spin
spinner
spinnest
I'd like to start by saying that the only thing I know about Kenny Rogers is that he is a hilarious pitcher. You know, a showman. A real character. But it's not like I'm watching the World Series or anything. So I read these stories, and I think about what they're saying.
The second and third stories were written on complete speculation, admittedly because the parties involved were less than forthcoming about the topic immediately after the game. The only "hard" evidence that exists are camera shots of Rogers' pitching hand, and yet Stark claims that Rogers had already "soiled ... his whole sport".
The first story (which I read first) contains the actual truth, buried in non sequiturs. The headline brands Rogers as guilty, but La Russa's statements in the article outline the sequence of events that night:
1. In the first inning, someone notices a dark smudge on Rogers' hand. This is brought to the attention of Tony La Russa, who requests an intervention by the umpires. He does not request a search of Rogers, only that he clean off his hand.
2. Rogers cleans off his hand at the request of an umpire.
3. Rogers goes on to pitch 8 nearly hitless innings and stands to break the postseason record of blah blah blah, set by Christy Mathewson in 1905, who was notable not just for his pitching abilites, but for having a girl's name.
The issue was resolved immediately on the field just as La Russa wanted it to be. ("It got fixed, in my opinion.") Rogers could have been searched, but nobody wanted to search him. He performed as well or better without the mysterious substance on his hand. All of these things lend weight to Rogers' claims that it was simply dirt and resin. But the last article goes so far as to state the following:
In 2002, the Cleveland Indians suspected Rogers was scuffing balls and asked the plate umpire to search for anything illegal. Nothing was found.
This is ridiculous and has absolutely no relevance to the current issue. Furthermore, it happened FOUR YEARS AGO. Four years ago he was suspected of cheating and was subjected to a search - which I'm sure was thorough. He was cleared. End of story. This incident is not admissible for any reason, even if he is guilty.
And that's my two cents about Kenny Rogers who plays for the Detroit Tigers. I don't know why I have so much to say about an issue in a sport I follow more or less casually. But I do think it's an injustice to villify someone with pointless conjecture before substantial evidence is on the table.
spinner
spinnest
I'd like to start by saying that the only thing I know about Kenny Rogers is that he is a hilarious pitcher. You know, a showman. A real character. But it's not like I'm watching the World Series or anything. So I read these stories, and I think about what they're saying.
The second and third stories were written on complete speculation, admittedly because the parties involved were less than forthcoming about the topic immediately after the game. The only "hard" evidence that exists are camera shots of Rogers' pitching hand, and yet Stark claims that Rogers had already "soiled ... his whole sport".
The first story (which I read first) contains the actual truth, buried in non sequiturs. The headline brands Rogers as guilty, but La Russa's statements in the article outline the sequence of events that night:
1. In the first inning, someone notices a dark smudge on Rogers' hand. This is brought to the attention of Tony La Russa, who requests an intervention by the umpires. He does not request a search of Rogers, only that he clean off his hand.
2. Rogers cleans off his hand at the request of an umpire.
3. Rogers goes on to pitch 8 nearly hitless innings and stands to break the postseason record of blah blah blah, set by Christy Mathewson in 1905, who was notable not just for his pitching abilites, but for having a girl's name.
The issue was resolved immediately on the field just as La Russa wanted it to be. ("It got fixed, in my opinion.") Rogers could have been searched, but nobody wanted to search him. He performed as well or better without the mysterious substance on his hand. All of these things lend weight to Rogers' claims that it was simply dirt and resin. But the last article goes so far as to state the following:
In 2002, the Cleveland Indians suspected Rogers was scuffing balls and asked the plate umpire to search for anything illegal. Nothing was found.
This is ridiculous and has absolutely no relevance to the current issue. Furthermore, it happened FOUR YEARS AGO. Four years ago he was suspected of cheating and was subjected to a search - which I'm sure was thorough. He was cleared. End of story. This incident is not admissible for any reason, even if he is guilty.
And that's my two cents about Kenny Rogers who plays for the Detroit Tigers. I don't know why I have so much to say about an issue in a sport I follow more or less casually. But I do think it's an injustice to villify someone with pointless conjecture before substantial evidence is on the table.
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posted by Brandon at 3:03 AM
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