Welcome to the first edition of Unaffiliated Happenings. For those who missed the question about whether I should do this, here’s a quick breakdown of what we’re doing here. On a semi-weekly basis, I’ll release an Unaffiliated Happenings column where I’ll break down three or so of the most interesting unaffiliated news stories from the previous week. Without further ado, here are this week’s new stories.
A Fire Sale at the Ballpark
Okay, not really a sale, but definitely a fire. This week, circumstances led to a situation where the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs and Lexington Legends had to get in their Thursday doubleheader. Unfortunately for the Atlantic League ballclubs, some sort of miscue or malfunction with the tarp at the Blue Crabs’ Regency Furniture Stadium left a lot of water on the field. The Blue Crabs’ groundskeeper came up with the perfect solution, setting the damn field on fire to dry up the wet spots. I mean, it must have worked because they played both games, but, uh, perhaps we shouldn’t be setting baseball fields on fire, just a thought.
Two Champions Are Crowned
This past week the Confederation of European Baseball Champions Cup (CEBCC) and Confederation of European Baseball Cup (CEBC) both took place. These yearly tournaments, of which the CEBCC is the higher level, are for the two top tiers of what I would consider professional baseball in Europe. Huskies de Rouen from France’s Division 1 took home the CEBC crown while Parmaclima from Italy’s Campionato Italiano di Baseball Serie A emerged victorious in CEBCC play. Both of these tournaments are a lot of fun and in general, the concept of league champions competing against one another makes for a great experience.
Women Still Don’t Matter
Baseball as a whole has a major problem with domestic violence. Specifically, professional baseball has a problem with turning a blind eye to domestic abuse if a player is deemed good enough. Roberto Osuna signed a deal with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball’s Pacific League this past week. In a world where high-quality relievers can be found just about anywhere, the Marines decided it was worth bringing in a known abuser. It’s clear based on their signing of Osuna that they don’t care one iota about their female fans, but unfortunately, that is standard practice in men’s professional baseball.
Lead artwork courtesy of Pedro Carvalho
