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2B Daily News – Tuesday, January 10, 2012 Barry Larkin elected to baseball Hall of Fame 49ERS NEW YORK (AP) — Barry Larkin had no idea back in 1982 that he would become a baseball Hall of Famer thanks to Bo Schembechler. A two-sport standout in his senior year of high school, Larkin went to the University of Michigan on a scholarship to play defen- sive back for Schembech- ler's Wolverines. When he arrived in Ann Arbor, Larkin learned he was being redshirted. ''I was a better football player than a baseball play- er at the time,'' Larkin recalled. ''And that was influential because I just worked on my baseball tal- ent, just that alone. And that was an eye-opener because I got so much bet- ter.'' So much better that he was elected to the Hall of Fame on Monday with plenty of room to spare. The former Cincinnati Reds shortstop was chosen on 495 of 573 ballots (86 percent) in voting announced by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, well above the necessary 75 percent. Larkin was on the ballot for the third time after falling 75 votes short last year. He will be inducted July 22 in Cooperstown along with the late Ron Santo, elected last month by the Veterans Committee. ''I'm just incredibly, incredibly moved by this whole experience and so humbled by the experience and so excited about being the newest member of the Hall of Fame,'' Larkin said on a conference call. His election came in the final year before the Steroids Era becomes the main focus in balloting. Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, Mike Piazza, Craig Biggio and Curt Schilling are eli- gible for the first time next year. Jack Morris followed Larkin with 382 votes (67 percent), missing by 48 votes on his 13th try but up sharply from 54 percent last year. Morris, the ace of three World Series win- ners, finished with 254 vic- tories and was the win- ningest pitcher of the 1980s. His 3.90 ERA, however, is higher than that of any Hall of Famer. He has two chances left on the BBWAA ballot. Gil Hodges (63.4 percent in 1983) has the highest per- centage among players who never gained election. Playing from 1986-04 — all with his hometown Reds — Larkin hit .295 with 198 home runs, 960 RBIs, 2,340 hits and 379 stolen bases. A 12-time All-Star, he won the 1995 NL MVP award, nine Sil- ver Slugger trophies and three Gold Gloves. He helped the Reds win the 1990 World Series and in 1996 became the first shortstop to have 30 homers and 30 steals in a season. Larkin's brother Mike, who was a year older, was recruited by Schembechler but decided to follow coach Gerry Faust from Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati to Notre Dame. ''So Bo told my mother that he was going to get her next son,'' Larkin said. Larkin became a base- ball star at Michigan, which retired his No. 16 two years ago. He devel- oped under coach Bud Middaugh and assistant Danny Hall, who is now Georgia Tech's coach. ''Those two guys really beat it in my head the cor- rect way to play the game,'' Larkin said. ''Because nei- ther was a home run hitter, neither one was one of the most gifted, if you will, they were both very good at the Xs and Os, at the hit- ting behind the runner, at the mental part of the game.'' Cincinnati, which draft- ed Larkin in the second round in 1982, took him with the fourth overall pick in 1985. Schembechler, who became president of the Detroit Tigers, used to kid Larkin about his career path. ''Bo always told me he would strike me out, any- way. That was Bo's way of saying, 'Congratulations kid, you did it,''' Larkin remembered. ''He would always tell me: 'You'll be back. You'll miss football. Nobody comes to the Uni- versity of Michigan to play baseball,' is what he used to say.'' Larkin becomes the fourth Hall of Famer with ties to the university, fol- lowing Branch Rickey (who coached the baseball team while attending the law school), George Sisler and Charlie Gehringer. Looking back, Larkin feels fortunate. He got 52 percent when he appeared on the ballot for the first time in 2010. This year, he received the largest single-year percent- age increase to gain elec- tion since 1948, when pitcher Herb Pennock was elected with 77.7 percent, a year after finishing with 53.4 percent. Larkin is the 48th Hall of Famer who spent his entire career with one major league team and the third from the Reds, join- ing Johnny Bench and Bid McPhee. He credits Tony Perez and Dave Concep- cion for helping influence his career, and recalled fondly how he learned Spanish to better commu- nicate with his teammates. With no big contenders among first-time eligibles, several holdovers saw increases from last year: Jeff Bagwell (42 percent to 56 percent), Lee Smith (45 to 51), Tim Raines (38 to 49), Alan Trammell (24 to 37) and Edgar Martinez (33 to 37). Bernie Williams received the most votes (55) among players who were eligible for the first time. Bill Mueller got just four votes and will be dropped in future years, along with Juan Gonzalez (23) and Vinny Castilla (six). Nine voters submit- ted blank ballots. Mark McGwire, 10th on the career home run list with 583, received 19.5 percent in his sixth try, down from 19.8 percent last year and 23.7 percent in 2010 — a vote before he admitted using steroids and human growth hormone. Rafael Palmeiro, among just four players with 500 homers and 3,000 hits along with Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray, got 72 votes and his percentage increased to 12.6 from 11 last year in his first appearance. Palmeiro received a 10-day suspension in 2005 for a positive test for perfor- mance-enhancing drugs, claiming it was due to a vit- amin vial given to him by teammate Miguel Tejada. Gonzalez, a two-time AL MVP implicated by Jose Canseco in steroids use, received 30 votes last year, just above the 5 per- cent threshold for remain- ing on the ballot. In 2014, the focus will turn to elite pitchers when Greg Maddux (355 wins) and Tom Glavine (305) become eligible. Among pitchers eligible for the Hall, all 20 of the 300- game winners are in. On the tube MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL •4 p.m., ESPN — Georgia at Florida •4 p.m., ESPN2 — Louisville at Provi- dence •6 p.m., ESPN — Ohio St. at Illinois NBA •5 p.m., NBATV — Chicago at Minneso- ta • 7:30 p.m., CSNB — Miami at Golden State • 7:30 p.m., NBATV — Phoenix at L.A. Lakers NHL • 4:30 p.m., NBCSP — San Jose at Min- nesota NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific Division WL OT Pts GF GA SHARKS 23 11 4 50 112 89 Dallas 23 16 1 47 112 114 Kings 20 15 7 47 88 93 Phoenix 20 17 5 45 108 109 Ducks 12 22 6 30 99 133 Central Division WL OT Pts GF GA Detroit 26 14 1 53 134 94 St. Louis 24 12 5 53 107 89 Chicago 24 13 5 53 134 123 Nashville 22 15 4 48 111 114 Columbus 11 25 5 27 99 137 Northwest Division WL OT Pts GF GA Vancouver 26 14 3 55 139 104 Minnesota 21 15 6 48 96 101 Colorado 23 19 1 47 114 120 Calgary 19 19 5 43 103 124 Edmonton 16 22 3 35 111 119 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division WL OT Pts GF GA N.Y.Rangers 26 9 4 56 116 82 Philadelphia24 12 4 52 137 121 New Jersey 23 16 2 48 114 117 Pittsburgh 21 15 4 46 123 106 N.Y. Islanders14 19 6 34 91 125 Northeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Boston 26 11 1 53 141 73 Ottawa 22 15 6 50 135 143 Toronto 21 15 5 47 133 131 Buffalo 18 18 5 41 107 121 Montreal 16 18 7 39 109 114 Southeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Florida 21 13 8 50 109 116 Winnipeg 20 16 5 45 109 119 Washington 21 16 2 44 116 115 Tampa Bay 17 20 3 37 109 136 Carolina 14 227 35 112 146 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. —————————————————— Monday's results Florida 2, Vancouver 1 Washington at Los Angeles, late Today's games San Jose at Minnesota, 4:30 p.m. Buffalo at Toronto, 4 p.m. Detroit at N.Y. Islanders, 4 p.m. Ottawa at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m. Philadelphia at Carolina, 4 p.m. Phoenix at N.Y. Rangers, 4 p.m. Winnipeg at Boston, 4 p.m. St. Louis at Montreal, 4:30 p.m. Vancouver at Tampa Bay, 4:30 p.m. Columbus at Chicago, 5:30 p.m. Nashville at Colorado, 6 p.m. New Jersey at Calgary, 6:30 p.m. Dallas at Anaheim, 7 p.m. Wednesday's games Pittsburgh at Washington, 4:30 p.m. New Jersey at Edmonton, 6 p.m. (Continued from page 1B) a shot to compete for a start- ing job. That seems a lot longer than five months ago now. Smith had by far his best season as a professional. He set career highs in comple- tion percentage (61.4), yards passing (3,199) and passer rating (90.7) while playing mostly mistake-free ball to help the 49ers go 13-3 and win the NFC West. The offensive line gelled to spark a strong running game by Frank Gore as the offense did just enough to support one of the league's top defenses and special teams units. ''We're really improved,'' center Jonathan Goodwin said. ''At that point we had maybe two weeks of practice. It was tough. We didn't want to make any excuses. It's tough as a line to not play together. Experience playing together is valuable.'' Much was made after the game about a report that Saints coach Sean Payton went against convention with a heavy blitz package in the first preseason game because he was upset Har- baugh did not call him before the game so there could be a ''gentlemen's agreement'' to how the teams would approach the exhibition game. Harbaugh said he even asked his brother, Ravens coach John Harbaugh, about whether that was proper pro- tocol. ''He wasn't aware of all that,'' Jim Harbaugh said. ''And even if there was, we wouldn't do it, anyway. We ask no quarter, we get no quarter. That's how we approach things.'' While many of the Nin- ers players expressed sur- prise at the unusual strategy for a preseason game, Good- win knew it was coming after seeing defensive coor- dinator Gregg Williams up close while playing the pre- vious five seasons with the Saints. NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific Division Clippers Lakers Phoenix KINGS WL Pct GB 4 2 .667 — 6 4 .600 — 4 4 .500 1 36 .333 2.5 WARRIORS 26 .250 3 Southwest Division WL Pct GB San Antonio 6 3 .667 — Dallas Memphis New Orleans 3 6 .333 3 Houston 4 5 .444 2 3 5 .375 2.5 2 6 .250 3.5 Northwest Division WL Pct GB Oklahoma City 8 2 .800 — Portland Utah Denver Minnesota 6 2 .750 1 5 3 .625 2 6 4 .600 2 3 6 .333 4.5 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division Philadelphia 6 2 .750 — New York Boston Toronto Miami Atlanta Orlando Charlotte Chicago Indiana Cleveland WL Pct GB 5 4 .556 1.5 4 4 .500 2 4 5 .444 2.5 New Jersey 2 8 .200 5 Southeast Division WL Pct GB 8 1 .889 — 7 3 .700 1.5 6 3 .667 2 2 7 .222 6 Washington 0 8 .000 7.5 Central Division WL Pct GB 8 2 .800 — 6 3 .667 1.5 4 4 .500 3 Milwaukee 2 6 .250 5 Detroit Atlanta 106, New Jersey 101 Chicago 92, Detroit 68 New Orleans 94, Denver 81 New York 91, Charlotte 87 Philadelphia 96, Indiana 86 Toronto 97, Minnesota 87 Today's games Sacramento at Philadelphia, 4 p.m. Miami at Golden State, 7:30 p.m. Houston at Charlotte, 4 p.m. Toronto at Washington, 4 p.m. Dallas at Detroit, 4:30 p.m. Chicago at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Oklahoma City at Memphis, 5 p.m. San Antonio at Milwaukee, 5 p.m. Cleveland at Utah, 6 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Portland, 7 p.m. Phoenix at L.A. Lakers, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday's games Sacramento at Toronto, 4 p.m. Atlanta at Indiana, 4 p.m. Philadelphia at New York, 4:30 p.m. Dallas at Boston, 5 p.m. Oklahoma City at New Orleans, 5 p.m. Washington at Chicago, 5 p.m. Houston at San Antonio, 5:30 p.m. L.A. Lakers at Utah, 6 p.m. New Jersey at Denver, 6 p.m. Orlando at Portland, 7 p.m. Miami at L.A. Clippers, 7:30 p.m. 2 7 .222 5.5 —————————————————— Monday's results ''First practice in training camp Gregg blitzes. It was- n't a surprise for me. That's what he likes to do,'' Good- win said. ''One thing about this league is you have to learn from your mistakes. Fortunately for us, at that time it was a preseason game, a game that didn't count against us. Hopefully, we've learned from some of those mistakes and can apply them in the future.'' The 49ers will need to handle the blitz better this week. According to STATS LLC, the Saints had the sec- ond most blitzes in the league this season with 365, trailing only Green Bay. The plays were effective, too, as New Orleans held oppo- nents to a 48.1 percent com- pletion percentage against the blitz with 24 sacks and five interceptions on 316 throws. The Niners did well most of the season against pres- sure, with Alex Smith going 91 for 153 for 1,116 yards, eight touchdowns, one inter- ception and a 96.7 passer rating. But they allowed 21 sacks, including 13 in the final six games. But the Saints are differ- ent from most blitzing teams. They have 15 players who have been credited with sacks this season, led by safety Roman Harper's 7.5, making it difficult some- times to know where the pressure is coming from. ''Their blitz schemes are a little bit different because they bring a lot more DBs, secondary guys instead of linebackers,'' Staley said. ''We have to do a great job just identifying and prepar- ing all week.'' Notes: Harbaugh said the team would not make a roster move on TE Delanie Walker, whose jaw was broken in two places in a win at Seattle on Dec. 24. Harbaugh said Walker has ''great powers of healing'' and would not rule him out for Saturday. ... Tuesday is the 30th anniversary of ''The Catch''— perhaps the most famous moment in 49ers history. NCAA The Top Twenty Five The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' college basketball poll, with first- place votes in parentheses, records through Jan. 8, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and previous ranking: Record Pts Prv 1. Syracuse (60) 17-0 1,618 1 2. Kentucky (5) 15-1 1,558 2 3. North Carolina 14-2 1,476 3 4. Baylor 5. Ohio St. 9. Missouri 10. Kansas 13. Michigan 14. Louisville 15-0 1,436 4 15-2 1,347 6 6. Michigan St. 14-2 1,263 10 7. Indiana 8. Duke 11. Georgetown 13-2 990 9 12. UNLV 16-2 852 17 13-3 715 16 13-3 704 11 15. Murray St. 16-0 628 19 16. Virginia 17. UConn 12-4 463 13 14-1 607 21 12-3 535 8 18. Kansas St. 12-2 482 23 19. Florida 20. Mississippi St. 13-3 362 15 21. Gonzaga 13-2 347 25 22. San Diego St. 13-2 313 24 23. Creighton 13-2 236 — 24. Seton Hall 14-2 205 — 25. Marquette 12-4 170 20 Others receiving votes: Wisconsin 97, Alabama 40, Vanderbilt 37, West Virginia 33, New Mexico 28, Saint Mary's (Cal) 18, Harvard 16, Illinois 14, Arkansas 11, Stanford 9, Saint Louis 7, Dayton 2, Iowa St. 1, Wagner 1. Top 25 Schedule Monday's results Cincinnati 68, No. 11 Georgetown 64 No. 17 UConn 64, West Virginia 57 Today's games No. 3 North Carolina vs. Miami, 6 p.m. No. 4 Baylor at No. 18 Kansas St., 5 p.m. No. 5 Ohio State at Illinois, 6 p.m. No. 6 Michigan State vs. Iowa, 4 p.m. No. 14 Louisville at Providence, 4 p.m. No. 19 Florida vs. Georgia, 4 p.m. No. 22 S. Diego St. vs. Chicago St., 7 p.m. No. 23 Creighton vs. N. Iowa, 6 p.m. No. 24 Seton Hall vs. DePaul, 4 p.m. Wednesday's games No. 1 Syracuse at Villanova, 4 p.m. No. 2 Kentucky at Auburn, 5 p.m. No. 9 Missouri at Iowa State, 5 p.m. No. 10 Kansas at Texas Tech, 6 p.m. No. 13 Michigan vs. N'western, 3:30 p.m. No. 25 Marquette vs. St. John's, 4 p.m. Thursday's games No. 7 Indiana vs. Minnesota, 5 p.m. No. 8 Duke vs. No. 16 Virginia, 6 p.m. No. 15 Murray St. vs. Jacksonville St., 5 p.m. No. 20 Miss. St. vs. Tennessee, 6 p.m. No. 21 Gonzaga at Saint Mary's, 8 p.m. Friday's games No. 24 Seton Hall at South Florida, 4 p.m. Saturday's games No. 1 Syracuse vs. Providence, 3 p.m. No. 2 Kentucky at Tennessee, 9 a.m. No. 3 N. Carolina at Florida St., 11 a.m. No. 4 Baylor vs. Oklahoma State, Noon No. 6 Michigan St. at Northwestern, Noon No. 9 Missouri vs. Texas, 10 a.m. No. 10 Kansas vs. Iowa State, 1 p.m. No. 12 UNLV at No. 22 S. Diego St., 1 p.m. No. 13 Michigan at Iowa, 10 a.m. No. 14 Louisville vs. DePaul, 1 p.m. No. 15 Murray St. vs. Tenn. Tech, 3 p.m. No. 17 Connecticut at Notre Dame, 8 a.m. No. 18 Kansas St. at Oklahoma, 10:30 a.m. No. 19 Florida at South Carolina, 4 p.m. No. 20 Mississippi St. vs. Alabama, 1 p.m. No.21 Gonzaga at Loyola Marymount, 5 p.m. No. 25 Marquette vs. Pittsburgh, 11 a.m. Sunday's games No. 5 Ohio St. vs. No. 7 Indiana, 1:30 p.m. No. 8 Duke at Clemson, 3 p.m. No. 11 Georgetown vs. St. John's at Madison Square Garden, 9 a.m. No. 23 Creighton vs. S. Illinois, 4:05 p.m. 15-1 1,217 12 13-2 1,186 5 14-1 1,096 7 12-3 1,005 14