Down to the Wire: MLB Reaches Tentative Labor Agreement

In the final hours before the prior collective bargaining agreement’s expiration, Major League Baseball and its players’ union reached a tentative labor agreement. The agreement just narrowly avoided a potential work stoppage and marks 26 years of labor cooperation in the league. The new agreement should extend that peace another give years, until 2021.

The agreement hinged upon a raised threshold of the specified payroll limit. This “luxury tax” was a penalty on teams that went over the threshold. According to players the cap was …

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Plaintiffs Strike Out in Suit Seeking to Extend MLB Stadium Safety Netting

Plaintiffs’ hopes of extending the foul ball safety net further down the first- and third-base lines at all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums were dashed recently when a California U.S. District Court dismissed the lawsuit for lack of standing. The plaintiffs’, Oakland Athletics fan Gail Payne and Los Angeles Dodgers fan Stephanie Smith, claim that the extension of the safety net was required to protect fans from injuries caused by foul balls and broken bats, but U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers found the …

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No Extra Innings: Cubs, MLB Reach Settlement With Apparel Vendors

On November 9, 2016, Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs reached a settlement with the 84 vendors accused of selling counterfeit MLB merchandise. In the motion, the Cubs declared that it had entered into a confidential settlement with the vendors and requested that the court issue a permanent injunction, preventing them from selling the merchandise in the future.

Due to the great success the Cubs experienced this season, a large number of fake apparel vendors began selling products with symbols resembling MLB marks, leading

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Canadian Court Dismisses Application to Bar Cleveland Indians From Wearing Uniforms with Name and Logo During Playoffs in Toronto

Just before Game 3 of the American League Championship Series, indigenous activist Douglas Cardinal filed a legal challenge in Ontario Superior Court to prevent the Cleveland Indians from wearing uniforms bearing their team name and “Chief Wahoo” logo. The logo is a red-faced cartoon with a feather headband and a huge grin. Cardinal argued that the team name and logo are racist and violate Ontario’s human rights code. He contended that the team should be referred to as “the Cleveland team” and should play in …

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Is Selling Cubs Merchandise a Crime?

Stealing bases may be a routine part of baseball, but the Chicago Cubs have made it clear that street vendors stealing merchandise have no part in America’s pastime. On September 22, 2016, Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs sued vendors for selling counterfeit merchandise on the streets outside of Wrigley Field.

This has been an uplifting season for the Cubs as they are in first place, standing as the top team in all of Major League Baseball. The club’s claim that vendors are “deliberately …

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Can a Baseball Fan Argue Fear is Sufficient Injury in Class Action?

On July 11, 2013, Gail Payne filed a class-action lawsuit against Major League Baseball (MLB) in the Federal District Court in Northern California. Payne claimed the MLB did not do enough to “protect fans from fast-moving balls and splintered bats.” Payne and the class members were seeking injunctive relief: to create better protections to MLB fans by adding more netting to stop foul balls and broken bats along the first and third-base lines.

The lawsuit referenced a study by Bloomberg News in 2014, which reported …

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Agent Wants $810K From MLB Prospect’s Father

A&F Sports Agency, a Florida based sports agency, is suing the father of Luis Almanzar, the top baseball prospect from the Dominican Republic. The sports agent claims that the parties agreed to have the agency exclusively represent the prospect in all contract negotiations, yet the agency found out that another agent negotiated a contract between the Almanzars and the San Diego Padres. As a result, A&F Sports Agency missed out on approximately $810,000 – 20 per cent of any signing bonus – per the …

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Defrauding Chicago’s Legendary Team

The jury needed less than five hours to decide whether a rooftop owner defrauded the Chicago Cubs. On July 22, 2016, a jury convicted Marc Hamid of fraud and illegal bank structuring. Hamid had once been co-owner of Skybox on Sheffield, a rooftop that charges clients to drink, eat, and watch Chicago Cubs games from outside the field. Additionally, Hamid owned two ticket brokerage companies, JustGreatTickets.com and Just Great Seats. Following his indictment in March, Hamid was terminated and relieved of his duties and involvement …

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Corporate Espionage in MLB: Astros Password Hack Results in Prison Time for Ex-Cardinals Director

Christopher Correa, former Cardinals director of baseball development, was sentenced to nearly four years in prison after pleading guilty to five counts of hacking into the computers and emails of Houston Astros employees. In addition to prison time, U.S. District Judge Hughes also ordered him to pay $279,038 in restitution to the Astros.

In January, Mr. Correa admitted that from 2013 to at least 2014 he accessed the Astros database called “Ground Control” and emails to obtain scouting information. The hacks occurred after …

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MLB Next at Bat Against Cardinals in Scouting Database Hack

On Monday, July 20, 2016, a Texas federal judge sentenced the former St. Louis Cardinals director of baseball development, Christopher Correa, to 46 months in prison for hacking into the Houston Astros’ player personnel database. The move has been considered a form of espionage, noting the unusual nature of two Major League Baseball clubs being involved in high-tech cheating.

In January 2016, Correa plead guilty to five counts of unauthorized access of a protected computer from 2013 to 2014. Correa was fired, forced to …

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