PROOF THAT CHANGE IS HERE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, April 5, 1993                   TAG: 9304050033
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
PROOF THAT CHANGE IS HERE
All during his campaign, President Clinton pitched that it was time for change. When he throws out the first ball of the baseball season today, he will see change first-hand.
Clinton will be at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, where the Orioles and Texas start the season with each team featuring several new players. Rangers starter Craig Lefferts, signed by Texas in the off-season, will face an Orioles lineup that now has Harold Baines and Harold Reynolds.
In all, about 250 players changed teams during the off-season in baseball's biggest-ever turnover. Greg Maddux, Wade Boggs, Dale Murphy and Andre Dawson will be among the many stars in new places starting today.
The nine games on Opening Day also include the two new clubs. Charlie Hough will start for the Florida Marlins at home against the Los Angeles Dodgers. David Nied, the No. 1 pick in the expansion draft, will start for the Colorado Rockies in New York against the Mets.
The usual festivities on Opening Day will not be found everywhere. Instead of bright colors and brass bands, the mood will be somber in Cleveland when the Indians play the New York Yankees. The Indians are mourning the deaths of pitchers Steve Olin and Tim Crews in a boating accident during spring training, and they have toned down the celebration for their first game of the final season at old Cleveland Stadium.
In Baltimore, meanwhile, the Rev. Jesse Jackson will be outside the ballpark early, leading a protest against the major leagues' lack of minority hiring.
Jackson's complaints began to increase during baseball's investigation into the racial and ethnic slurs made by Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott. She's been banned for one year, and she will not be in the owner's box for Cincinnati's game against Montreal, the traditional National League opener.
The games in Baltimore and Cleveland are scheduled for 1:35 p.m. It remains to be seen whether they actually will begin then, even with baseball's new speed-up rules.
Maddux, who won the Cy Young Award last season with the Chicago Cubs, will be pitching at Wrigley Field today - against the Cubs and for the Atlanta Braves.
Boggs will be with the Yankees when they play Cleveland, and Dawson will be with the Red Sox in Kansas City. Murphy, released from his minor-league contract by the Phillies on Saturday, signed a one-year contract with the Rockies.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB