The couple stopped at the leading hotel of the town, where the rival manager ordered a fine breakfast.

He caught up with the rival manager in a moment, passed him and bounded on.

The rival manager tried to protest, but the lieutenant started for him.

The plan has not gone very far yet but the reactions of rival managers are changing.

Upon hearing of the principal owner's decision, a rival general manager laughed.

But near the end, I was arrested for brawling with a rival manager on the ball field - the exact opposite of my book's message.

"They've got a lot to work with," a rival general manager said.

"Maybe he's worried about Appier breaking down," said a rival general manager.

In a simpler time, the rival managers would negotiate, say, a 60-40 split with a promoter.

Waiting is exactly what the Mets should do, according to several rival general managers.