Foul Play-by-Play

This week on the Foul Play-by-Play podcast, a racehorse sues his trainer, Bob Baffert, Oscar Robertson sues Russell Westbrook for the right to retain the triple-double crown, Brad finally wins a bet on the Minnesota Twins to turn his whole season around, Mike corners the Alex Kirilloff baseball card market, and I talk to a French student citing me in his Master’s thesis about making an environmentally friendlier NBA. https://media.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/content.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/FPBP4.mp3 Opening Arguments A Racehorse v. Trainer Bob Baffert Bob Baffert's Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, failed a post-race drug test, and Churchill Downs will reportedly ban Baffert from the track if results of the test are upheld. PETA is suing on the horse’s behalf, alleging defamation of character. New Orleans Pelicans EVP David Griffen v. NBA Officials New Orleans Pelicans’ executive vice president of basketball operations, David Griffen, was fined $50,000 by the NBA for comments criticizing how Zion Williamson is officiated. Griffen is suing for a refund and fair officiating for his superhuman superstar. Oscar Robertson v. Russell Westbrook Oscar Robertson is hypothetically suing Washington Wizards star Russell Westbrook for the right to retain the triple-double record on grounds that triple-doubles were harder back in his day. Brad’s Big Win of the Week Brad finally scores a big win betting on the Minnesota Twins. Then he tries again and loses $200. Why Mike is Cornering the Alex Kirilloff Rookie Baseball Card Market Mike has purchased around 75 Alex Kirilloff rookie cards on Ebay for about $60. He explains why, and we discuss why the baseball market has experienced a revival. Interview with Marin Grisard Discussing the NBA's Lack of Environmental Sustainability Efforts Our host, Anthony Varriano, interviews French graduate student Marin Grisard about his Master's thesis inspired by Varriano's article explaining how the NBA could curb its carbon emissions by expanding the league to 32 teams.

Our attorney on retainer, Michael, accuses his brother, Bradley, of crashing his computer because he came over to look at baseball cards. Then they argue about the decision of MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to move the 2021 MLB All-Star Game out of Atlanta in response to restrictive voting laws enacted by state Republicans. We also convene a mock grand jury to determine whether criminal charges should be brought against Houston Texans quarterback DeShaun Watson. State of Georgia v. MLB Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred is moving the All-Star Game out of Atlanta in response to the state enacting laws that make voting more restrictive. The State of Georgia is hypothetically suing for costs already incurred and projected revenue lost as a result of MLB's decision. Michael Rapaport v. Kevin Durant The actor Michael Rapaport is hypothetically suing Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant, claiming messages sent by Durant on social media caused him emotional distress. Paige Bueckers v. WNBA University of Connecticut women's basketball star Paige Bueckers is hypothetically challenging the WNBA rule prohibiting her from entering the WNBA Draft until she is 22 years old. USWNT v. USA Soccer The United States Women's National soccer team is still fighting for equal pay almost a year after a judge threw out its lawsuit against USA Soccer. USWNT star Megan Rapinoe recently spoke to President Joe Biden and Congress about why female athletes deserve opportunities equal to that of their male counterparts. This hypothetical lawsuit claims the USWNT did not receive an opportunity equal to that of the USMNT. DeShaun Watson's Mock Grand Jury We consider the evidence against Houston Texans quarterback DeShaun Watson and decide whether criminal charges should be brought against him for sexual assault.

The latest episode of the Foul Play-by-play podcast discusses five opening arguments, including the alleged defamation of New York Rangers star Artemi Panarin by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Gambling addict/expert Brad also shares a pair of bad beats betting NASCAR. https://media.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/content.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/FPBP2.mp3 Family of Vincent Jackson v. NFL Former NFL player Vincent Jackson was recently found dead in a hotel room and might have been dead for three days before being discovered. Jackson reportedly suffered from alcoholism and concussions. The Jackson family is hypothetically suing the NFL for damages, alleging the league's delayed action to curb concussions it knew caused CTE. NFLPA v. NFL and NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith Many NFL players believe the current collective bargaining agreement DeMaurice Smith negotiated is excessively benefiting NFL owners at the players' expense. NFL players approved the CBA last March by a margin of just 60 votes, and it won't expire for 10 years. Hypothetically, the NFLPA alleges the CBA was not negotiated in good faith, challenging the validity of the agreement. Artemi Panarin v. Vladimir Putin The New York Rangers said the allegation that their star Artemi Panarin assaulted an 18-year-old girl over a decade ago is a fabricated response to his support of a Kremlin critic. In this hypothetical case, Panarin, citing emotional distress and lost wages, is suing Russian President Vladimir Putin for defamation. The People of Texas v. Jerry Jones and Comstock Resources, Inc. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is also the majority owner of fossil fuel company Comstock Resources, Inc. Shortages of natural gas combined with increased demand pushed natural gas prices up over 500 percent during a winter storm in Texas. The company, however, was already increasing production in anticipation of increased demand for natural gas. The hypothetical people of Texas allege price gouging and are hypothetically suing for refunds. Timberwolves Associate Head Coach David Vanterpool v. Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves fired head coach Ryan Saunders and hired Toronto Raptors assistant Chris Finch without conducting a formal search or offering associate head coach David Vanterpool the job on an interim basis. Vanterpool is suing, claiming racial discrimination, hypothetically speaking.

In the ninth episode of Foul Play-by-Play, we debut a new segment called "Opening Arguments," featuring brothers Bradley Haase and Michael Haase, with journalist Anthony Varriano serving as judge and jury. If you’ve been in a courtroom like we three, you know how this works. The prosecuting attorney explains to the jury why the defendant is guilty and how the prosecution will prove it. Then the defendant’s attorney explains to the jury why his client is innocent and how the defense will prove it. We just do it with sports arguments. Since our attorney, Michael, has a considerable advantage in this game, Brad, our gambling expert, gets home court advantage, meaning he gets to pick the side he wants to argue once more than his brother gets to pick his argument. https://media.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/content.blubrry.com/foulplaybyplay/FPBP1.mp3 New York Mets Prospects v. Tim Tebow Michael argues on behalf of the New York Mets prospects suing Tim Tebow for one of the 75 Spring Training roster spots Tebow will fill in 2021, despite hitting .151 in 34 spring games. Bradley defends Tim Tebow. The NBA v. LeBron James and Floppers Michael argues on behalf of the NBA's actions to warn LeBron James and Kyle Kuzma for flopping, becoming just the sixth and seventh players to be reprimanded with warnings by the league this season. Bradley argues on behalf of flopping and NBA floppers. The People v. Chris Doyle Michael argues on behalf of the people against Chris Doyle, who was hired by Urban Meyer to be the director of strength performance with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and immediately resigned due to backlash. Bradley defends Chris Doyle's right to work. Doyle allegedly bullied Black players and sent 13 to the hospital as a result of a workout he ran at Iowa...before losing his job. DeShaun Watson v. the Houston Texans Bradley defends DeShaun Watson's right to be traded and Michael defends the Houston Texans' organizational incompetence. MLB v. MLBPA Bradley defends MLB owners paying half as much in free agent contracts this season as they offered last season. Guaranteed money is down, as are contract lengths. Michael defends the MLB Players' Association. Cheats of the Week Bradley nominates Travis Barker as Cheat of the Week, while Michael nominates the Los Angeles Dodgers for signing Trevor Bauer. Brad's Bad Beat/Big Win of the Week Bradley shares gambling stories of his bad beat and big win of the week. Historically Foul Player After the New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl, a Patriots fan named Sean Murphy stole from the jewelers designing the Giants’ championship rings. He actually ended up with quite a few of them meant for rich Giants fans. While the thieves were caught and Murphy is still serving time, there’s a book in the works about Murphy’s life, as well as a documentary. In an ESPN story by Sam Borden, Murphy says the rings didn’t motivate him to do the job, but they’re certainly paying off for him now. Plead the Fifth Inning: Chad Wheeler's Domestic Abuse Case We chat about former Seattle Seahawk lineman Chad Wheeler's domestic abuse case and whether he can be held responsible for his actions that result from not taking his medication for bipolar disorder, and whether CTE has an impact on bipolar disorder.

All rise. The sports court of public opinion we call Foul Play-by-Play is now in session, the dishonorable Anthony Varriano presiding over this podcast providing play-by-play and color commentary on foul play in sports, on courts and in them. The attorney of record and my co-host is Michael Haase of McLarty and Haase Law in Glendive, Montana. Headlines Headline 1: Maryland Football Player Dies of Heat Exhaustion; Wrongful Death Lawsuit Likely Coming Against University After 19-year-old Maryland offensive lineman Jordan McNair died of apparent heat stroke from performing 110-yard sprints according to ESPN, the university placed head coach D.J. Durkin, strength and conditioning coach Rick Court and some trainers on leave while it investigates whether the staff was negligent. The McNair’s have also hired an attorney, who says a lawsuit is likely and Durkin should be fired. ESPN conducted its own investigation, speaking to two current Maryland football players, former players and football staffers and multiple people close to the program. Here’s what they shared about the football culture under Durkin and Court: There is a coaching environment based on fear and intimidation. Small weights and other objects were thrown by Court in the direction of players when Court was angry. The belittling, humiliation and embarrassment of players is common. A player whom coaches wanted to lose weight was forced to eat candy bars while watching teammates work out. Extreme verbal abuse of players occurs often. One player was belittled verbally after passing out during a drill. Coaches have endorsed unhealthy eating habits and used food punitively. One player said he was forced to eat until he threw up. Durkin and Court’s coaching careers are certainly in jeopardy, but couldn’t they be charged with manslaughter at the very least, or is this just a wrongful death civil lawsuit? Headline 2: UNC Suspends 13 Football Players for Selling Shoes Thirteen North Carolina football players, including quarterback Chazz Surratt, were suspended between one and four games for selling school-issued shoes. The selling of the special edition Nike Jordan shoes is a secondary NCAA violation, and UNC self-reported the violation in January. Since these shoes are uniquely manufactured for and distributed solely to UNC athletes, their rareness by His Airness can fetch upwards of $600 on Ebay, according to Joe Giglio. In college (even now), there is no doubt I would resell my free shoes for $650 . Note the screen shot of the shoes listed on eBay pic.twitter.com/m8q5kmPEIj — Joe Giglio (@jwgiglio) August 6, 2018 Meanwhile, the NCAA changed rules to allow “elite” high school basketball prospects to hire agents and undergraduates to return to school if they enter the NBA Draft and aren’t selected. How hypocritical is it that a college basketball player can now hire an agent but not profit from his name, signature or shoes until he signs a contract and doesn’t need the money anymore? These benefits for attending UNC don’t seem very beneficial. The NCAA has managed to make a benefit a burden. It’s often said possession is nine-tenths of the law. Well, what kind of possession is this if you can’t sell what you possess? Headline 3: Former All-Star MLB Pitcher Esteban Loaiza Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug Charges Former All-Star pitcher Esteban Loaiza pleaded guilty Friday to federal drug charges in California. Loaiza acknowledged that he possessed about 44 pounds, or 20 kilos of cocaine with the intent to distribute. He faces 10 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced on Nov. 2. Can we expect Loaiza to be granted leniency in this case since California prisons are still operating above capacity and at increased rates due to healthcare costs? It might be difficult to imagine what would possess a man who made more than $43 million in Major League Baseball to risk his life trafficking cocaine,

All rise. The sports court of public opinion we call Foul Play-by-Play is now in session, providing play-by-play and color commentary on foul play in sports on and off the field, pitch, court, and ice. Headlines Headline 1: Urban Meyer Placed on Paid Administrative Leave Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer was placed on administrative leave after former ESPN journalist Brett McMurphy obtained text messages and an exclusive interview showing Meyer knew in 2015 of domestic abuse allegations against his assistant coach, Zach Smith, yet retained him anyway. The university has formed what it called a “special, independent board working group” to investigate the allegations. Meyer said had he known of the allegations, he would have fired Smith in 2015 instead of last week after the alleged domestic violence was first reported. But Meyer and Smith go way back. Smith was Meyer’s longest-serving assistant and even played for Meyer at Bowling Green before interning for Meyer at Florida, where the first domestic violence accusations surfaced. According to McMurphy, Smith first physically abused his wife, Courtney, on June 21, 2009 in Gainesville, Florida when she was eight to 10 weeks pregnant. Meyer and his wife threw a party celebrating Florida’s second championship in three seasons. After the party, Courtney said she went home while her husband went out with friends. Courtney said Zach returned home drunk around 3 a.m. with Meyer’s secretary at the time, whom Zach called “baby” and pleaded with Courtney to allow her to spend the night with them after reportedly breaking up with her boyfriend. Courtney refused and drove the woman home, but upon returning, a heated argument turned violent, with Zach allegedly throwing his wife against their bedroom wall. That was the Smiths’ one-year wedding anniversary. Zach was arrested for aggravated battery on a pregnant victim, and Meyer said at Big Ten Media Days that he and his wife advised the Smiths to try counseling. A few days after the arrest, Courtney said two of Meyer’s closest friends asked her to drop the charges against her husband, and ultimately pressured her to do so. She did, thinking it would never happen again, which seems to be a common mistake of domestic abuse victims. Courtney said she left her husband on June 6, 2015, but the abuse didn’t stop until Courtney was granted a restraining order against Zach on Nov. 10, 2015. She filed for divorce two days later. Cleveland.com reports that Powell (Ohio) police visited the Smiths’ home nine times in response to domestic disputes between January 1, 2012 and July 26, 2018. Courtney spoke frequently with Meyer’s wife, Shelley, a nurse, about her abusive relationship, yet Meyer claimed ignorance of any abuse occurring after the 2009 incident. Meyer, of course, is not unfamiliar with allegations of foul play brought against his football programs. During his time at Florida, Gator football players amassed 251 traffic citations, his best defensive player was suspended for a DUI prior to the SEC Championship game, and freshman foul player Aaron Hernandez suckerpunched an employee of a Gainesville bar, rupturing his eardrum. Hernandez also went unquestioned by police or his coach despite being a suspect in a 2007 shooting that left two men injured, with one shot in the back of the head. That attempted homicide remains unsolved. Meyer mostly avoided being muddied by his Gators’ allegations, not because he won, but because he had the good guy on his side. Not God, but a God-fearing quarterback so squeaky clean and contagiously charismatic he stole the spotlight, allowing his teammates to remain in the shadows. Tim Tebow was Urban Meyer’s guardian angel. Tebow protected Meyer as he did the football. Meyer no longer has that protection and the mud is being flung.    Meyer’s battle for his job will be fought on two fronts. While an investigation determines his knowledge of his assistant coach’s alleged tran...

All rise, and welcome to this sports court of public opinion we call Foul Play-by-Play – the podcast that provides play-by-play and color commentary on foul play in sports on and off the field, pitch, court, and ice. Headlines Headline 1: Dolphins First to Release Potential Penalties for Anthem Protests Since the Miami Dolphins are one of the first NFL teams to report to training camp, they were the first to put police brutality protest penalties in writing, as required by the league. I’m calling them police brutality protests instead of anthem protests because that’s what they are: the players are protesting police brutality against minorities, not the national anthem. Yet the media was quick to dub the protests as anthem protests, which has stuck. If you search Google using the terms “anthem protest” you get 13.6 million hits. Using the search terms “anthem protests” you get almost 1.5 million hits. If you search “police brutality protests” you get just 187,000 hits, so simply assigning a name to these protests The Dolphins stuffed the police brutality protests in with other acts of conduct deemed “detrimental to the club” punishable by up to four-game suspensions, but they reportedly have no intent of suspending players four games for protesting the national anthem. Co-owner of the New York Giants, Steve Tisch, has since announced that their players will not be subject to penalties for protesting police brutality during the national anthem. The public backlash to the Dolphins’ announcement has forced the NFL to put a freeze on its national anthem protest policy, and the NFL Players’ Association (NFLPA) and the NFL are finally working out an agreement to end the anthem feud, as should have been the case in the first place given the collective bargaining agreement. Since the Dolphins’ announcement and resulting public backlash, Donald Trump has tweeted his displeasure with the anthem dispute, tweeting, “Isn’t it in contract that players must stand at attention, hand on heart? The $40,000,000 Commissioner must now make a stand. First time kneeling, out for game. Second time kneeling, out for season/no pay!” To answer Donald's question, players’ contracts do not include an anthem clause and neither does the collective bargaining agreement, and the commissioner taking Trump's recommended stand could be devastating to the league given the NFLPA's membership being almost 70-percent black. That union, at least, still has power. There is no NFL if just the black players protest during the anthem, and it hasn’t been just black players protesting. I imagine the players value their right to protest more than the right to use cannabis but less than they value guaranteed contracts. On the topic of guaranteed contracts... Headline 2: Le’Veon Bell to Play Without Job Security for Third Straight Season For a third consecutive season, running back Le’Veon Bell will play for the Steelers without a long-term contract in place, providing him no job security if he were to be injured in 2018. Pittsburgh’s final offer to Bell, which is likely to be the final contract the Steelers ever offer Bell, was reportedly worth $70 million over five years. But it only contained $10 million in guaranteed money, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. And Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com tweeted that the deal would have been virtually identical to...the last contract” Pittsburgh offered because the boosts in value would have been based on the increase in value of the running back franchise tag. Bell’s franchise tag with Pittsburgh will pay him $14.55 million this season, but if he were to be injured, Bell might end up with a mostly unguaranteed contract in 2019 if he’s healthy enough to play at all. Bell isn’t the only player griping about the NFL’s non-guaranteed contracts, but running backs seem to be the loudest proponents for guaranteed contracts and for good reason. Los Angeles Rams’ running back Todd Gurley told TMZ S...

At Foul Play-by-Play we provide play-by-play and color commentary of foul play in sports on and off the field, pitch, court and ice. Here are the headlines, cheats of the week and a trip back in time when foul play was fair game to John McGraw. Headlines NFLPA Files Grievance Against NFL Owners’ New National Anthem Policy The NFL Players’ Association filed a non-injury grievance challenging the NFL’s new national anthem policy, Tuesday. According to our comrade Al Neal of PeoplesWorld.org, “[w]ith the league changing the policy without first negotiating with the union, it will need to rely on the broad powers given to the commissioner, Roger Goodell, through the personal conduct policy.” What I took from the piece at People’s World is the players’ chances sort of depend on the definition of detrimental conduct and whether a majority of four, mutually-selected neutral arbitrators would consider kneeling during the national anthem to be conduct detrimental to the NFL. It seems the conduct has been detrimental to the league if you consider television ratings. A survey released in February found that 50 percent of U.S. consumers who watched less football in 2017 did so because of the anthem protests. But in-game advertising revenue actually increased, so what qualifies as evidence of detriment? Is loss of fans enough or does it have to be quantified in dollars? And what kind of precedent would this be setting if the NFL’s national anthem policy remains unchanged? Neal mentioned prayer being challenged in his piece, but Tim Tebow proved taking a knee for Jesus is profitable for the NFL, but probably not during the anthem. And apparently taking a knee for a minority murdered by police who go free is detrimental to the league, which is just another example of American racism that didn’t go away because we had a black President; it intensified instead. I think eliminating prayer would be the last thing on the NFL’s wish list. I’m sure the old, white, can’t-dance owners, of which there are 30, would prefer to implement penalties as stiff as their hips for the hip-thrusting dancers we all love like Antonio Brown. I just don't think there's any way the NFL wins this because of the means by which they adopted the policy outside the collective bargaining agreement and without considering the players' association. But they could get an anthem win elsewhere... NFL Seeks Early End to Kaepernick Collusion Case In more NFL legal news, the NFL is asking arbitrator Stephen Burbank to issue a summary judgement in Colin Kaepernick’s collusion lawsuit against the league, which would bring an end to the saga and give NFL owners another win on the anthem front. Burbank’s refusal to issue a summary judgement would allow the grievance to move forward and allow Kaepernick an opportunity to collect. The NFL, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, hopes to force Kaepernick to ‘put his cards on the table’ and prove they have enough evidence of collusion to continue the lawsuit. So even if the NFL doesn’t get the summary judgement, they’ll know the trial plan of Kaepernick’s team of lawyers. But law requires all facts to be viewed “in the most favorable light” towards Kaepernick, meaning it shouldn’t take much to force the continuation of the case.  I’m assuming Kaepernick doesn’t have a recording of a phone call with an NFL owner saying “I can’t hire you because the other owners said I can't,” so what could Kaepernick possibly have to prove collusion besides the statistics of his last season being better than most backup quarterbacks who played, and why can't that be enough? The only chance I think Kaepernick has is if NFL owners unanimously agreed that the backlash from Donald Trump's tweets would be more damaging to their bottom line than blackballing Kaepernick. DOJ Provisionally Approves Disney Bid for 21st Century Fox, except RSNs Disney’s $71.3-billion offer for the movie and television assets of 21st Century Fox has bee...

Here at Foul Play-by-Play we investigate foul play on and off the field, court, ice and pitch, giving you the week's cheats, cheap shots and alleged criminals in sports. Here are the headlines for the last two weeks ending July 1. Headline 1: Jameis Winston Suspended Three Games for Allegedly Groping Uber Driver Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston has been suspended for the first three games of the 2018 season for allegedly groping an Uber driver over two years ago. Winston has denied the allegations and negotiated a six-game suspension down to three games for issuing an apology, during which Winston never admitted guilt. He said he was sorry to have put her in that position but not for sexually assaulting her. The suspension stems from an alleged incident that occurred in March of 2016, a couple of months after the end of Winston's rookie season in the NFL. After partying with friends in Scottsdale, Arizona, Winston ended up in an Uber. The driver of that car, whose identity still has never been revealed, alleges that Winston grabbed her crotch while they were waiting in a restaurant drive-thru lane. She did not and has not pressed charges but reported the incident to Uber, which deactivated Winston’s account shortly after. The NFL was made aware of the incident after the accuser shared her story with BuzzFeed News. Witnesses have differing testimonies of the night in question, with Winston’s former Florida State teammate Ronald Darby saying he was in the Uber that night and that “nothing inappropriate in nature happened in the car that evening and Jameis did not have any physical contact with the Uber driver.” But former Vanderbilt football player Brandon Banks, serving a 15-year prison sentence for rape and sexual battery, said he and Darby put Winston in the Uber alone that night. Headline 2: Outgoing Carolina Panthers Owner Fined $2.75 Million for Workplace Misconduct In similarly ugly NFL news of foul play off the field, outgoing Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson was fined $2.75 million after an investigation confirmed allegations of racial and sexual misconduct in the workplace. In a letter to Richardson published by Sports Illustrated, one of the women said she "didn't know what to do" about alleged multiple sexual advances by Richardson, including being asked to place her feet in his lap to be rubbed from toes to crotch, being asked to turn around so Richardson could see how her jeans fit, hands placed on her breasts and lips, and being asked sexually charged questions. The sale of the Panthers to hedge fund billionaire David Tepper was approved at the owners meetings in May for an NFL-record $2.275 billion and is expected to close in the next two weeks. Richardson and investors paid just $203 million for the franchise in 1993. One thing I’ve taken from the Me Too movement is that the victims of sexual harassment place vastly different values on their privacy. I think I would bring charges regardless of how much money there was to be won in a sexual assault or harassment case. But some of these victims would rather remain anonymous and tell BuzzFeed for an unannounced amount of money. What would you do? Headline 3: Detroit Tigers Fire Pitching Coach for Using “Monkey” to Describe White Pitcher The Detroit Tigers fired pitching coach Chris Bosio for using insensitive language towards a team employee, but the whole thing could be a misunderstanding that results in legal action taken by Bosio against the team. Bosio said he used the word  “monkey” to describe Tigers pitcher Daniel Stumpf in the team’s coaches’ room. Bosio calls Stumpf “Spider Monkey.” “That’s his nickname,” he said, “He's a skinny little white kid who makes all of these funny faces when he works out.” Bosio believes the black clubhouse attendant thought he and the other coach were talking about him, but he insists that was not the case, swearing on his parents’ graves in an interview with USA Today.

Foul Play-by-Play investigates foul play in sports on and off the court, field, pitch and ice every week. Here's play-by-play on foul play in sports for the week ending June 17. Headlines Ohio Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Reds’ Bobblehead Tax Case The Ohio Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday morning in a dispute over taxes on promotional items purchased by the Cincinnati Reds and offered to fans through promotional ticket packages. Ohio state law exempts companies from paying taxes on items they buy and resell, but the issue is whether promotional items like bobbleheads are being sold as part of a ticket package or given away in an effort to increase ticket sales, which would require the Reds to pay taxes on the items. Attorneys for the Reds argue they don't have to pay tax because they resell the promotional items as part of the ticket package, but the state tax commissioner says the promotional items should be taxed because the Reds bought the items as giveaways and aren't selling them with the tickets. Regardless of whether the Reds’ techniques are legal or not, the attempt to avoid paying $88,000 in state taxes is pretty insensitive given the Reds’ recent history. The construction of Great American Ball Park cost Hamilton County taxpayers $349 million and deprived federal taxpayers of $142 million in revenue – third-most costly of any Major League Baseball stadium according to a Brookings Institute study. The Reds share responsibility with the Cincinnati Bengals for burying Ohio’s Hamilton County in debt, resulting in cuts to social services, including the sale of a hospital, and forcing Hamilton County Commissioners to refinance $376 million of stadium bond debt in 2016. Property owners in Hamilton County were promised 30 percent of the revenue raised by the half-cent increase to the sales tax in the form of reduced tax bills, but the county has rarely had the money to pay the stadium debt and offer the full tax rollback. Meanwhile, the Reds could go from increasing attendance by giving away items plus tax to making money on tax-free items while also increasing attendance. And they’re not the only ones. The Minnesota Twins are also offering more of these promotional ticket packages and fewer giveaways after winning a similar case back in 1998. Like Ohio, “goods and services purchased solely to resell, lease or rent in the regular course of business” are tax exempt in Minnesota. In fact, most states allow businesses to purchase items tax-free as long as those items are to be resold. So this is only the beginning, and already, great American ballparks are turning giveaways into takeaways, likely turning a profit on what was a cheap means of advertising and now is a cheaper means of advertising. Senior manager of group sales for the Twins, Phil McMullen, informed me that the prices for their promotional ticket packages are based on the price of their group tickets, which explains why the markup for the promotional item appears to vary by seat location when compared to buying a single game ticket alone. The same cannot be said for the Reds, whose price for promotional items vary by seat location. The June 19 promotion in Cincinnati is available at three different price points in three different sections of the ballpark. The promotional ticket package is $25 per “View Level” ticket, $55 for a seat in the “Field Box” section and $80 for an “Infield Box” seat. The price of a ticket to the same game in the “View Level” section is $17. A field box seat is $41, and infield box seats range from $65 to $68. So the same bobblehead costs $8 when purchased with a “View Level” ticket, $14 when purchased with a “Field Box” ticket and between $12 and $15 when purchased with an “Infield Box” ticket. So fans purchasing the promotional ticket package will pay four different prices for the exact same product in the same store. The Reds’ attorney says Ohio’s flawed tax code doesn’t require a specific dollar a...

Each week here at Foul Play-by-Play we cover the law-related, sports stories, including the Colangelo scandal and diving deeper into a possible cheerleaders' union. Here are your headlines, "Cheats of the Week," "Historically Foul Play" and "Statistically Significant Foul Player" for the week ending June 10. Headlines Bryan Colangelo and Philadelphia 76ers Part Ways Bryan Colangelo resigned on Thursday as president of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers after his wife admitted to using Twitter accounts to criticize players and support her husband. Sixers coach Brett Brown will oversee basketball operations on an interim basis. An independent investigation found Colangelo to be the source of the sensitive information shared by his wife, Barbara Bottini. Colangelo said his wife was “operating without his consent” and that “at no point did I ever purposefully or directly share any sensitive, non-public, club-related information with her.” So how did she come across this information? You say you didn’t directly share sensitive information, so sas she getting it from someone else in the organization? You say you didn’t share it on purpose, so was it shared in the throes of passion? Barbara taking the blame on this obviously doesn’t make Bryan innocent. She can’t be guilty without having an accomplice giving her the information. It’s a miracle, frankly, Bryan Colangelo wasn’t fired. The Sixers are either being incredibly nice or didn’t want to file the paperwork to fire the man because sharing trade information is a fireable offense. I don’t see Colangelo working again, regardless of this being a resignation and not a firing. Even if he didn’t know about the Twitter accounts, he still shared sensitive information with someone he shouldn’t. When there’s a big trade on the table at work, you don’t go home at lunch and spill the beans to your wife before it’s final. You don’t spill the beans to anyone outside the organizations involved.  Delaware Sees $322,000+ in Sports Wagers on First Day of Legal Betting More than $322,000 was wagered on the first day of legal sports betting in Delaware, Tuesday. Delaware Governor John Carney made the first wager and won, risking $10 on the Philadelphia Phillies to beat the Chicago Cubs. The Phillies won 6-1. That must have paid well. Delaware was already offering parlay betting during the federal ban since 2009 and built sportsbooks within its casinos, waiting for the end of the federal ban. It’s estimated that $350 million to $760 million could be wagered annually if online betting is fully implemented.  Mother of G Leaguer Sues NBA after Son Collapses on Court, Dies Two Days Later The mother of Zeke Upshaw, former swingman for Detroit Pistons’ G League affiliate Grand Rapids Drive who collapsed on the court and died two days later, has filed a lawsuit accusing the NBA and the Detroit Pistons of negligence. Upshaw, 26, collapsed during a game in Grand Rapids on March 24 and died two days later of what a Grand Rapids medical examiner called a sudden cardiac death with cardiac abnormalities. Upshaw had a “slightly enlarged” heart, which is not entirely unusual in athletes and could be unrelated to his death, but the Grand Rapids team doctor was not at the arena when Upshaw collapsed on March 24, so life-saving measures were not attempted, no CPR initiated and no defibrillator used, but Upshaw died two days later. Links to video footage, lawsuit, and media advisory! Cheerleaders Sue Houston Texans Alleging Hostile Work Environment and Withholding Pay Five former NFL cheerleaders sued the Houston Texans on Friday, accusing the franchise of paying the women less than the $7.25 per hour they were due, not compensating them for making public appearances and creating a workplace where the women were threatened with termination for voicing complaints. This isn’t the first time NFL cheerleaders have sued their employers.

Each week at Foul Play-by-Play, we cover the law-related, sports headlines, including the cheats, cheap shots and alleged criminals in sports. Here are the headlines, "Historically Foul Play," “Statistically Significant Foul Player,” and Cheats of the Week for the week of May 18-25. NFL Anthem Protests, Milwaukee Bucks Rookie Tased by Police, and Cheats of the Week for May 18-25 The NFL Plan to Profit from Sports Betting, Donald Trump Does Something Good, and Indiana Law Professor Nathaniel Grow Talks on the Sports Broadcasting Act Headlines New NFL Anthem Protests Policy Adopted without a Vote According to Seth Wickersham, the NFL owners adopted a new national anthem policy despite an official vote never taking place, which he tweeted is “atypical for such a major resolution.” According to Jim Trotter of NFL.com, there were eight to 10 owners who, before the meetings, expressed support for keeping the league’s anthem policy “as is.” They believed the protests were fading and the league should instead focus on community work being done by players. Regardless, it seems the resolution has been adopted by the NFL, and players who choose to be on the field for the national anthem must either “show respect” for the anthem and flag or the team will be fined. The resolution is intentionally vague, allowing NFL owners and the commissioners to determine what qualifies as respect on a case-by-case basis. So standing for the anthem with a fist in the air like Chris Long did to show solidarity for his protesting teammates would be a finable offense. Team owners can pass those fines onto the players, which will allow them to control the players. While New York Jets chairman Christopher Johnson volunteered to pay all fines incurred by Jets players for violating the policy, other owners aren’t expected to be as tolerant. And if an owners says “this team will pay anthem protest fines as a team” not too many players will be protesting. Well the NFL Players' Association is already telling players to save their money for a 2021 lockout, when they next negotiate with owners on a collective bargaining agreement, during which the players could demand a more preferred anthem policy. That works perfectly for me, because I intend to stop watching football if the Vikings don’t win a Super Bowl in the next three years, and not because of anthem protests. I’m tired of watching seven seconds of action followed by 25 seconds of inaction. I’m tired of watching kickers and officials determine the outcomes of games. I’m tired of NFL replay, which will now be used to review ejections. And I’m tired of coaches punting on fourth and inches. But at least a catch is a catch again. USA Swimming Sued for Covering-up Sexual Abuse Olympic swimmer Ariana Kukors Smith is suing USA Swimming alleging a cover-up of her former coach's sexual abuse. Kukors Smith alleges that Sean Hutchison groomed her for sexual abuse when she was 13, started touching and kissing her when she was 16 and engaged in sexual activity with her when she was 17. Worse yet, she alleges the national governing body knew her former coach sexually abused her as early as 2005, when she was 16. The lawsuit alleges that officials did not report it to authorities and didn't protect Kukors Smith while shielding Hutchison and the image of USA Swimming. It seems like a case similar to that of the Penn State/Jerry Sandusky scandal, except we know multiple Penn State employees witnessed Sandusky’s behavior with underage boys. In this case, USA Swimming hired a private investigator in 2010 to look into rumors of a relationship between the then-21 Kukors and Hutchison, who was 39, finding no misconduct after the two and others denied the relationship. Cannabis Use Dashes Dreams of Minor League Baseball Prospect, High School Football Player The Houston Astros cut suspended minor leaguer and former top prospect Jon Singleton because he couldn’t resist smoking cannabis.