Ruth & Hornsby: Baseball’s First Holdouts? Feb. 23, 1922 The Sultan of Swat and Rogers Hornsby threatened to sit out for a bigger paycheck before the season. Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis shot back—sign the contracts or land on the ineligible list #BaseballandtheLaw 104

Dog Fight On 2/24/10 a suit was filed in court, When Sluggerrr launched a hotdog as sport At a Royals game it flew in the air — Too much “mustard” on the toss, unfair! “That dog had bite!” the fan declared — Now relish meets rule, judicially paired. #BaseballandtheLaw 586-602

It’s your turn… We’ve been asked if #MLB owners will lock out the #MLBPA following the season on December 1. So, we asked the wise Casey Stengel for help Until he gets back to us, what do you believe? #BaseballandtheLaw #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

Thank you to all our friends! “Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame” - @mcfarland.bsky.social - is still in the top 3 of all Sports Law books!! On sale today on Amazon in both print and Kindle editions

Dog Fight On 2/24/10 a suit was filed in court, When Sluggerrr launched a hotdog as sport At a Royals game it flew in the air — Too much “mustard” on the toss, unfair! “That dog had bite!” the fan declared — Now relish meets rule, judicially paired. #BaseballandtheLaw 586-602

Ruth & Hornsby: Baseball’s First Holdouts? Feb. 23, 1922 The Sultan of Swat and Rogers Hornsby threatened to sit out for a bigger paycheck before the season. Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis shot back—sign the contracts or land on the ineligible list #BaseballandtheLaw 104

Congress had enough, disrobing Landis Questioning if a federal judge could accept outside full-time employment while serving on the bench put Federal Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis fighting to maintain his robes (2/22/1921 Atlanta Journal-Constitution page 1 story) #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

It’s your turn… We’ve been asked if #MLB owners will lock out the #MLBPA following the season on December 1. So, we asked the wise Casey Stengel for help Until he gets back to us, what do you believe? #BaseballandtheLaw #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

Here we go again The 1st Collective Bargaining Agreement between #MLB & #MLBPA was signed 2/19/68 The Agreement included a guaranteed annual player salary of $10K & established formal grievance procedures for labor disputes Will we have a new agreement in time for 2027? #BaseballandtheLaw 656

Thank you to all our friends! “Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame” - @mcfarland.bsky.social - is still in the top 3 of all Sports Law books!! On sale today on Amazon in both print and Kindle editions

Baseball is a child’s game… On 2/18/1944, 15 year-old Joe Nuxhall's parents signed their consent for Joe to pitch for @Reds. 82 years later, he is still the youngest player to appear in a #MLB game #BaseballandtheLaw 618

She Cried… All the Way to the Bank 2/17/1900, Mary Vanderbeck, ex-wife of Tigers owner George Vanderbeck, bought the team at auction for $9.5K when a Michigan court ordered her ex-husband to put his team up for sale for failing to pay her $8K alimony. #BaseballandtheLaw 860-61

It’s Presidents’ Day A baseball tradition dating back to April 14, 1910 that has sitting presidents throw out the first pitch of the season. Can you name the presidents shown in the photograph below? Happy Presidents’ Day! #Baseballandthelaw 259

Let's not pretend this is over the Dodgers and the Kyle Tucker signing. This has been the league's overarching desire for decades. Nothing has changed. Nothing new has spurred this or guaranteed this other than management's unwillingness to accept reality.

Will history repeat itself in 2027? In 1990 the owners locked out the players (2/15–3/18) over salary arbitration and the owners’ demand that baseball, like other professional sports leagues, adopt a salary cap (no regular season games were missed). #BaseballandtheLaw 682

The first-ever lockout of the #MLBPA by #MLB club owners was in its 6th day of an 18-day shutdown on 2/13/73 The central issue? Salary arbitration. The dispute ended when owners agreed to arbitration for players with 2 years of service time. #BaseballandtheLaw 681

THIRD TIME WAS THE HARM On 2/12/2016 Jenrry Mejia of the Mets became the first MLB player to receive a lifetime ban from #MLB for 3 positive tests for performance-enhancing substances. The 3rd test was positive for a steroid that’s used in horse racing. #BaseballandtheLaw 154-55

Probably a niche read, but I’m thoroughly enjoying this offering from @baseballandlaw.bsky.social. Unfortunately, most of these HOFers are seldom discussed today. So far, my favorite essay has been about James Henry “Jim” O’Rourke (1850-1919). I think he and I would have gotten along just fine.

Let there be...more nights The City of Chicago designated Wrigley Field as a landmark on February 11, 2004, adopting the prepared Landmark Designation Report and limiting future alterations to Wrigley Field. It also paved the way for more night games. #BaseballandtheLaw 864

It happens every spring…

Well baseball is superior so Gallup THIS, football fans

It’s #SuperBowlSunday So let's take a look back to 1990, with a George Carlin classic: Baseball v Football. …and for those keeping score, pitchers and catchers start reporting this week #BaseballandtheLaw 271-72 Baseball vs Football - YouTube youtu.be/aIkqNiBASfI

It's a gamble.. MLB relaxed team gambling ad rules in 1985. The public noticed in '00 when the Padres took $1.5M to have their season sponsored by a local casino tribe. See: Sports Betting: Law & Policy (Paul M Anderson et al. eds. 2011) #BaseballandtheLaw 935-36

Super Bowl note When Gallup asked Americans to name their favorite spectator sport in 1937, 34% named baseball & 23% football. Baseball continued to rank 1st before football gained the top spot in '72. Since '95 baseball & basketball have vied for 2nd place #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame 180-81

Be sure to check out @depaullaw.bsky.social recent posting of Law School Dean and Professor Geoffrey Rapp's Law Library Faculty Publications Display here: libguides.depaul.edu/c.php?g=1506... He is the author of Chapter 3. James Henry "Jim" O'Rourke, #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

When a pregame pitch ends a career, who’s responsible? A college player’s injury led to a lawsuit against a minor-leaguer and an MLB club—settled on February 5, 2002. ⚾️⚖️ Sports law matters. #BaseballandtheLaw

Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame is still in the top 10! Thanks for your support Don't yet have your copy? It's on-sale at McFarland Publishing. Use code: SAVE26 for a 20% discount or purchase your copy at Amazon. Amazon also has a Kindle edition. mcfarlandbooks.com/product/atto...

The depth of the research for these essays—showcased in the copious notes at the end of each chapter—is one of the things I thoroughly enjoy about this book. Phenomenal job, @baseballandlaw.bsky.social!

Current #nonfiction reads

Who was MLB's first Black player? Not Jackie Robinson in 1947, not Moses Fleetwood Walker and his brother Weldy in 1884 … but William Edward White, in 1879. He passed for white for much of his life but, uniquely among MLB players, he was born a slave. ourgame.mlblogs.com/pioneers-wil...

Helping the Other Team National Assn of Professional BB Leagues gave minor league catcher Angel Rodriguez an indefinite suspension on 2/3/1982 for tipping off opposing Latin American batters in Spanish of the next pitch, an allegation Rodriguez denied #BaseballandtheLaw Chp 2

On 2/2/1921, Rep. Benjamin F. Welty (D-OH) called for a Congressional probe of Judge/Commissioner Landis. U.S. AG A. Mitchell Palmer said Landis was breaking no law in holding two posts. Welty then introduced a bill banning judges from paid nonjudicial work. #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame 13-14

#MLB Approves Sale of Marlins... February 1, 2002 -- Baseball executives confidently rearranged the deck chairs and declared victory. Jeffrey Loria traded the Expos for the Marlins. John Henry skipped off to buy the Red Sox and MLB promised S. Florida stability & prosperity. #BaseballandtheLaw

It's @sabrbbcards.bsky.social (SABR) Day! Lots of great programs being held in person and via Zoom today We will be making a Zoom appearance today at 3 pm Eastern time (noon Pacific) with the Maddux Brothers - Las Vegas Chapter. Hope you will stop by. #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

Gavin, On behalf of the 10 co-authors of "Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame" we thank you for your kind words. Lou

Fraudulent election...hmm 1/30/58 #MLB Commissioner Ford Frick announced that because fans had stuffed the ballot boxes for the 1957 All-Star Game, fans would no longer be given votes in selecting players for the Mid-Summer Classic #BaseballandtheLaw 558

Thank you! Hope you enjoy it!

Judge ruled against the men in blue, no professional courtesy given... A federal judge ruled #MLB didn’t have to arbitrate disciplining the MLBUA union boss. Read: Office of the Commissioner of Baseball v. World Umpires Ass'n courtlistener.com/opinion/2440... #BaseballAndTheLaw 237-42

@1988toppspodcast.bsky.social you guys might find this one from @baseballandlaw.bsky.social interesting

Before Marvin Miller... Judge Robert Cannon was named the full-time executive director by the MLBPA board on 1/27/66 He was hand picked by #MLB owners. His tenure didn't last long and soon thereafter Miller was hired away from the United Steelworkers to head the MLBPA. #BaseballandtheLaw 668-70

Muncie Ministers Mulled Moral Mandate (1/26/1909)— Mounting opposition to making Sunday baseball mainstream, while many fans mobilized to mute the mandate and make the statute meaningless. ⚾⚖️ #BaseballandtheLaw 5-6

Battle of the Sexes, Title IX Edition⚖️ January 1998: Twin sisters sued after discovering their school’s baseball field had lights, bathrooms, & scoreboards—while softball had none. Federal court steps in. Equal playing fields aren’t optional @IWBC4Me.bsky.social #BaseballandtheLaw 958-67

Early Baseball Labor Law ⚾⚖️ On 1/24/1912, Baseball’s “supreme court” ruled injured players could not collect salary while incapacitated, prompting warnings that general employer-liability law would soon collide with baseball’s internal rules. #BaseballandtheLaw 799

Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis announced on January 23, 1940 that he was cracking down on illegal baseball farm systems, exposing fake transfers and coverups, freeing players, threatening fines and suspensions to enforce transparent, fair dealings. #AttorneysintheBaseballHallofFame

“Ball players need to be governed with a strong hand.” Baseball law is nothing new. On January 22, 1890, the Wichita Daily Eagle criticized the National Agreement, observing that “many of its provisions…are obnoxious to fair-minded people.” #BaseballandtheLaw 18–24

The Magna Carta of baseball is about to go on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame www.sportscollectorsdaily.com/groundbreaki...

“The most important piece of litigation ever to affect baseball.” — Buffalo Enquirer On 1/20/1915, the Federal Baseball League filed suit, challenging MLB’s National Agreement as an antitrust violation. #BaseballandtheLaw 50–53

Boston catcher Marty Bergen killed his family and committed suicide in Brookfield, Mass. on 1/19/1900 Do you know a friend or family member in need of mental health assistance? Please Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (24/7): 988 ⬇️⬇️ #BaseballandtheLaw 784-5

Two Leagues, Two Visions At the 1/16/1919 winter meetings, the N.L. voted 6–2 for a one-man commission led by a neutral chair. The A. L. also voted 6–2—but to keep the existing commission. The compromise: begin a search for a new chairman, with August Herrmann staying on #BaseballandtheLaw 100