http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/news/041023verlander.html
A little more than a week after saying negiotations were over the Tigers signed Justin Verlander, the #2 pick in the draft.

COMN.

A song in honour of Mr. Moffatt:

Can’t be late
I leave in plenty of time
Shakin’ hands with the clock
I can’t stop
I’m on a roll and I’m ready to rock oh,

I know all of you are on the edge of your seats waiting for a decision on what name I will use going forward! I got a lot of good suggestions last week and I even did a little anogram research of my own (it turns out an anogram of my last name is 'Comrade', which I thought was cool).

I am going to drop my current Jays1fan1 name, however, I've decided against an anogram, or any of the names that I suggested in last weeks post. Instead I'm going to be forever know as...'DeMarco'!!!!!!

Thanks for letting me wast your time again.

Verlander and his agent caved quicker than George Bush in a slap-fight.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1098568216038&call_pageid=969907739730&col=970081600908&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes
Hey guys,

Here is a great story by Garth Woolsey of the Star on Baseball not mentioning John Cerutti passing while having a moment of silence before a NLCS game as ordered by Commissioner for Life Mr. Bud Selig for Ken Caminiti.

COMN for story

Good Morning fellow baseball fanatics.

This is what happens when you go researching Japanese Baseball at 2 am and add in some baseball blogging fictional satire staring Craig B , Jobu and Moffatt. LMAO ( WARNING:DO NOT DRINK COFFEE WHILE READING ).

Posted on the Japanese Baseball Fantasy league thread.

#244446 Posted 10/25/2004 03:23 AM by Jeff Geauvreau:

Well here it is 1.53 am Central time Monday morning and I am doing some online studying of the Japanese Baseball League to get a head start on you guys in the Japanese Baseball Fantasy League.

Well what have I learned so far.

1)I must download Japanese language plug-in for Windows XP.

2)There is a Central and a Pacific league( I am ahead of the curve now watch out guys).

3) I did some intricate studies on how many calls I should place to Japan monthly to some Japanese friends of mine and potential clients.

4) Can I squeeze a business trip to Japan into my budget and what will my reasoning be.

5)I find some web links for live web streaming for some Japanese Baseball league teams. This is good stuff but should I tell Craig Burley.

6) Imagine this ,Mr. Burley you 9 o'clock is here.

Craig B:Tell them I am delayed due to a critical matter for another 15 minutes.

Secretary: Yes Sir

Craig B:(talking into the phone) Yes so what do I owe you at Japanese translation service for translating the game live for me.

JTS: $175 a hour for 2 hours and 14 minutes ,Sir.

Craig B: What the /$*$ do you think you are a /*^*&*$ lawyer.

JTS: No sir but by the way our bill is in American funds.

Craig B: Okay , puts down phone. Damn Jeff for giving me the web stream links to these games.

7) Post some of the Japanese baseball streaming sites for Craig Burley to get him thinking.

COMN for one of JBL TEAMS web streaming links

8) Tokyo time is 13 hours ahead of eastern time and 14 hours ahead of central time.

9) Battersbox road trip ( ok you lawyers a plane road trip)to Japan.

Jobu and Moffat go to Japan!!!!!

SUB PLOT: Jobu meets, romances and marries after one night Japan's 19 year old Crown Princess in a hush hush secret ceremony.

Jobu is arrested at the airport on numerous charges related to the secret wedding while the couple is leaving the country.

Craig Burley , Jordan , Smirnoff and 77 other Battersbox posters who are lawyers catch the next plane to Japan to rescue Jobu from his ill advised quickie marriage to Japan Royal Princess.

Meanwhile Moffat has been arguing economics in Karaoke bar in Tokyo for 14 hours straight and misses the baseball game he flew thousands of miles to see. (Will this help his Nobel Prize hopes for the future? Stay tuned. )

Moffat is miffed at Jobu for not being invited to the secret wedding.

As the Baseball blog world turns...

To be continued.......

You are returned back to your normal baseball blogging.

Verlander and his agent caved quicker than George Bush in a slap-fight.

Sounded like Daddy got involved in this one.

I love what Detroit did to Verlander. I hope the other five teams that haven't signed their first round draftee's continue to take a stand as well. I just can't justify the kind of money some of these guys are asking, and sometimes getting.

I've been thinking about creating a Blue Jays archive of some sort, essentially a history of the franchise and its players. Since this archive will be publically available, and since anyone who has something interesting to say should have input, Wikipedia came to mind.

For those that haven't seen Wikipedia, there's a list of FAQs to describe the project.

Currently, the Blue Jays pages have the following:
Wikipedia: Toronto Blue Jays
Wikipedia: Toronto Blue Jays Players

There are various links from those pages to players, stats etc.

I think it'd be great to get a complete list of players with biographies, making appropriate links to other sites (eg - baseball-reference.com for stats) and work from there. I'm sure that collectively we have enough background on the Jays, past and present, to make this a complete resource.

BTW: I think adding some anecdotal stories would add some flavour to the biographies (eg - didn't Jesse Barfield have Bible readings in the clubhouse?; George Bell's purple butt etc)

Anybody with me?

By the way, anyone that helps out with Wikipedia can spend some time with Carlos Delgado after all that hard work.

http://www.makaimedia.com/games/game_frame.aspx?gid=37
Here's a distraction for those of you who find the Mr. Sub Hat Shuffle a little too easy...

beware, I'm addicted already....

Personal best so far: 20

Sorry, forgot to say COMN.... (but not this post, the one above this one)

Re: the draft.

I think Major League Baseball should follow the NHL and the NBA and institute a cap on the amount draft choices can earn. I realize that it's not really fair for the player's union to negotiate away the rights of future members, but having players hold out, or declare before the draft that they'll only sign for X dollars, and then be passed up until a team that can afford them comes along is against the nature of the draft, which is to redistribute talent.

Anyone agree/disagree?

Here's a distraction for those of you who find the Mr. Sub Hat Shuffle a little too easy...

Me Grimlock is a two-time, TWO-TIME Mr. Sub Hat Shuffle Champion. What irks me Grimlock are those moochers in the row behind. Back off! Get your own sandwich!

Personal best so far: 20

I just got 26.
I guess I know what I'll be doing for the rest of the day. natedawg8 is going down!

Can’t be late
I leave in plenty of time
Shakin’ hands with the clock
I can’t stop
I’m on a roll and I’m ready to rock oh,

The Red Sox are in a hurry to get things done and maybe head to Alabama for the off-season but I think this series is heading back to Boston for Game 6 and who knows if Curt Schilling is going to be able to go again in this series.

Click here for story

I just got 26 as well, i thought i was gonna never stop, stupid eyes!

The Red Sox are in a hurry to get things done and maybe head to Alabama for the off-season

Nicely done. I'd award you points for that, but unfortunately The Cabal keeps them locked up and out of the reach of non-Cabalers like me.

http://bluejays.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/tor/news/tor_news.jsp?ymd=20041024&content_id=904345&vkey=news_tor&fext=.jsp
Spencer Fordin gives his perspective on the pitching situation for the Blue Jays including opinions on Chacin, League, Arnold, Lopez and Kershner.

COMN for the link.

Thanks for making your own Roundup guys. I was told my lovely wifely person this morning that I had exactly 7 minutes to shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, etc. before I drove her to her meeting (we're a one car family and I needed the car for the day). So there wasn't any time for rounding things up. :)

Here's an article I was going to link but didn't get the chance: "A Fall Classic for the Greatest Canadian" by Jim Turner:

For Canadians, the 2004 Series offers something unprecedented, the chance for the country's best player to shine in the sport's brightest spotlight. 203 Canadians have appeared in the major leagues, the majority of them for brief stints, but there have been several Canadians who have been quality regulars and even All-Stars. The World Series has generally eluded them. Ferguson Jenkins, Canada's only Hall of Famer, starred for 19 seasons, winning 284 games and Canada's first Cy Young Award. He never got even a taste of the post season. Jeff Heath, Canada's best position player before Walker, a slugging outfielder for the Cleveland Indians, belted 194 home runs, but never had a chance to hit one in the post-season. Other solid players like Terry Puhl, Pete Ward, Kirk McCaskill and Russ Ford were similarly denied October glory.

Enjoy!

A few good nuggets in the Fordin Mailbag, including:

McGowan's battling his way back from elbow surgery. He had been Toronto's top pitching prospect before the operation, but McGowan may not be at full strength for the entire season. The Jays think he may be ready to pitch by May, but they're not counting on his best fastball until August or later.

That seems more optimistic than I remember hearing previously.

I don't think the time-line for McGowan has changed, but I could be wrong?

Also, it amazes me the number of pitchers that need Tommy John surgery these days. Especially when you consider the extra care they take limiting pitchers workloads tody. If this was pre-TJ surgery, would all of these pitchers careers be finished? Was there this many pitchers who's careers cut short or are pitchers resorting to this surgery because it is available, even though they don't necesarily need it?

Verlander and his agent caved quicker than George Bush in a slap-fight.

If a guaranteed $4.5 to $5.6 million over five years with $3.12 million up front can be considered caving for a guy with spotty mechanics who hasn't thrown a single pro pitch.

Clearly the first demands whether they were put forth by agent or player were completely out of the realm of reason. I still don't like the fact that the Tigers and other organizations are walking around giving guaranteed multiyear deals to amateur players.

With this becoming increasingly common, a poor team might only draft the so called "best talent" if they're willing to commit major league dollars over multiple years. It just doesn't make sense. The rules should be one signing bonus and then a standard minor league pay scales.

Didn't Dickie Scott in his recent BB interview state that McGowan might even be ready by April. He's apparently started doing some throwing.

From Fordin:

League's performance record shows success as a starter, and his three-pitch arsenal suggests he may develop into one over time. For now, though, he's far more likely to get the ball in the eighth inning and go from there. If the Jays have League on the roster and Chacin in Triple-A when they break Spring Training, they're making the most of the developmental process.

If he's shown success as a starter with three pitches then I'm not sure how it's the best thing for him to be a two pitch reliever in the big leagues. It's one thing to take Bush who had success as a reliever and make him a full-time starter. It's another to take League who is already a successful starter and make him a reliever.

Yeah Brandon does have very good stuff but if everyone with good stuff was moved to the pen then there would be no hard throwing starters in the big leagues. His slider and change need tightening too so how is he going to learn those pitches in short stints when he's throwing 90% fastballs?

I don't have a problem with players trying to get as much as they can upfront - once they sign they could be stuck with the same organization for 10 years and it might be the only time they get paid in their career.

Where it becomes tricky is that one team might pass on a player because of a bonus demand, but another team might take that player because they can afford to. But how is that different from the way things are now? There's only a handful of teams that'll be able to sign Beltran for example.

As it is now the vast majority of players are signing for 'slot money' which might as well be a cap. There's only roughly 10-15 players that got significantly more than what their draft position would suggest - less than 1%.

As it is now the vast majority of players are signing for 'slot money' which might as well be a cap.

It should be a cap. These players are not part of the MLBPA at the time they sign. If you want equal opportunity for poorer teams to build their best team possible, amateur player signings need to be capped.

There's only roughly 10-15 players that got significantly more than what their draft position would suggest - less than 1%.

But what percentage of the best available players is that? Because the first round is where the vast majority of noteable major league players develop from.

We're not all that concerned about players who sign later in the draft anyway. None of those guys are getting the type of money over multiple years like Verlander. Verlander is FAR from a can't miss player and if he can command that just because he's a #2 slot player then it's actually a lot more risky dollar-wise for a team to have to pick very high in the draft. There aren't many players who will give you return on investment for that amount of money.

If you want equal opportunity for poorer teams to build their best team possible, amateur player signings need to be capped.

Here! Here! The smaller market teams get screwed enough. The whole point of the draft is to help struggling teams find and develop some marquee (and affordable) players.

The bottom line is that the Blue Jays HAVE to win at LEAST 86 games next year to prove that they are moving forward. No one has been a bigger backer of JP for almost 4 years, but I must say that the heat is really on him now. It is time to turn the corner and get off to that 15-5 start that this team needs to have, in order to compete in September for a playoff spot. Why not us, and why not now? I cannot accept people who don't believe that these guys can do it. Because they can. They have enough talent, and they have a bright GM who can get the job done. They just have to believe they can, and get off to a good start. No excuses, just go out and do it.

Here's something I don't understand. EME. He's to my mind an obvious first round talent. Probably the best hitter in the draft, and not entirely without defensive possibility. The Giants have voluntarily forgone their first round pick, but EME falls to them in the third round. Why did this happen? If it's money, why don't the Yankees draft him? Maybe it's just a difference of opinion about his ability.

What is truly a free market is the signings of Latin American players. Out of curiosity I've counted the number of signings since JP's start, essentially from the 2002-2003 calendar years as culled from the Jays' guidebook. During that period the Jays have signed 15 Venezuelans and 11 Dominicans. Most of those players still play in the Dominican Summer League. The most prominent graduate to NA was P Edward Rodroguez of Pulaski. The typical age of the prospects is 18, but there was a signing of an 16 yr old OF and a 17 yr old IF in 2003.

There's no doubt that this team is talented. The question is, how talented are they in relation to the other teams in their division and in their first month schedule. Saying they have to get off to a 15-5 start with a hard schedule on hand is pretty drastic.

Also, if they're doing the best thing for the young players involved then Chacin and League should be AAA starters to begin the year, as should Quiroz. League could provide a tremendous boost to the pen but let's not get too excited over 3 relief appearances totaling 4.2 big league innings.

That said, whether or not they let League develop at AAA, they still have enough talent to finish above .500 next year. Halladay, Lilly, Batista, and Bush is a decent if not spectacular rotation. Delgado's money if well spent should give them significant return.

I don't recall this being posted, so here are the organizational minor league standings.

Verlander is FAR from a can't miss player and if he can command that just because he's a #2 slot player then it's actually a lot more risky dollar-wise for a team to have to pick very high in the draft. There aren't many players who will give you return on investment for that amount of money.

You don't want the risk, don't take him. It's that simple. It's not like the players are allocated to teams.

There's very, very few exceptions to slot money. Verlander is the only one in round 1 to sign more than slot money so far. At most there will be 5 this year.

(and really if you want to argue unfairness it's the late round players getting first round money that's more unfair)

If you want equal opportunity for poorer teams to build their best team possible, amateur player signings need to be capped.

Does baseball want equal opportunity?

Should a team's scouting budget be capped to keep things equal?

Why should the draft be different than anything else in baseball? Teams with an economic edge have an advantage. If you want a cap on the draft why not cap everything? Just give each team $100 million and tell them to figure out what to do with it.

R Billie.

You hit it right on the head my friend. We should not get excited over League's 4 appearances. He's probably going to be an above average to spectacular relief pitcher, but he should start in Syracuse. Chacin along the same path. There's a big difference between the Baltimore Orioles in Apr May Jun than in the last 2 weeks of September. Sure he threw a gem against the Yankees, which was impressive, but I think he would benefit more from 5 starts in Syracuse just to get a bit of a feel for the first part of the season.
I would most definitley be in favour of bringing him up at least before the start of May. I am convinced that a rotation of Halladay, Lilly, Bush, and 2 others can get the job done. If this team hits the way it can, this team can win. There are no excuses. Lets see Chacin and League give this team a shot in the arm when inevitable problems arise with the pitching in '05.

Here's something I don't understand. EME. He's to my mind an obvious first round talent. Probably the best hitter in the draft, and not entirely without defensive possibility. The Giants have voluntarily forgone their first round pick, but EME falls to them in the third round. Why did this happen? If it's money, why don't the Yankees draft him? Maybe it's just a difference of opinion about his ability.

I think it was difference of opinion on his ability (it was the 2nd round too). His bonus was in line with everyone taken around him.

The purpose of the draft is to redistribute talent in a somewhat 'fair' process, where the poorest teams get the best players. That's not the purpose of Free Agency, or any other aspects of MLB, that's why the draft should be capped. Mark Prior should be a Twin, Drew and Weaver should be Tigers and Padres and already signed (well, presuming they fit the needs of those teams).

The lack of equality of other things in baseball really doesn't affect the draft. If you want to argue that things aren't fair in other aspects that's a seperate issue.

During Game 1, Joe Buck remarked that David Ortiz, at 28 yrs old, is the third youngest player on the team. Only seldom-used Kevin Youkilis, and Brosnon Arroyo are younger. That is one darn old team. But they are almost all proven. The young Jays are not as proven, so it's hard to know what to expect from them, making projecting a 86-win season difficult.

Boston's average age is 32. The Jays is 28. And that 28 should go down this offseason, with Berg (34), Delgado (32), either Zaun (33) or Myers (38), and Valerio De Los Santos (32) all gone. A free agent or three I would guess would be 30+, but the Jays are a young team any way you look at it.

So it's not quite put-up-or-shut-up time for this team. I know it's not what everyone wants to hear, but it's tough to win with a young team. The other WS team, the Cards avg age is 30.8 yrs.

I believe the Pirates are MLB's youngest team at only 26.5 yrs (Jason Kendall, at all of 30, is oldest hitter on the team-Jose Mesa's 38 years should figure to be gone soon too). Cleveland and Montreal are the only other two under 27. The Yanks are 34 years old...

The purpose of the draft is to redistribute talent in a somewhat 'fair' process, where the poorest teams get the best players.

Right. This was my point. If risk based on signing demands is going to be a major consideration then why bother with ordering the draft to "favour" teams that finished with poorer records.

I don't hold the amateur player draft to have the same purpose as major league free agency. I want to know that if my team finishes last overall and has an A-Rod type player available that they can afford to sign him. Not let him go to another team who can afford to pay him $10 million on a multiyear major league contract.

Major league payroll and scouting payroll are two different issues. You don't need a highly paid scouting staff to guess that Justin Upton will probably be the first overall draft pick. You do need a lot of money to sign him and what's to prevent him from holding out for ridiculous money if you're the team that picks him? Are you supposed to pick someone more affordable and let a franchise quality player go to another team?

I just got 31 on that game. Thanks for the distraction!

I think the draft thing is interesting. If you are a free enterprise person (I am) then you feel the draft is something that should be removed and let the teams sign whoever they find, whenever they find them, for whatever the market forces dictate.

If you feel there is a need for forced competitive balance then a draft, a cap on salaries (both draft and otherwise) and 100% revenue sharing should be your goal. Heck, in truth there should be a random redistribution of players each season if you want true parity but then it would be too much 'cheering for laundry' and too little 'cheering for the local team'.

Before the draft the Yankees dominated like no one before or since as they could just outspend everyone on the prospects and not worry about anything else (once signed the player was yours forever then). Today that wouldn't be the case as the Yankees would spend (as they do now) primarily on proven talent with little attention to the amatuer ranks as it wouldn't be worth the investment in time or resources, at least at first. Others could concentrate on certain areas (ala the Jays with the Dominican back in the 80's) and gain a pile of players for their system. More long term contracts would occur to ensure the player sticks. It would be quite different from now but I don't see why it would be _have_ to be less competitive.

On the other hand, the bad teams could get extremely bad as they would not get the automatic good players they get now just by following the MLB Scouting Bureau's listing when drafting, thus leading to a potential of sub-300 winning percentage teams appearing again (outside of Detroit). Although imo that is fun (when it isn't your team) as extremely bad teams can be almost as entertaining as extremely good teams :)

So, if you can live with teams being as bad as they want to be (via bad management) then full 100% free agency (from start to end) would be the best imo.

If you feel there is a need for forced competitive balance then a draft, a cap on salaries (both draft and otherwise) and 100% revenue sharing should be your goal. Heck, in truth there should be a random redistribution of players each season

Or maybe you're like most sane people and believe in a balance of some kind. I actually like the current system (with some tinkering perhaps). Owner's can spend whatever they want, the draft helps to redistribute talent, player movement is somewhat curtailed, young players salaries are mostly kept in check (aside from draft bonuses), and you still have Latin America and Asia as "free markets" for signing purposes.

The only problem with that, Ryan, is that the players from poorer countries, such as the DR, are signed for far less than they deserve. Pujols got 10k for his first contract, while preforming well in high school and college can net an american player millions.

Oh, and to prevent any head-scratching (who the hell is this guy, etc) this is my first time posting. I figure if i check the boards tens of times a day i should get in on the action!

Just got home now and Jeff, you are a funny funny man. I've always wanted to be the prince of Japan come to think of it. I'd probably get all kinds of good sushi.

Mark Prior should be a Twin

He'd still be a Cub. The Twins could not resist Mauer.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-sp.vecsey25oct25,1,926968.column?coll=bal-sports-baseball
Weird article in the Baltimore Sun...some highlights:

Even factoring in the sour grapes, word out of New York is that some Yankees players wouldn't put it past Schilling to dab his sock with red magic marker, or apply generous amounts of Mercurochrome - anything to amplify the Red Sox's amazing postseason run and, of course, to hoist his stature.

So Schilling bombed out of Game 1 just so he could save the Red Sox in Game 6...brilliant!

COMN for article, I had to register though. bselig, bselig didn't work.

Not to sound bitter, I actually wouldn't mind a Red Sox win, but can we stop acting like the guy is pitching with a collapsed lung? His ankle hurts! Hockey players skate on broken legs, football players probably do stuff we don't even want to fathom, and they don't say a word. And here's Curt holding press conferences for himself, and the media acting like he's Roy Hobbs. Enough already.

PS. NFH has the best collection of movies....ever. And you can include video stores.

Anyone know of a good article about what one could expect a replacement level team to do in terms of records? Is is slightly better than the 2003 Detroit Tigers?

NFH Jobu?

Named For Hank. One of the roster members and also the creator of the ALL MIGHTY CHEER CLUB!!

What time does Mr. Wilner start tonight or did I already miss him completely?

What time does Mr. Wilner start tonight or did I already miss him completely?

No game tonight, therefore no Mr. Wilner.

Ahhhh damnit. Why can't he just have a show where he talks to me for an hour. I'd listen to that.

Monday Night Football is on the Fan right now, Jobu. You know how great football is on the radio...not.

Hey, just look Wilner up in the phonebook and call him, talk Jays all night. :)

Hey, just look Wilner up in the phonebook and call him, talk Jays all night. :)

I wouldn't call him at (905) 405-0288 if I were you. He's probably a very busy man.

I wouldn't call him at (905) 405-0288 if I were you. He's probably a very busy man.

I doubt that you'll find Wilner at the headquarters of the Baking Association of Canada, but what do I know? Maybe the man loves his pies.

R Billie, I think I'm agreeing with you.

He'd still be a Cub. The Twins could not resist Mauer.

I highly doubt that. That's what they said when they passed up Mauer, so that they'd have a reason for it. If signability's not a concern then no team passes up Prior.

I dont why that made me laugh so much, it's such an old joke, but it did. Well played Mo' Phat.

Anyone know where I can find VORP in an excel friendly format? I've decided I should probably take a look at whether or not Delgado makes sense...

Come to think of it, maybe BJADPPGS really stands for "Blue Jay a Day Pre-Pie Gorging Show" . . . I hear that that Dave Berg can pack away his peach pie.

I doubt that you'll find Wilner at the headquarters of the Baking Association of Canada, but what do I know? Maybe the man loves his pies.

I was looking for the most absurd number I could find.

It was original the number for a mental hospital, but I thought that would be in incredibly poor taste, plus some people might actually call the number, and I wouldn't want to bug them.

The Canadian Baking Association works much better, IMO. :)

Now see, I was originally going to say that Mike Wilner could really be reached at (416) 978-4884 . That makes sense.

But Google, with its tentacles spreading across the globe, has found his real number. To call him to express your concerns about his show, call him at (480) 592-0374. Now, he make act confused, but that's just because his medication's run out.

To call him to express your concerns about his show, call him at (480) 592-0374.

Wow. Mike Wilner is a little older and heavier than I remember him being when I met him this summer.

http://www.google.ca/search?sa=X&oi=fwp&pb=f&q=(480)+592-0374
COMN

That's a BITCH of a commute. He really is a 5 tool host.

http://jazzworld.com/spikewilner/
Wilner also has a lucritive side gig (COMN)

I must say, I never would've guessed that "Spike" would be his nickname . . .

Wow.. Mike Wilner looks a little like Greg Brady (a.k.a. Barry Williams).

Wilner deserves a cool nickname like "Spike" or "The Yellow Dart"

All of a sudden Weiner Milk's not cool?

Sie fürchten Tom Arnold

Brennan, welcome aboard (literally). First time post, and you rapped a solid single to left. Just be careful, your post had faint economic overtones, so Moffatt could order the hidden-ban trick.

So if hockey starts tomorrow, could Bertuzzi play or does he still have time to serve?

If hockey started tommorow (I wish, if only to stop the insane "Coin League" and "X-Box league" in the Sun and the Star), he wouldn't be able to play, because he was suspended indefinately. Bettman (or the disciplinary board) would have to review the case, then decide if he could come back or not. I'd guess that they wouldn't allow him to play until his trial concludes.

Wow, didn't know the NHL had brain to actualy come down on him that strictly. Has baseball ever had a significant uber-suspension like that? Not for gambling, or drugs...just on the field actions.

The time that springs to mind is Ty Cobb. In 1912, Cobb attacked a heckler in the stands. He was suspended indefinately, but his teammates (who didn't like him) went on strike. Replacement players were brought in, and threats were made against the striking players. Cobb told them to start playing again, and in the end he was only suspended for 10 games.

I looked it up in more detail, there's only two players that's banned from baseball that wasn't really connected to gambling or drugs. Phil Douglas was banned for writing "a letter offering to desert the Giants, if given money, so that he would not have to help John McGraw win the pennant (he was mad at McGraw for chewing him out)" He lead the league in ERA at the time. Also, Benny Kauff was "banned after being charged in New York with auto theft and receiving stolen property." in the 20's. I'm not sure what the circumstances were there.

I'm not really aware of any other major suspensions, at least not recent ones.

Still, those are pretty interesting. Probably makes for a good read if someone hobbles a book together.

There were a lot of bans that were semi related to gambling. Dickie Kerr was banned for a year for facing a couple of his former Black Sox teammates in an off-season semi-pro game in the mid 20's.

Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays were banned from holding jobs in baseball as they were working as casino greeters. This was well after both had retired as players. Sometime in the mid 80's, perhaps?

What exactly IS a casino greeter? I've heard it before but I never knew (the only ones I go to is Rama and have you seen that place?). Do they just wander around the place and wait for people to come up and ask them to sign stuff? Like that big guy from Mars Attacks?

Sort of. A guy like Mantle would go meet and greet the really big stake gamblers, play in charity golf tournaments as a representive of the casino. That kind of thing.

Oh alrighty then. Guess that's a little more dignified than just working the floor.

It might just be the Crown Royal talking, but this page (COMN) is the funniest thing I've ever, ever seen.

http://www.rinkworks.com/said/ads.shtml
It was certainly the Crown Royal that hit the Post Comment button without putting the citation into the homepage field. Now COMN.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/news/041025kubel.html
Ouch, Jason Kubel collided with a teammate during an AFL game and sufferes severe ligament damage. He could miss all of 2005. (COMN)Too bad, I thought he could have saved Gleeman from J.Jones.

http://www.rogers.com/english/investorrelations/newsreleases/index.html
Rogers has broken out financial results for the Jays in its latest earnings report. COMN

Awesome work finding the link! It's in today's Roundup.