BAY AREA QUAKE : World Series to Resume Tuesday at Candlestick, Vincent Decides

Play ball, said baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent late Wednesday afternoon.

Despite the Bay Area recovering from its worst earthquake since 1906, the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics will resume at Candlestick Park next Tuesday night, Vincent decided.

The announcement was made at a news conference in a room at the St. Francis Hotel lit by candles and remote television camera lights. The St. Francis, like most of the Bay Area, is still without full power.

Neither Candlestick nor the Oakland Coliseum is ready yet, but Vincent said he expects the ballparks to be prepared next week.

Games 3, 4 and, if necessary, 5 will be played in San Francisco, as scheduled before Tuesday night’s earthquake.

This will be the longest gap during a World Series since 1911 when there was a week delay because of rain-outs in the meeting between the New York Giants and the Philadelphia Athletics.

“It is becoming very clear to all of us in major league baseball that our issue is really a modest one in light of the great tragedy,” Vincent said. “It is also clear that we are not going to be able to play baseball at either park in this area until next Tuesday.”

The Bay Bridge Series was postponed Wednesday for the second straight day. The earthquake struck Tuesday just 30 minutes before game time.

“We had 17 structural engineers and two architects totally examining the stadium for the impact. We feel there is no structural damage,” said John Lind, Candlestick’s manager. “There are some minor repairs and some cleanup. There are areas where we would like to explore in the next few days, to make sure beyond a shadow of a doubt.”

Said Vincent: “The alternative of waiting a few days seems to be better than canceling the World Series, but this is said in light of understanding the difficulty this area is having. We will not be playing while this community is in the early stages of its recovery.

“We believe Tuesday is a very good working hypothesis, but it is not definite yet. I think our preferred course is to play at Candlestick.”

The Giants have been told to report to Candlestick Park Thursday afternoon for a 1 p.m. workout.

Oakland Mayor Lionel Wilson said he talked to Oakland A’s officials Wednesday morning. He told a Times reporter: “I told them that at this time I felt it would be inappropriate to play baseball in our city while there are still bodies resting under the concrete of the (Nimitz Freeway) overpass.”

Wilson said he also could not provide security for baseball at this point and would not be able to until next week.

The Oakland Coliseum can be seen from the Nimitz Freeway, Interstate 880, which partly collapsed in the quake and was the scene of most of the deaths attributed to the temblor.

ABC-TV, the network televising the Series, said through a spokesman that it was not involved in the decision to continue the Series.

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