An Oakland jury ruled yesterday in the case brought
against MLBP by former players that the players "had been
underpaid on sales of limited-issue cards and other
keepsakes," which is "believed to be the first jury trial
victory ever against [MLB]," according to Kevin Fagan of the
S.F. CHRONICLE. The 384 players said that the verdict
"would lead to an avalanche of lawsuits seeking millions of
dollars" from MLB. But MLB attorneys "shot back with their
own interpretation, saying it was actually their side that
had hit the legal home run with the jury." The jury's
rejection of the fraud charges "eliminated" the possibility
of the players being awarded "millions of dollars" in
punitive damages. Fagan writes that "it's not over yet," as
the players are appealing the Court's ruling during the
trial that "they couldn't get revenue from sales of
videotapes -- by far the most lucrative part of the case"
(S.F. CHRONICLE, 2/18). In a statement, MLB stated the
while the jury dismissed charges that MLBP fraudulently
withheld payments to players, it awarded the plaintiffs
$58,000 for late payments plus interest. Before the trial
began, the 384 players who brought the suit sought $104.2M
to settle. MLBP VP & General Counsel Ethan Orlinsky said
the verdict "completely vindicates" MLBP (MLBP).
NOTES: Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner, on the
pending sale of the Dodgers to News Corp. and Rupert
Murdoch: "If [other MLB owners] don't want Rupert Murdoch in
there, they are dead wrong" (N.Y. POST, 2/18).
Steinbrenner, on Acting Commissioner Bud Selig: "In sports,
you need a leader. Bud is a leader" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/18).
