Article: Burks shows respect in the game.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

CLEVELAND _ The coach's name was Jack Allen. The place was Ranger Junior College in Texas. The year was 1982.

That was the last time Ellis Burks didn't run hard to first base.

"I still think about how my old country-boy coach got mad at me," Burks said.

Jack Allen said, "I don't care if you can throw a strawberry through a battleship or run a hole through the wind, you better never do that again."

Burks listened.

"I run out everything," he said. "You never know. A guy may drop the ball. He may bobble it. There could be a high throw. What's so hard about it?"

So why do so many millionaires in spikes jog the 90 feet ...

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