Selig: baseball's funny man

I've interviewed Bud Selig, the commissioner of baseball, a few times. I never realized what a unique sense of humor the guy has.
It sure came out this week.
First, Selig's office announced a marketing scheme, er, plan, with the producers of the movie "Spider Man 2" to put the film's logos on bases during the first weekend of interleague play in June.
Then, sensing the resultant public and media outrage, Selig announced proudly that the plan was being scuttled to preserve the sanctity of the game.
Selig's exact quote was this: "I'm a traditionalist. The problem in sports marketing, particularly in baseball, is you're always walking a very sensitive line. Nobody loves tradition and history as much as I do."
In response, I have two words.
Puh. Leeze.
Tradition takes a beating
Under Selig's guidance as commissioner, Major League Baseball has honored the tradition and history of the game with decisions like these:
UHe oversaw an owners revolt to force out then-commissioner Fay Vincent in 1992.
UHe led the owners in 1994, when the players strike wiped out the World Series for the first time in over 90 years, and the lockout the following spring which threatened the entire 1995 season.
UHe introduced wild card berths to the postseason.
UHe created interleague play.
UIn the last contract negotiation, he ignored issues such as the designated hitter and drug testing, deciding that both would be so controversial with the union so as to preclude an agreement.
UHe's permitted Orioles owner Peter Angelos to single-handedly block the troubled Expos franchise from moving to Washington, D.C., clearly the most logical city.
UHe's attached more importance to one mid-season exhibition contest, the All-Star Game, than to any of the 2,430 regular season matchups by giving home field advantage to the winning league.
UThe tradition of opening day has been completely dismantled by Selig. This year, the first games of the season were played in Tokyo, at 5 a.m. on the East Coast.
Pete and re-Pete
UHe's refused to take a public and final stand on Pete Rose's possible reinstatement and resulting eligibility for the Hall of Fame, yet he stood by while Rose was included as part of the all-century team at the 2000 All-Star Game because the corporate sponsor of the event demanded Rose's inclusion.
USelig decries the declining popularity of the game he oversees, yet does nothing about postseason games that start so late at night they preclude many of America's youth from watching -- the very demographic the sport needs to attract to increase its fan base.
UThe overiding problem facing the game today -- the disparity in team revenues that allow clubs like the Yankees and Red Sox to offer contracts beyond the capability of many others -- has been allowed to go unchecked by the commissioner's office. Selig's distorted sense of reality (and humor) was evident when he OK'd the Rangers' trade of Alex Rodriguez to the Yankees. Selig said he wouldn't be as likely to give his stamp of approval to such deals in the future -- as if any teams, other than the Yankees, Red Sox or a handful of other large market clubs could even fathom pulling off such a transaction.
So, when the commissioner's office first announced the "Spider Man 2" promotion earlier this week, I didn't necessarily feel the sense of outrage like many other sports journalists and fans around the country.
Perhaps it's because I've become numbed by the barrage of tradition-busting developments that Selig has overseen in his dozen years in charge, either as commissioner or chairman of the executive council.
I can only imagine what's next -- perhaps the MasterCard World Series, to be played in Tokyo, Mexico City and Paris. It'd be funny if it wasn't so sad.
XRob Todor is sports editor of The Vindicator. Write to him at todor@vindy.com.