Baseball reacts to Olympics' 'stupid' rules
Kicking baseball and softball out of the Olympics starting with the 2012 games apparently wasn't good enough. Now we have to endure a stupid baseball tie-breaker rule in this year's Beijing Games.
The tie-breaker, adopted by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF), calls for the 11th inning and beyond to start with runners at first and second, and teams may begin the 11th at any spot in the batting order under the tie-breaker rule. Anyone with any baseball knowledge knows tradition has always been the key to the sport's success.
So how and why did the IBAF committee come up with these Mickey Mouse rule changes?
IBAF President Harvey W. Schiller defended the rule changes as a way to make the game more viewer-friendly. Baseball fans aren't looking for a quick way to end games, even those that go beyond the nine-inning limit. They want to see teams win the old-fashioned way and challenge the strategy employed along the way to those victories and defeats. Even though baseball has always been an American sport, it was Japan that first blasted the changes.
"Why do they want to finish a game quickly" was the first response from Japanese officials. Teams involved in this year's Olympics were not consulted. It was all done in a secret meeting, the same way baseball and softball were eliminated from future Games. The secret vote reflected a heavy European influence of the IOC, which claims a near majority of European members.
The popularity of baseball and softball are limited primarily to the Americas, Canada and Asia. Both sports were founded in the United States. It took a long time for the two sports to become a part of the Olympics. Baseball joined in 1992 and softball in 1996. Thanks to the European influence, baseball and softball are the first sports cut from the Olympics since polo was dropped in 1936. Even though baseball and softball are American sports, the IOC claims dropping them wasn't an anti-U.S. thing. Introducing new sports was said to be one of the IOC's plans, and in order to do so, a couple of sports had to be eliminated.
"I think they made a big, big mistake," said former Los Angeles Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda, who managed the U.S. to its only gold medal, in 2000 at the Sydney Games.
"Baseball is played by all countries now and softball, too," Lasorda said. "I think that's really going to hurt the Olympics. I don't want to knock the other sports, but I think this is a big mistake. I am very disappointed."
Current St. Louis Cardinal players Troy Glaus and Ryan Franklin are also among the disappointed major leaguers. Glaus was an Arizona third baseman when he played on the 1996 U.S. team. "This is a shame," Glaus said. "Baseball is one of the more global sports. There's not too many countries that don't play it at some level."
Franklin was a Seattle pitcher when he won three games for the U.S. in 2000. "It's our national pastime, so it's sad to see it dropped," Franklin said. "There's a lot of guys up here (in the major leagues) who would like to represent their country by playing baseball in the Oympics. It was a great experience and probably one of the reasons why I was able to get to the big leagues and stay."
Softball has been the property of the U.S. since making its debut in 1996. The American women won all three gold medals, and their 2004 victory capped a 79-game winning streak in international play.
2008 Oregon Live LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Cuban Wants the Cubs; Is Baseball Ready?
For Mark Cuban, the owner of the N.B.A.'s Dallas Mavericks, buying the Tribune Company's Chicago Cubs is the latest in a long line of projects. (He's not alone in the expensive quest; four other individuals and groups have given the debt-laden Tribune Company nonbinding offers of at least USD 1 billion for the team, its stake in Comcast SportsNet Chicago, and 92-year-old Wrigley Field.)
But, writes The New York Times Richard Sanodmir, his past in professional sports hasn't been without bumps. Indeed, his eight years in basketball as the Mavericks' owner have shown that there is no one in baseball like him, the closest being George Steinbrenner or Ted Turner as younger men. Mr. Cuban, writes Mr. Sanodmir, is loud, passionate and opinionated. He's a media creature comfortable on multiple platforms, and he turned the once-comatose Mavericks into a perennial winner (though they have not won it all, just like the Cubbies). He has amassed nearly USD 1.7 million in fines, mostly for criticizing N.B.A. referees. As penance for insulting the chief of referees as incapable of managing a Dairy Queen, he spent a day at the chain serving up a promotional bonanza.
And Mr. Cuban, who is reported to be the top bidder in the Cubs, at nearly USD 1.3 billion, is already making waves in Major League Baseball. No owner, says Mr. Sandomir, has had an exchange on radio like the one Mr. Cuban had in May on Dan Patrick's syndicated radio show. Imagine what his rivals or the sitting Major League Baseball owners thought when they heard him respond to Patrick's line of questioning about whether pursuing the Cubs was like chasing the girl who's "expensive and you may not have a shot at her."
Mr. Cuban: "If there's a hooker you want, it all comes down to price, right? And I think that's a better analogy."
Mr. Patrick: "So the Cubs are your hooker?"
Mr. Cuban: "Well, yes, bad choice of words."
Bob DuPuy, the president of Major League Baseball, would not address the comment but praised Mr. Cuban's Internet and technology expertise. "He's been outspoken on issues, but we've had owners who are outspoken as well," he told The Times. With his tongue lodged somewhere in his cheek, he said, "I've not heard of him referred to as a loudmouth."
But John Henry, the principal owner of the Boston Red Sox and a Cuban booster, wrote in an e-mail message to Mr. Sanodmir, "The commissioner's office abhors owners who speak their minds and fight for the rights of their respective franchises." He added that he could think "of no one better suited to reverse the fortunes of the Cubs for the long term" than Mr. Cuban. For all his excesses, Mr. Cuban, 50, is a successful owner. The Mavericks have averaged 57.3 wins in eight full seasons with him as their courtside benefactor, have reached the playoffs in each of those seasons and lost to Miami in the 2006 finals. And he has not been fined in two years by N.B.A. Commissioner David Stern.
Jerry Colangelo, who owned the Phoeniz Suns and the Arizona Diamondbacks, said baseball and basketball owners were different breeds. "Basketball is a little more cutting edge, and baseball has been stodgier," he told The Times. "Some people say it's difficult to see him as a baseball owner, but times change, circumstances change and he's done an incredible job in basketball."
If Sam Zell, who took Tribune public in an USD 8.2 billion buyout and needs as much as he can get for the Cubs, presents Mr. Cuban as his choice to M.L.B. owners, Mr. DuPuy told The Times that he would get "a fair hearing; the fact that he's operated a successful franchise in another league will be taken into account."
But in truth, says Mr. Sanodmir, owners can reject whomever they want, for cause, like dubious financing or bad associations, or for no stated reason at all. Baseball faced questions of fairness in 2001 and 2002 when it appeared that Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig favored the USD 660 million purchase of the Red Sox, Fenway Park and 80 percent of the New England Sports Network by John Henry's group over two apparently higher bids, one of them by Charles F. Dolan, the chairman of Cablevision. Thomas Reilly, the Massachusetts attorney general, criticized the process that led to the approval of Henry's acquisition. "When you see how they operate," he said, "it's not a pretty sight."
Mr. DuPuy insisted last week that there was "no manipulation" and that only one bid was submitted by the Jean R. Yawkey Trust, the Red Sox' majority owner. But he conceded that he was not suggesting that people in baseball weren't cheering for Mr. Henry to win. Now, the question is whether baseball's owners will cheer for the fan-friendly Mr. Cuban, whose independence may clash with Selig's consensus-driven rule.
Or will they pray for the trumping of Mr. Cuban by a lower-profile, less-loquacious bidder like John Canning, a minority owner of the Brewers, who did not make the first cut of bidders but could conceivably return if he revises an offer that miscalculated the price of repairs at Wrigley.
"The best references I have will come from other N.B.A. owners who know what my contributions as a partner are," Mr. Cuban told the Times in, adding that "multiple N.B.A. owners have asked if they could participate in our attempts to purchase the Cubs."
Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
One year later: Impact of the death of Mike Coolbaugh
A year ago this month, Mike Coolbaugh was coaching first base for the Double-A Tulsa Drillers when a foul ball struck him below his left ear, rupturing an artery that takes blood from the brain to the spine. Coolbaugh, a former Indianapolis Indians player, died at age 35, leaving behind two children and a wife who gave birth to the couple's third child in November.
His death sparked Major League Baseball to require all field coaches in major and minor league games to wear helmets. The NCAA discussed a similar rule but didn't pass it. The IHSAA won't change its rule until the National Federation of State High School Associations does, commissioner Blake Ress said. At the one-year anniversary of Coolbaugh's death, managers and coaches in Indiana reflected on the tragedy and what -- if anything -- should be done to prevent it from happening again. Indianapolis Indians manager Trent Jewett coached against Coolbaugh in 1998 and wears a helmet because it's a league rule.
"I think anybody that coaches third base has to have the option to wear a helmet, and they can choose to if they want to. I never chose to, and I don't like as a grown man being mandated to do it. It's heavy, hot and bulky. I just don't feel like I need it," he said.
"Any time you're doing something dangerous, I think if you're worried about that danger, then you're in the wrong occupation, whether you're a race car driver or a third base coach. What are we going to do, wear a full body armor? There's exposure, there's danger, and we all know those things going in."
University of Indianapolis coach Gary Vaught discussed a helmet rule last year as chairman of the NCAA Baseball Rules Committee. He said it will come up again this year.
"There have been hundreds of years of baseball, and that's the first incident where anyone's ever been killed by a line drive coaching," he said. "The No. 1 goal for the four years I was there was trying to make the game as safe as we can make it. I don't know which way they'll go. It'll be interesting."
Indiana University coach Tracy Smith only knows one college coach who wears a helmet. "As unfortunate as that is, and I don't mean to diminish the death of a human being, I think it was a little bit of an overreaction by Major League Baseball. To me it was kind of a knee-jerk reaction.
"I do think it is in my mind when I'm coaching third base. You've got to pay attention. I can't be down there chitchatting with the umpire or the third baseman or the runner. I've got to be very focused in on every single pitch being thrown in case it does go down the line."
Lawrence North coach Richard Winzenread doesn't wear a helmet but said it would be a good idea to start.
"The older you get, the more invincible you don't become,'' he said. "I'm not as quick as I used to be or as strong as I used to be. Every bit of protection helps. Since that happened, I've thought about it and paid a little more attention to the hitter and where I'm at. It'd be stupid and naive not to know who's up. I don't abide by that coaches box -- I move around right where I think I'm going to be safe."
Center Grove coach Dave Gandolph doesn't wear a helmet but said he might have to soon. "It kind of made me reinforce to be aware when I'm out there coaching. Although those guys in pro ball are probably going to hit the ball harder than high school guys, you still have to be alert and awake when you're coaching," he said.
"If (MLB) continues to have that rule, I think that eventually it will trickle down to college and then high school. I think the IHSAA has got to think about it a little bit, anyway. They're out there to protect students first, but the coaches also."
Copyright 2008 IndyStar.com.
Major league baseball still figuring out the rules for switch pitcher
The Major League Baseball rule book isn't entirely clear on the procedure ambidextrous pitcher Pat Venditte must follow on the mound. The rules do make it clear that a batter and a pitcher are allowed to change sides once during an at bat. But it's not clear whether the batter or pitcher must declare first. Pat Venditte Senior says he was surprised Major League Baseball doesn't have a rule to cover the situation.
Justin Klemm with the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation says his organization is working with major league baseball to remedy the lack of a clear rule, but doesn't want to rush it. Venditte is not the first professional pitcher to throw with both hands, but he may be the first in the modern era with the potential to regularly switch arms. Greg A. Harris, who pitched for several teams from 1981-95, was a righty throughout his career. He pitched from the left side for two batters in the second-to-last game of his career.
Copyright 2000-2008 WorldNow and NTV. All Rights Reserved.
Town ball to Twins, there's baseball for everyone in Lakes Area
As the sun's rays slowly creep up on baseball fields across Minnesota, one things for sure. It's time to play ball!
With the tantalizing aroma of a perfect mix of sun-drenched grass and dirt coated with with a month's worth of rain upon us, baseball options are endless throughout the dog days of summer. Although the high school baseball season ended last weekend, that season is a mere precursor to the whirlwind of ball that goes on in Minnesota summers. For some local flair, a sturdy town ball team offers up their services. The Chisago Lakes Bulldogs are coming off a 20-9 season. The'Dogs play their home games at the baseball field at the Chisago Lakes high school.
Jon Kent manages the team full of local ballplayers, most with some sort of post-high school experience under their belts, so its a treat to watch. Minnesota is one of the last great outposts for town ball. There are still over 300 town ball teams scattered around the state, divided among three different classes. Town ball rules consist of the same baseball rules that college and professional teams adhere to. Nine-inning games and no 10-run mercy rule like high school means an authentic baseball experience in the heart of the Chisago Lakes area. The Forest Lake Brewers also suit up for a town ball schedule, and they play their home games at Schumaker Field in Forest Lake.
If there isn't a town ball team suiting up, then there is the always-entertaining St. Paul Saints playing at Midway Stadium in St. Paul. The wacky giveaways and funky promotions that the Saints put on are only equaled in the effort by the ballplayers on the field at Midway. On June 7, the Saints held the 'Purple Game' in honor of Prince's 50th birthday. To celebrate the Minnesota-born icon, a cover band was on hand to crank classic Prince hits, and the players wore purple threads, with symbols on them instead of numbers. If you're still aiming higher than tthe Independent League, Twins games are the best value ticket in town. As the Vikings and Wild ticket prices skyrocket, andthe KG-less Timberwolves plummet to the bottom of the NBA standings, the Twins are the best bet to see a good professional team at an affordable price.
The best thing about it is that the Twins run a boatload of promotions to fuel fan interest at the game. Wednesday's are dollar Dome Dog nights, where, just as the name implies, famous Dome Dogs are only a buck apiece. The best deal, however, for the summer is the six more "All-You-Can-Eat nights" at the Metrodome for a Twins game. After having one earlier in the season that was a hot ticket, the Twins announced a few weeks ago that they were having more. Monday June 30, and Tuesday, July 1 will be the first batch of the food-gorging when the Twins take on American League Central Division rival Detroit Tigers. The second round of ballpark heaven, in which ticketholders can eat as many nachos, hot dogs, pretzels popcorn and peanuts they want, as well as drink as much pop possible, is on Monday, July 28 and Tuesday, July 29 against the Twins' southside rivals, the Chicago White Sox.
The last two games are on Monday August 18, and Tuesday August 19 agaist the green- and gold-clad Oakland Athletics. All games start at 7:10 p.m. and each game will only sell 600 of the tickets, so get 'em quick. And the next two summers are merely serving as a passover as the lame-duck Metrodome will be in the Twins rearview mirror soon. A brand new outdoor ballpark will be opening it's doors to begin the season in 2010. What's better than professional baseball in the summer?
I'll tell you what is. Professional baseball OUTSIDE in the summer, and that is creeping up on the state of Minnesota If watching a game of baseball isn't your forte, there is plenty of leagues to play in in different places over the summer. Beer leagues, competitive leagues or recreational leagues, there is a flavor for everyone to indulge in in America's favorite pasttime.
All Content 2008, Chisago County Press/Search
Flashback: The calls-how announcers called Verlander's final out
Tigers play-by-play broadcaster Mario Impemba called the first Tigers no-hitter in a generation and not once did he actually mention it at least until after the final out. Neither he nor his broadcasting partner, Rod Allen, used the phrase "no-hitter" during Justin Verlander's dominant, 4-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night. The announcing team's superstitious decision was part of an unwritten baseball rule: Don't jinx a pitcher flirting with the rare feat.
"We let the pictures do the talking," Impemba said. "We came back a couple of times (from commercial breaks) with zeroes on the screen and that's how people knew what was going on."
Impemba said he and Allen knew early on that they wouldn't mention it.
"We didn't need to talk about it," Impemba said. "You do what you feel is right. And that's what we felt was the right thing to do."
When asked whether it was tough to balance the audience's need to know and the superstitious rules of baseball, he said, "it's a no-win situation for a broadcaster, because if you do mention it, and the no-hitter is broken up, then they are all over you. And if you don't mention it, and the pitcher gets it, then they say: 'Why didn't you say something.' "
Impemba said it's different with radio, when the audience can't see and must completely rely on the announcer. Dan Dickerson, on the Tigers' radio network, mentioned the words "no runs, no hits for the Brewers" in the ninth inning.
THE CALLS
Impemba, FSN: (Voice registering excitement) "The 0-2 - high fly ball, rightfield, Ordonez backing up. He is there, No-hitter for Justin Verlander, the first Tigers no-hitter since 1984 when Jack Morris no-hit the White Sox...what a scene at Comerica Park."
Dan Dickerson, Tigers radio network: (Voice tinged with emotion.) "The 0-2 pitch, swing and a high fly ball to right - Ordonez going back, he's got room...HE MAKES THE CATCH, Justin Verlander has just thrown the sixth no-hitter in the 107-year history of the Detroit Tigers."
Bob Uecker, Brewers radio network: (Uecker's voice was relatively quiet and underwhelming.) "This guy is still throwing 98 miles per hour. Two strikes, two outs. 4-0 Detroit. Here he comes. J.J. sends one to right, this is going to do it. Magglio Ordonez, and Justin Verlander has just thrown a complete game no-hitter. Wow. What an impressive performance by last year's American League rookie of the year Justin Verlander. Wow. Inpressive the understatement of the night. First time ever at Comerica Park."
freep.com
'BASEBALL RULE': Injured fan strikes out in court
Always keep your eye on the ball has taken on new meaning in Nevada. On Thursday, the state Supreme Court handed down a decision establishing broad protections for stadium operators from lawsuits involving foul ball injuries. In a 4-3 decision, the court said stadium operators have protections from lawsuits involving foul balls striking fans, even if an injury occurs outside of the stands. In adopting the "baseball rule" for an entire stadium, the court majority dealt a death blow to a lawsuit filed by Las Vegas 51s fan Kathleen Turner, who was eating a sandwich in the Beer Garden at Cashman Field in 2002 when a foul ball struck her between the eyes, breaking her nose and cutting her face.
The court majority said a stadium operator has a limited duty to protect spectators against injuries caused by foul balls that are errantly projected into the stands. But the court said the operator in the case at hand, Mandalay Sports Entertainment, which operates the stadium where the Las Vegas 51s play baseball, "satisfied its duty as a matter of law under the facts presented in this case." The court minority argued that the "baseball rule" protecting stadium operators from liability for foul balls should apply only to the stands, where spectators are more attuned to the potential for an injury from a foul ball. Attorney Beau Sterling, representing Turner, said the majority extended the protection to an entire stadium, which had the effect of upholding a lower court ruling that threw out Turner's case in 2005.
"It's a close decision, and it provides some comfort," Sterling said. "But it's also a bit more painful. It's all about counting to four in Nevada."
Sterling had asked the court to adopt a more limited rule, giving juries the opportunity to determine if a foul ball injury that occurs outside the stands should result in compensation for the injured party. Turner was sitting in an area where there are seats with a limited visibility of the game. Sterling said the court majority has now equated sitting in such an area to sitting behind home plate.
"We thought it should be a question for a jury to decide," Sterling said.
Attorney Thomas Dillard Jr., who represents Mandalay, could not be reached for comment on the decision. But in October oral arguments in Las Vegas on the case, Dillard described Turner as an experienced baseball spectator who should have known to pay attention to the game at all times. Dillard also noted that 51s tickets carry a warning about the risk of foul balls. The majority decision was written by Justice Ron Parraguirre, who was joined by Justices Bill Maupin, Jim Hardesty and Nancy Saitta. In adopting the "limited duty," or baseball, rule, Parraguirre said a stadium operator's obligations to safeguard baseball fans is satisfied by sufficient protected seating for those spectators who reasonably might be anticipated to desire protected seats, and when protection is also provided for spectators in the most dangerous parts of the stadium, such as behind home plate.
"Once a stadium owner or operator complies with the rule's requirements by providing sufficient protected seating, the owner or operator has satisfied the legal duty of protection owed to its patrons," Parraguirre said. "Having met this obligation, the stadium owner or operator simply has no remaining duty to protect spectators from foul balls, which are a known, obvious, and unavoidable part of all baseball games."
The record in the case establishes that foul balls occasionally fly into the Beer Garden, some parts of which have an obstructed view of the field, he noted. Chief Justice Mark Gibbons dissented and was joined by Justices Michael Douglas and Michael Cherry. Gibbons supported the adoption of the limited duty rule but only to the stands.
"Because the limited duty rule should not apply outside of the stands, I conclude that the 51s had a general duty to protect Mrs. Turner from injury in the Beer Garden," Gibbons wrote. "Whether the 51s breached that duty by failing to provide a protective screen or barrier is a question of fact for the jury."
Copyright Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1997-2008
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