Two Arbitration Hearings Postponed

The Associated Press reported yesterday that the arbitration hearings for Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitcher Ervin Santana and Tampa Bay Rays infielder Willy Aybar were postponed. I cannot remember a postponement of a hearing in recent years, but the general consensus is that the Angels and Rays are close to a settlement with Santana and Aybar. That leaves 11 players and teams scheduled for hearings next week as salary arbitration will come to an end for 2009.

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New Article: The Truth about Collusion in Baseball

For those interested in the history of baseball collusion and its implications on the game today, here is a link to my newest article -- "Moving Past Collusion in Major League Baseball: Healing Old Wounds and Preventing New Ones."

This article discusses the history of collusion in Baseball, as well as explains how Baseball collusion in the 1980s led to more recent allegations of collusion (A-Rod, Bonds) and other troubling aspects of Baseball's labor-management relationship (for example, drug testing disagreements).

Here are a few highlights from the piece:

(1) Selig's Documented Role in Collusion: Although MLB Commissioner Bud Selig continues to deny any role in collusion, Arbitrator George Nicolau in his Collusion II ruling cited testimony from Philadelphia Phillies president William Giles that Selig -- in the capacity of Milwaukee Brewers owner -- called him to discourage the Phillies' signing of catcher Lance Parrish (p. 619-20).

(2) George is the Good Guy: Although often maligned for other reasons, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was probably Baseball's least culpable owner during the Collusion Era. In Arbitrator Thomas Roberts' Collusion I ruling, he cites an offer Steinbrenner made for catcher Carlton Fisk as the only bona fide free agent offering during the 1985-86 season. (p. 615).

(3) The Smallwood Plan: Major League Baseball continues to criticize Barry Bonds's collusion allegations as being unrealistic and fanciful. However, the idea really can't be that off-the-wall. On September 1, 2006 -- long before Bonds was out of baseball -- Philadelphia Daily News reporter John Smallwood wrote an editorial piece explicitly suggesting that clubs collude against his services (p. 630).

(4) The Solution: Want to keep future allegations of collusion out of Baseball? The answer involves four steps: (i) returning the game's oversight to a neutral, outside commissioner; (ii) separating the role of Baseball CEO from Baseball Commissioner; (iii) allowing union lawyer oversight of Major League Baseball's off-season meetings; and (iv) providing full disclosure to players and fans about past collusion (p. 635-639).

(This article is cross-posted at SportsJudge Blog).

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A Picture Says A Thousand Words

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Diversity and Sports CLE Conference

Next month, Widener Law will be hosting "Diversity and Sports: The History, The Challenges, and The Future." The event is part of the school's Dean’s Leadership Forum On Diversity and will take place on March 16, 2009, at the school's Harrisburg, PA campus.

The brochure for the event can be found here.

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Jon Pessah of ESPN Magazine has an interesting investigatory report on the BALCO investigation in the latest online edition of the magazine (Who's on Trial in the Bonds Case? Not Just Barry). Jon is not only a journalist, but he also teaches sports journalism at Stony Brook University and has a unique perspective.

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Minimalism, Maximalism, and Essentialism

http://unclutterer.com/2009/02/13/workspace-of-the-week-an-unclutterers-office/

I read this post, and I was taken back to the internal debate I have at trying to find the midpoint between maximalism and minimalism. The person in this post clearly has found essentialism. To compare, go here:

http://unclutterer.com/2008/03/14/workspace-of-the-week-all-about-zen/

Maximalism is simply a cluttered desk with everything crammed onto every surface. This would be my desk at home.

Minimalism says less is more. The result is elegant simplicity but a lack of functional ability. This would be the vice of deficiency.

Maximalism says more is more. The result is chaos. You lose functional ability because you have too much stuff. If you have ever dealt with an unruly modern remote control with 200 buttons, you know what I am talking about.

Essentialism runs the midpoint between these two extremes. I give it the name "essentialism" because the ethos behind it is to have what is essential--no more, no less. What makes it difficult to deal with is a question? What is essential?

Music might give a better example. Brian Eno's ambient works would be minimalism. Yes's rock symphonic compositions would be maximalism. AC/DC is essentialism. But I would also say that Pink Floyd is essentialism as well.

Most of my time issues go back to this issue of essentialism. I do a lot of non-essential tasks, and I am bewildered. My time runs out of my hands like fine sand. I am constantly busy, but I achieve so little.

Aristotle was big on the telos or "end." Determine what the end of something is. What is its purpose? What are you trying to achieve?

I find the biggest problem in my life isn't having time but deciding what to do with that time. I have gone from one extreme to the other. I tended towards minimalism for a time but now I am mired in maximalism. I just can't seem to work it out. Woe is me. Balance is a difficult thing.

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Salary Arbitration Update

The Tampa Bay Rays and Willy Aybar are reportedly close to a 2-year deal. According to my hearing dates chart, they need to get this done today prior to their hearing. Here are the dates that I have for hearings next week:

Edwin Encarnacion (Reds) - Tuesday, February 17
Andre Ethier (Dodgers) - Tuesday, February 17
Jeff Francoeur (Braves) - Friday, February 20
Corey Hart (Brewers) - Wednesday, February 18
Conor Jackson (Diamondbacks) - Wednesday, February 18
Kelly Johnson (Braves) - Thursday, February 19
Ryan Ludwick (Cardinals) - Tuesday, February 17
Nate McLouth (Pirates) - Tuesday, February 17
Josh Willingham (Nationals) - Wednesday, February 18

I have not yet located the hearing dates for Mike Jacobs (Royals), Ervin Santana (Angels), or Ryan Zimmerman (Nationals)

The victory by the Rays over Dioner Navarro lifts the Rays hearing record to 4-0. They are the only unbeaten team left in arbitration hearings history. The Nationals now have a record of 3-2 after their loss to Shawn Hill, and the Marlins are 3-4 after losing to Dan Uggla.

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