUp pi~ by'a -'get on n~twork tele~sion ,'
correspondent and 'then I , One luxury' cable can't
, interview ,several people.'
_n,~ ,~~firiitchoice ,We1l maybe ,have a 'town
. acchiimed ' meeting once in a while.
his con-"And if someone is avail-
at the 'time able -a, Tiger Woods,
and the gig ,Michael Jordan, Mark
Bryant Gumbel. . , McGuire, the commissioner
'Co~tas -who is" of the NFL -and they
married with two children want to do an in-depth
and ,lives in St. Louis -,interview, maybe that's
gets"his chance with a one-what it is, The format's flex­
hour',show, a sports version' ible enough to fit whatev-
of~Nightlin e." ' er's of interest.
: "Well take some issue or "And of course you don't
topic' and examine it in have'any commercial s. So if
depth. One hour, once a : you have an hour, you've
week. Some of· them might : really got about 58 minutes,
be in the 'Nightline' for-which is a luxury you never i
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