The Hardball Times recognizes the 40th anniversary of one of the worst commissioner decisions in baseball, Bowie Kuhn nixing Charlie Finley selling off the players on his team:
Perhaps the lesson of the Finley-Kuhn feud is that egomania comes in many packages. Sometimes it is flamboyant, colorful and cantankerous. Other times it is stolid, bloodless and methodical.
It’s high time the commissioner’s office repudiates that decision and allows teams to sell the contracts of players without limit.
Why?
I remember this. As a kid I didn’t understand why a team was not allowed to sell their players to whomever they wished. I did get that Kuhn and Finley did not like each other, but didn’t understand how Kuhn could legally block the deals…Would have been interesting.
tom » I assume the “Why?” refers to the last sentence. Because the ruling was motivated by hate, not the good of the game, or the protection of the fans, or the protection of the players. Kuhn wanted to drive Finley out of the game, and by making it difficult for Finley to raise money by trading contracts for cash, Kuhn got his wish. It makes no sense economically. Reasoning like this was never applied again. Teams like the Expos and Marlins were allowed to sell off great teams without interference from the commissioner. Teams should be allowed to cover expenses by trading players for cash.