Former Baltimore Orioles Star sues Seminole Tribe for $10M Over Casino Slip and Fall

Two years ago retired MLB Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson fell off of a stage during a charity event at the Hard Rock Casino in Southern Florida. Now, Robinson is suing the casino’s owner – the Seminole Tribe – for almost $10 million in damages as a result of the plunge.

Allegedly, Robinson’s tumble occurred after the star attempted to stand using the wall behind his chair for support. However, the “wall” was actually a curtain with no railing or other support behind it. Robinson …

March 15, 2014 Antitrust / MLB

City of San Jose resumes its fight against MLB’s Antitrust Exemption

Last fall U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Whyte dismissed a lawsuit filed by the city of San Jose against Major League Baseball (MLB) in which the city claimed that MLB had wrongfully prevented San Jose from enticing the Oakland A’s to relocate to Silicon Valley. Judge Whyte had reasoned that MLB’s antitrust exemption – a status bestowed on the league in a 1922 Supreme Court decision – barred the suit and required that the action be dismissed.

On March 5, city attorneys filed a brief …

February 14, 2014 Labor & Employment / MLB

Minor League Baseball Players Cry Foul – File Lawsuit Seeking Class Action Over Low Wages

A lawsuit filed in federal court seeks to overhaul minor league baseball’s pay scale with three former players arguing low pay, mandatory overtime and lack of collective bargaining rights all violate state and federal wage laws. Minor League Baseball is not a party to the lawsuit. Instead, suit was filed in federal California Northern District Court by former players Aaron Senne, Michael Liberto, and Oliver Odle against Major League Baseball, the Office of the Commissioner, Commissioner Bud Selig and their former teams the Miami Marlins, …

February 12, 2014 Doping / MLB

A-Rod Forfeits in Fight with MLB Over Suspension; Drops Suit Against League

Recently, arbitrator Frederic Horowitz reduced the 211-game suspension of Yankees all-star third baseman Alex Rodriguez to 162 games for A-Rod’s role in the Biogensis performance-enhancing drugs scandal. A-Rod wasn’t satisfied with the reduction, however, and filed a tortious interference lawsuit against Major League Baseball and MLB Commissioner Bud Selig in New York federal court with the hopes of reversing the suspension entirely.

Now, A-Rod’s attorney Joseph Tacopina acknowledged to ESPN that the all-star had filed a voluntary notice of dismissal which effectively dropped the lawsuit. …

December 17, 2013 Concussions / MLB

Are Concussion Problems Heading to MLB as First Former Major Leaguer is Posthumously Diagnosed with CTE?

Researchers at Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy announced that former Major League Baseball player Ryan Freel was suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (“CTE”) at the time of his suicide last December. He is the first MLB player to be officially diagnosed with the disease.

CTE is a brain injury associated with repetitive brain trauma (such as concussions) which causes the abnormal build-up of tau proteins in the brain. Early symptoms of the disease include erratic behavior and memory loss, but it …

November 27, 2013 MLB

The Atlanta Braves Are One Step Closer to a New Field

The Atlanta Braves are “thrilled” that the Cobb County Commission voted in favor of a public financing deal that will move the team out of downtown Atlanta for the first time since 1966.

On November 26, 2013, by a 4-1 vote, the commissioners approved spending $300 million in tax revenues to fund part of a new $672 million Braves stadium. The new field will open in 2017 and will be located in an Atlanta suburb. The plan calls for the reallocation of current Cobb County …

November 26, 2013 General

The Ugly Truth of Public Financing

Despite research showing stadiums are a poor use of tax dollars, professional sports complexes are continually financed by cities, counties, and states. In the most recent example, Major League Baseball’s Atlanta Braves announced the team will move to a neighboring county after being promised $300 million in public funds for a new stadium, but some politicians plan to oppose the deal.

For years, economists have been telling a different story than team owners want taxpayers to believe. Owners argue that a new stadium will …

October 28, 2013 MLB

City of San Jose Loses Heart of Lawsuit Against Major League Baseball

A San Jose federal judge recently dismissed part of the City of San Jose’s lawsuit against Major League Baseball (MLB) over the league’s lack of action on a proposed move by the Oakland Athletics. The judge granted MLB’s motion to dismiss in part but also denied it in part. Most significantly, Judge Ronald M. Whyte held that the league’s antitrust exemption ultimately precluded San Jose’s claims against MLB under the Sherman Act.

The Athletics’ owner had been pushing to move the team out …

October 9, 2013 Litigation / MLB

A-Rod Sues Yankees Doc For Malpractice

In the midst of his appeal of a 211-game suspension arising from the alleged use of performance enhancing drugs, Alex Rodriguez just filed the anticipated malpractice suit against a Yankees’ team physician. Professional Liability Matters posted of the rumblings of a malpractice suit in August. Now, the other shoe dropped. Although the allegations are serious, many speculate that A-Rod’s real goal of this lawsuit is to distract from A-Rod’s steroid controversy and to deflect blame.

To read the rest of this article, please visit Professional …

August 8, 2013 Doping / MLB

Burden on MLB to Justify A-Rod Suspension

A disgruntled former employee of Biogenesis of America, a Coral Gables, Florida “Anti-Aging Clinic,” angry over unpaid wages, leaked records indicating that as many as 20 Major League Baseball (MLB) players were purchasing banned performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), including Human Growth Hormone (HGH), testosterone, and anabolic steroids. Biogenesis was an “anti-aging” clinic owned by Anthony Bosch, just across U.S. 1 from the University of Miami, housed in what was once a motel. Biogenesis offered its mostly wealthy clients assistance in weight loss, physical fitness, and …