Selig Says MLB Exhausted Potential Options For Cubs-Astros Series
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Selig Says Miller Park Was Only
Option For Cubs-Astros Games |
MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said that he and his staff "worked most of three straight days to find a better location" than Miller Park for the first two games of last weekend's Cubs-Astros series, according to Richard Justice of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. The Astros could not play the games in Houston due to Hurricane Ike, and Selig indicated that "every other location had a scheduling conflict or rain in the forecast." Selig: "Was it perfect? No. I went through every option. I finally looked at it and realized I didn't have another option. I'm always sensitive about the Brewers, but I feel in my heart this was the best option." Selig added, "If you'd known what I know, you would have made the same decision. You don't reschedule games at the drop of a hat" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 9/16). The BUSINESS JOURNAL OF MILWAUKEE's Mark Kass reported the Astros will receive all ticket revenue from the games at Miller Park. A source close to MLB said that the Astros “insisted that they receive all ticket revenue from the two games as the series was originally planned to be played in Houston.” The Brewers also will be “reimbursed for all of the team’s expenses in staffing the games” (BIZJOURNALS.com, 9/15).
ROAD WARRIORS: The Astros were officially the home team for the two games at Miller Park despite wearing their road uniforms, but MLB.com's Alyson Footer reported the jersey decision "had nothing to do with a protest over where these games were played." The Astros "travel with their road grays, and rather than go through the inconvenience of packing up an entirely different set of uniforms, they stuck with what they normally use." The team also "opted to occupy the visitors' clubhouse at Miller Park," but that was "solely for comfort reasons" (MLB.com, 9/15). However, the Chronicle's Justice said wearing the road jerseys "was exactly a statement." Justice: "They want people to know this was not a home game" ("Outside The Lines," ESPN, 9/15).
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Many Feel MLB Moving Games
To Milwaukee Was Wrong Decision |
WRONG MOVE: ESPN's John Kruk said, "I don’t understand why [MLB] made this decision to make them play. I don’t care where they made them play. The fact that it was in Milwaukee has nothing to do with it. ... The Astros had no business playing these two games. I wonder what would have happened if it would have been a team like the Red Sox or the Yankees, a team with big power. These teams that have a lot of say-so in what happens as far as baseball goes. ... If I was the Astros, I’d file a grievance with everybody I could file one with" ("Baseball Tonight," ESPN2, 9/15). ESPN's Jayson Stark: “The more I think about it, the more I think it was just dead wrong for baseball to make this bunch of people get on that plane Sunday morning and fly to Milwaukee, a place that is about as neutral as the Alamo, and play those games” (“Mike and Mike in the Morning,” ESPN2, 9/16). SI.com's John Donovan wrote, "The decision to play the two games in Milwaukee was patently unfair to the Astros, and I don't think anybody can claim otherwise. ... It's a total ripoff, and Astros' fans (and manager Cecil Cooper) have every right to be upset. But I don't see what else could have been done in that time frame" (SI.com, 9/15).
TIME TO MOVE ON: Astros Owner Drayton McLane said of the controversy around the move to Milwaukee amid the Astros' run at the NL Wild Card, in which they are 2 1/2 games behind the Brewers and Phillies, "We need to move on. We've got a wonderful opportunity." The CHRONICLE's Justice writes, "We can be angry at McLane, Bud Selig, Fox TV and all the others sometime later. We can throw a big bash after the playoffs and call them all kinds of names. Meanwhile, there's a season to play" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 9/16).
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