Joining News 12 Long Island's Bob Wolff on the panel of the recent Adelphi University/NY Mets Babseball, Education & Society Symposium were Mel Southard, former vice-president and general counsel for the NY Yankees; Dave Lemanczyk, retired major league baseball pitcher; Arthur Kaminsky, co-founder of The Marquee Group; Steve Jacobsen, Newsday sports columnist; David Cohen, general counsel for the NY Mets; and Geoff Belinfante, executive producer of Major League Baseball Productions.

The event, which was moderated by Wolff, was held in Woodruff Hall on Adelphi's Garden City Campus. Among the topics discussed and debated by the panelists were: Has baseball lost its popularity among fans? Why are today's youths choosing to play sports like soccer, basketball, and lacrosse over baseball? Is there any loyalty in the game of baseball anymore? and What can be done to turn the game around?

The Symposium, which was free and open to the public, launched Adelphi's Sports, Education and Society Symposium Series, which is intended to be an annual event in conjunction with the University's Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner.

Belinfante commented, "Baseball needs to tie in its marketing to kids... Even though so much of the magic and romance of baseball is based on its history, our sport also has to cater to the MTV generation... We're seeing new technologies in broadcasting baseball games every year --and these advances are all great for the game and wonderful for the fans."

Lemanczyk commented, "Baseball is not a game you learn in a year, two years or even 10 years. I learn something new about the game every day. It takes a great deal of dedication to be good at baseball-- but the rewards are terrific."

Kaminsky added, "Here's my five-step 'Kaminsky Plan' for improving baseball: (1) Hire a commissioner already... the wait has been ridiculous, (2) Play World Series games in the daytime so kids can watch the whole game like we did, (3) Let Major Leaguers play in the Olympics like the NBA and NHL do, (4) Management should learn how to market the sport in fun, creative ways, and (5) Do more to feature and highlight the contributions of all the great Hispanic ballplayers in the Major Leagues.

Jacobson boldly suggested, "Let's outlaw Little League! Kids get tired of baseball the way Little Leagues are organized and run."

Cohen concluded the comments by stating, "Great athletes are not missing from the game of baseball. Just look at players like Ken Griffey, Jr., Mike Piazza, Frank Thomas, and Mark McGuire, to name a few. It's obvious to everyone that baseball players today are so much stronger and faster than they've ever been."