People: Mar. 4, 2002

KEEPING SCORE

The off-season must have been grueling. This week a number of Dominican baseball players returned to spring training having aged considerably since the end of last season. Anaheim Angel Ramon Ortiz went from 26 to 29; Kansas City Royal Neifi Perez, from 26 to 28; Atlanta Brave Rafael Furcal, from 21 to 23; and Cleveland Indian BARTOLO COLON, from 26 to 27--all without celebrating a birthday. There is no warp in the time-space continuum; rather, new measures imposed since Sept. 11 require anyone applying for a work visa to show a birth certificate. In the past, many players have...

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