Deron Johnson, 53, dies

Deron Johnson, who spent 16 seasons in the major leagues and mostrecently was batting instructor for the California Angels, diedThursday after fighting lung cancer for nearly a year.

Johnson, 53, died at his home in Poway, Calif., the Angelssaid.

After being diagnosed with cancer last June, Johnson was named abench coach for this season by Angels manager Buck Rodgers. ButJohnson was too ill to attend spring training.

During the 1980s, Johnson also served as a coach with the NewYorks Mets, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Seattle Mariners and theWhite Sox.

As a player, Johnson played 16 seasons with nine clubs, makinghis big-league debut with the New York Yankees in 1960. He playedfor the White Sox in 1975. Magic Johnson is no hero to Nolan Ryan. "I have a problem withmaking a hero out of him because of AIDS," Ryan writes in hisupcoming biography, Miracle Man.

The Texas Rangers pitcher said while he sympathizes withJohnson's plight, the star knew the risks of his activity.

"Magic wasn't really an innocent victim because of hislifestyle," Ryan said. He agreed with Martina Narvratilova that ifJohnson were a woman who had contracted the AIDS virus throughpromiscuous sex, a lot fewer people would view him as a hero. Baseball's ownership committee will meet Thursday in Chicago todiscuss the proposed sale of the Seattle Mariners to aJapanese-backed group. The group would pay slightly more than $100million to buy the team from Jeff Smulyan, who purchased it forapproximately $77 million in 1989. Baltimore first baseman Randy Milligan, knocked unconscious after heran into second baseman Billy Ripken chasing a ground ball Wednesday,was released from a Kansas City hospital. The formal settlement of Leonard Kleinman's lawsuit againstcommissioner Fay Vincent was pushed back a day because documentsarrived too late Thursday. Minnesota placed third baseman Mike Pagliarulo on the 15-daydisabled list because of a strained right wrist and activated firstbaseman Kent Hrbek. Boston's Roger Clemens is 6-3 lifetime at County Stadium and 11-6over all against the Brewers. Oakland's Jamie Quirk is in an 0-for-15 slump. Toronto reliever Ken Dayley, coming off elbow surgery, is about twoweeks away from being able to start light tossing.