Wednesday, June 4, 1997
Deion-Schilling:
Double dare you

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'What's he going to do, arm-tackle me? It's no mystery he doesn't like to hit.'

BY TIM BROWN
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Curt Schilling, a 3-2 loser to the Reds on Tuesday night at Veterans Stadium, considered Deion Sanders for a moment.

Deion Sanders is restrained by coach Ken Griffey and umpire Eric Gregg after challenging Phillies pitcher Curt Schilling. (AP photo). | ZOOM |

Of their feud now five weeks old, Schilling said, "The guy's not going to be tackling me with pads on. What's he going to do, arm-tackle me? It's no mystery he doesn't like to hit."

Sanders, from the other clubhouse, sneered, "Tell him I'll meet him half way, in the middle, right now."

And so from this strange hatred, born out of a couple of stolen bases Sanders deemed necessary and Schilling deemed excessive, two of the game's best-known players threatened each other from opposing lockers.

They didn't fight. Sanders gathered his suitcase and his 3-year-old son and left here. He won't, apparently, forget the fastball that might have shattered his Adam's apple, had the baseball not glanced off his bat handle. And, apparently, Schilling won't forget the intentions with which that third-inning pitch was thrown.

The Reds scored three sixth-inning runs against Schilling, good enough for Kent Mercker (3-5) to win his second consecutive start, both against the Phillies. Schilling (7-5), a 2-1, complete-game winner in a May 27 start against the Reds, lost for the second time in six starts. Reds closer Jeff Shaw pitched the ninth inning, allowed a run, and earned his eighth save.

On an odd day in which four of the five teams in the National League Central won games, the Reds were among them.

As a result, if there is such a thing as losing ground in this division, the Reds didn't. They returned for 10 games at Cinergy Field seven games out of first place, and two games out of fourth.

With the worst record in baseball on the line between two clubs that have been to the World Series in this decade, the 19-36 Phillies retained the title in a series shortened by rain to one game. Neither club went about it merrily.

Schilling and Sanders have a short history of grumpy relations, primarily because the guys who play with Sanders love him, and the ones who don't, don't. On April 26, Schilling lost to the Reds by a large margin, and Sanders stole second and third base in the fourth inning, ahead 5-0.

Their disdain for each other flared again in this third inning, perhaps because Sanders singled off Schilling in the first inning, or perhaps because Schilling had a baseball in his hand and Sanders didn't.

Schilling's first pitch bored in on the neck of Sanders, who squared as if to drag a bunt. The baseball hit Sanders' bat handle. At that, Sanders - at 6-foot-1, 196 pounds - strode toward Schilling - at 6-foot-4, 226.

The Phillies' bench players were the first to rush the playing surface, while Sanders and Schilling shouted insults and threats. Not much came of all this, other than a little grabbing and a lot of milling around. In fact, five more pitches passed before Sanders grounded to second base.

"I'm the sole provider of my family, man," said Sanders, whose son Deion Jr. sat on the floor beside him, eating a fruit salad. "I have an obligation to two professional teams. To have a guy try to damage my body . . . is inexcusable. And he's going to have to deal with it. He's going to have to deal with it. God as my witness, he's going to have to deal with it."

The sixth inning was the Reds' biggest inning in more than a week. They scored three times against Schilling, who aided the Reds' cause when he walked Curtis Goodwin to start the inning and then hit Hal Morris with a pitch.

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