05-06-2019, 12:38 AM
NEW YORK -- Bud Selig took over a sport with $1.7 billion in revenue, four teams in each years post-season, economic disparity among the clubs and a fixation on sticking with traditions that dated to the 19th century. After a decade of maintaining his departure was imminent, the 79-year-old baseball commissioner put his exit plans in writing Thursday and said in a statement he will retire in January 2015 after 22 years -- the second-longest term behind Kenesaw Mountain Landis. His revolutionary reign produced an $8 billion industry, interleague play, an expanded post-season and two decades of labour peace. But, he also presided over a cancelled World Series and long-running drug scandal. "Hes been the voice of baseball. Some people liked his voice. Some people didnt," Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I have a lot of respect for the guy." Selig has been a bit of the Boy Who Cried Wolf in the past when it came to his retirement. He said in 2003 that he would step down at the end of 2006 but has repeatedly accepted new contracts. Some owners -- even his wife -- had been skeptical in the past that he really would quit, but this marked the first time he issued a formal statement that he will give up the sports top job. He even gave an exact date: Jan. 24, 2015. "I look forward to continuing its extraordinary growth and addressing several significant issues during the remainder of my term," he said. Seligs length of service and impact on his sport matches those of Pete Rozelle, the NFL commissioner from 1960-89, and David Stern, who is stepping down in February after 30 years as NBA commissioner. Selig said he will soon announce a transition plan that will include a reorganization of central baseball management. Rob Manfred, baseballs chief labour negotiator, has gained increased influence in recent years, but its not clear whether Seligs successor will come from within the commissioners office. Many had speculated Selig wanted to surpass the term of Landis, who served from November 1920 to November 1944. Perhaps the biggest mark on Seligs tenure was the prevalence of performance-enhancing drugs. Management didnt have a drug agreement with its players from October 1985 until August 2002, and drug testing with penalties didnt start until 2004. Selig has repeatedly defended his record, saying baseball acted as fast as it could in a matter that was subject to bargaining with players. "The game has grown under him tremendously. Hes made every effort to try to clean the game up," New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "Hes left his mark on the game. Theres no doubt about it." Seligs tenure also included splitting each league into three divisions instead of two in 1995, when wild cards and an additional round of playoffs were added. Wild cards doubled to four last year, when the post-season stretched to four rounds. Expansion teams in Arizona and Tampa Bay started play in 1998, raising the major league total to 30. Interleague play began in 1997 along with revenue sharing, which allowed the smaller-market clubs a better chance to compete. Jackie Robinsons No. 42 was retired by Selig for all of MLB that same year, and other initiatives followed. Major League Baseball Advanced Media launched in 2000, the World Baseball Classic in 2006, limited video review of umpires calls in 2008 and the Major League Baseball Network in 2009. Owners have repeatedly praised his financial stewardship, which has led to record franchise values as shown by the $2 billion sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers last year. The average player salary has tripled under his tenure to more than $3 million. Seligs critics said he moved cautiously -- a characterization even he sometimes agreed with. Running baseball from his longtime home in Milwaukee, he worked to build consensus rather than dictate to owners in the manner of Peter Ueberroth. Selig used a grandfatherly charm to get what he wanted. "Everythings been a success overall," Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos said. "Youre going to have your detractors, that goes without saying." Selig became a baseball fan when his mother took him to games as a child. Working in the family auto-leasing business, he became a minority investor in the Milwaukee Braves and tried to stop the teams move to Atlanta for the 1966 season. As a stopgap measure, he arranged for the Chicago White Sox to play nine regular-season games at Milwaukee in 1968 and 11 the following year. Just before the 1970 season, he bought the Seattle Pilots in bankruptcy court, moved the franchise to Milwaukee and renamed it the Brewers. Mentored by Detroit Tigers owner John Fetzer, Selig became a leading owner by the early 1980s in his role as chairman of the Player Relations Committee, which determined labour policy. He was part of the group that wanted major changes in the sports lab contract with players and forced the resignation of Fay Vincent, who had been in office for three years. Selig took over as acting commissioner on Sept. 9, 1992, in his role as chairman of the executive council. While he presided over a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 that led to the cancellation of the World Series for the first time in 90 years, following eight straight work stoppages owners and players reached agreements without interruption in 2002, 2006 and 2011. Although Selig repeatedly said he would not take the job full time, he was formally elected commissioner July 9, 1998. He turned running the Brewers over to daughter Wendy Selig-Prieb, but the Selig family did not sell the franchise until 2005. Selig agreed to a new contract as commissioner in 2001. He first announced his planned retirement in 2003, telling a group from Associated Press Sports Editors he would leave in 2006. "For a guy who took it in Sept. 9, 1992, and I told my wife it was two-to-four months -- 14 years later ... I think that will be enough. Theres no question, because there are other things I really would like to do." Asked again if this was his final term, Selig responded; "Oh, theres no question." He then agreed to new contracts in 2004, 2008 and 2012. Selig has said he wants to write a book. He has taught at the University of Wisconsin and Marquettes law school. "We look forward to working with the commissioner over the next 15 months," union head Michael Weiner said in a statement. "Then, we hope the commissioner enjoys his retirement and wish him well." Scott McTominay Jersey .J. -- The New York Jets have promoted Tony Sparano Jr. Juan Mata Jersey . The Detroit Tigers slugger fell short in his bid to become the first player to win the Triple Crown in successive seasons. http://www.manunitedfcpro.com/. Auld made 37 saves in a 5-3 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday. It was Ottawas first game without starter Anderson, who is out indefinitely after cutting his hand Wednesday night, and it was evident the team wasnt sure how to deal with the change in goal. Marcos Rojo Jersey . He managed to save par, and went on to put together his best opening round of the year. Calcavecchia and Wes Short Jr. Marouane Fellaini Jersey . If Vettel wins at Suzuka on Sunday, and his nearest rival Fernando Alonso finishes worse than eighth, the German driver will join his compatriot Michael Schumacher and Argentine Juan-Manuel Fangio as the only men to win four consecutive titles.SAINT JOHN, N.B. -- Rachel Homan has confidence, home ice and hammer heading into Sundays final at the Ford Womens World Curling Championship. She intends to turn those assets into gold. Homan, third Emma Miskew, second Alison Kreviazuk and lead Lisa Weagle out of the Ottawa Curling Club will start the championship game against Switzerlands Binia Feltscher with last-rock advantage. Its Canadas reward for their 10-1 record to win the preliminary round and their 8-3 playoff win Friday over the Swiss. None of the other 11 countries at Saint Johns Harbour Station were as effective at scoring more than one point with hammer as Canada, so having it in the first end is an advantage. "Its huge," Homan said. "If you play your game properly, you can control the game." Canada last won a womens world curling title in 2008, when Winnipegs Jennifer Jones claimed it in Vernon, B.C. The wait hasnt been as long for Switzerland, as Mirjam Ott took the title two years ago in Lethbridge, Alta. With spectacular runbacks and raise takeouts, the Canadians drained Switzerlands offence Friday to win the playoff between the tournaments top two teams. That provided the host country a direct route to the gold-medal game, while Switzerland needed a 7-3 win over South Korea in Saturdays semifinal to gain a rematch. Russias Anna Sidorova and South Koreas Ji-sun Kim will play for bronze Sunday in what will be a first womens world curling medal for one of the countries. Homans team had Saturday off, so the skip watched the game in her hotel room and conducted interviews by phone in a raspy voice. "The rest will be good for me," Homan said. "Im glad the final is not today. "Its been a long week and we all need a bit of rest, so were glad that we put in the work and played really well and were able to get this bonus day off. We have some confidence we can take over into the final." Feltscher, 35, won an Olympic silver medal in 2006 playing third for Ott, but Sundays final will be the biggest game of her career as a skip. Third Irene Schori, second Franziska Kaufmann and Lead Christine Urech made their world championship debut in Saint John, so a 9-2 rround-robin record and a berth in the final is a surprise.dddddddddddd "Weve got nothing to lose tomorrow," Feltscher said via an interpreter. "It would be a great pleasure for us to put that gold medal around our necks." Switzerland was the only country to beat Canada in the round robin. Down 8-4, Homan shook hands after eight ends. Canadian Al Moore, husband of television curling commentator Linda Moore, is one of Switzerlands coaches. "I dont think their expectations were particularly high coming in," Moore said. "My goal coming in was to be in the playoffs. I really thought they could do that. The gold-medal game is a bonus." "They believe they can win. They believe if they go out and play their best, they believe they can win and really thats the difference." Jones and Brad Jacobs gave Canada double curling gold at the Winter Olympics in Sochi last month, with Jones going undefeated en route to the top step of the podium. Homan is on the verge of making it a dominant season for Canadian womens curling. "We have pressure on ourselves as well," Homan said. "You want that gold when it comes down to it. "Seeing Jones and (Brad) Jacobs bring home the gold from the Olympics, I really want to make it a clean sweep for Canada and make sure weve got gold everywhere." The average age of Homan and her teammates is just under 26, but they have big-game experience. Theyve won back-to-back Canadian titles, took bronze in their world championship debut last year in Riga, Latvia, and made it as far as the semifinal in Decembers Olympic trials. Homan was a shot away from making the final last year in Riga, but she missed a double takeout with her last throw of the semifinal to give up a steal and lose 8-7 to Scotland. The travel, time zone and arena were kinder to Homan this time. "Youre going to feel nervous and that comes with the territory and that comes with the sport," Homan said. "We love playing with the pressure and the home crowd. "A little bit different than Latvia. We had about five fans cheering us on. Theres a lot more energy this time around." 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