Bud Selig Will Be the Death of Us

I am sure of it.

Since 1992 baseball has had a disease, not immediately fatal, nor immediately disfiguring, but a sort of quiet slowly destructive disease. Something that if not treated will kill you, kinda like syphilis. This particular strain of disease goes by the name Allan Huber Selig, Bud Selig to you and me.

Some say Bud has revived baseball, brought it back to national prominence. Revenue is up, attendance is up, and even TV viewership is rising slowly. Some have called him the greatest baseball commissioner of all time, I consider I him the festering boil on the forehead of my beloved national pastime.

In 2012 Selig's contract with the MLB expires and he says he will retire, and I will wish him a good riddance.

I think I just miss the Commissioners of old.

Fay Vincent had run movie studios and was a vice president at Coca Cola.

Bart Giamatti was the President of Yale and father of Paul Giamatti.

Peter Uberroth basically ran the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles and was named Times Man of Year that same year.

Bowie Kuhn was actually named Bowie, his given first name was Bowie. Badass. Not to mention he was 6'4" and 240 pounds and went to Princeton.

William "Spike" Eckert was a bit of a dud but not a disaster of Seligian proportions. He became commissioner when he had not seen a game in person during the previous 10 years. He also went to Harvard, so you can't expect much. But the man had been a three star general in the Air Force and was personally recommended by Curtis LeMay so he couldn't have been all bad.

Ford Frick is my favorite. A DePauw graduate and sportswriter. Helped organize the baseball hall of fame, and threatened to suspend anyone who tried to boycott a Jackie Robinson game.

Allan Huber Selig went to University of Wisconsin Madison and studied History (First Warning Sign). Worked in a car leasing business and bought the Seattle Pilots. He then colluded with owners to get Fay Vincent out of office begin his reign of terror.

Since then we have had , Wild Card and Division Series. A cancelled world series. The loss of the exhibition nature of the All Star game. Interleague play. The attempted contraction of the Twins and Expos. And a huge steroid scandal that continues to haunt and hinder the game. And instant replay. He makes close to 15 million a year and he okayed the McCourts buying the Dodgers.

I feel his taint on what used to be America's purest and most original sport. And it saddens me. But sadly I see no return to the idealic times of past and must face a grime future.

Regarding Cheering and Bigamy

I enjoyed the quiet confines of Angels Stadium. Parking right off the freeway. No people yelling, heckling, or trying to start the wave. An appreciation of the science of the game. Attending a game was similar to going to the Opera. And fireworks if the ball boy caught a foul ball on only one hop. And a giant fountain in center field, some want to run the score board and Fenway, I want to run the fountain in Anaheim.

Dodger Dogs over Angel Dogs. But those hot dogs at Doubleday Field hold a special place in my heart.