Continued from Post # 2584

After Judge Landis died in 1944, there was a long lull before the next banishment. During the tenures of Commissioners Happy Chandler (1945–1951), Ford Frick (1951–1965), Spike Eckert (1965–1968), Bowie Kuhn (1969–1984) and Peter Ueberroth (1984–1989), only three players (or former players) were banned for life. All three were banned by Kuhn, and all three were later reinstated.

Peter Ueberroth reversed the silly Bowie Kuhn decision to have Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle banned in 1980 and 1983 respectively. Both were retired at the time and no longer involved with baseball but were hired by Atlantic City casinos as greeters and autograph signers. Kuhn opined that a casino was “no place for a baseball hero and Hall of Famer.” Ueberroth’s counter was that the pair were “more a part of baseball than perhaps anyone else.” Pete Rose could probably benefit from this type of sentiment. 

“By the time of Kuhn’s tenure, players had organized the Major League Baseball Players Association and negotiated the first Basic Agreement with the owners. Among other things the Agreement provided, for the first time, an independent process through which active players could appeal disciplinary decisions (up to and including lifetime bans) by League presidents or the Commissioner. As of 2024, no such process exists for personnel who are not members of the MLBPA.”

On April Fool’s Day of 1989, Angelo Bartlett “Bart” Giamatti took over the office from Peter Ueberroth. He died five months later of a sudden heart attack. The job does take its toll, not even lasting to see the World Series that year, yet he ruled over Pete Rose’s ineligibility on August 24,1989, a mutual agreement. He is allowed to apply for reinstatement once a year indefinitely, stirring the annual controversy. Should the fact that he admitted to gambling and not on his own team take away from his honors on the diamond. So far, 3,000 hits don’t seem to count!

Francis Thomas “Fay” Vincent Jr. became commissioner 8-days later. He first dealt with George Steinbrenner, New York Yankees owner in 1990 for trying to discredit Dave Winfield. It backfired on him and led to an investigation that tied Steinbrenner to a small-time gambler. Vincent then took control of the team away from him. His other key decision in 1992 involved Yankee player, Steve Howe, after receiving seven suspensions related to drug use. Both of these bans were quickly reversed, erasing most of Vincent’s work.

The position fell into limbo following Vincent’s resignation, as an Acting Commissioner, Allan Huber “Bud” Selig was appointed to fill the term. He was ultimately elected in 1998 and oversaw the disbandment of the American and National League offices, the 1994 strike, the introduction of the wild card, the beginnings of interleague play, revenue sharing, and the establishment of the World Baseball Classic in 2006. Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott was banned in 1996 for repeatedly making racial slurs but was reinstated in 1998 as the first and only woman to date on baseball’s blacklist. 

Current Commissioner, Robert “Rob” Dean Manfred, followed Selig’s retirement on January 25, 2015. “To date, he has banned the same amount of people as his four previous successors and is second only to Landis for most people placed on the permanent ineligibility list.” Jenry Mejia, New York Mets pitcher was banned on February 12, 2016 after testing positive multiple times for performance-enhancing drugs. He sought and was granted reinstatement in July, 2018. Former St. Louis Cardinal scouting director, Chris Correa was banned for hacking the Houston Astros scouting database. In addition, “he was imprisoned, thus becoming the first person to be incarcerated for activities that resulted in a ban from the game.” John Coppolella, former Atlanta Braves general manager, was permanently banned by Manfred for circumvention of international free agent rules. He was reinstated in 2023. Brandon Taubman, former Houston Astros assistant general manager, was a 2019 addition to “the list.” Inappropriate comments and sign stealing were the charges. Mickey Callaway, former pitching coach of the Los Angeles Angels, was banned in 2021 after an investigation uncovered numerous allegations of sexual harassment. 

As far as actual players, the Manfred list is much shorter, but it includes a 2011 Hall of Famer. Roberto Alomar was banned in 2021 for sexual harassment, but he did not lose his place in Cooperstown. Could this eventually set a precedence for a reversed situation? Ferguson Jenkins of the Texas Rangers was banned and reinstated in 1980 for cocaine, hashish, and pot, but still made the Hall of Fame in 1991. Finally, in June of 2024, “San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano was banned from baseball for life after betting on the sport and four others were suspended for one year by Major League Baseball on Tuesday in the game’s biggest gambling scandal in decades.”

In Manfred’s eyes, a Pete Rose reinstatement is still an “unacceptable risk to baseball.” Who’s the bad guy? Baseball doesn’t have the only Hall of Fame with an attitude. According to founder, bassist and primary songwriter Nikki Sixx, Motley Crue is banned from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame due to their “bad behavior.” There’s that “bad” word again!

To Be Continued….