Of course, this rant is useless and fairly ridiculous. Why wouldn't the small cabal of antitrust-immune wealth hire an advocate for them? They didn't get to where they are through foolish notions like "for the good of the game", Angelos included. Why shouldn't they protect their interests?
This notion of the commissioner as tireless protector of the national treasure against all threats, foreign and domestic, is fanciful today and apocryphal in history. Not even Kenesaw Mountain Landis, brought in to create the independent commissioner and save baseball from its scandal-ridden self (back when scandals were really scandalous), could claim to be concerned only about the best interest of baseball when he fought the Negro's entry into Major League Baseball until he drew his last.
Unfortunately, one of the people that best fit the fanciful job description above was Doug Pappas. That was not likely to happen while he was with us and certainly won't happen now. No one at Major League Baseball is accepting applications for anyone not named 'Selig', either. (Wendy, sit down.)
Therefore, it's up to all of us to push baseball to continue pushing Selig to do well by the sport. You're tired of Henry Waxman and Bud Selig dancing up and down the aisles of Congress (with George Mitchell as DJ) to no good end? Call your Congressman and tell them to get back to work. You don't like the notion of spending hundreds of millions in tax dollars to enrich a few people and depress an entire area of the city you love? Tell the mayor you'll vote the whole lot of 'em out.
And if Selig is happy to let your city's team quietly collect the revenue sharing cash without improving your team in the slightest (like he did for a long time with his own team before selling), take your wallet and go home. Then maybe you'll get the attention of the Owner's Tool.
Article comments
1 - The Haze
Bob Costas for commissioner. Selig sucks. He should be indicted right next to all the steroid boys. He was a crap owner and loathsome commish.
2 - alessandro
While I love it that sports fans are reminded that Montreal was fed a raw deal, I must also take the side that it wasn't all Selig's fault. Our business community and leaders were a bunch of squabbling incompetent boobs. That didn't help. And our fans bailed - plain and simple. Plenty of blame to go around.