Sean Taylor Murder Trial Postposned Till August

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Chat: New Nationals Ballpark
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
For those interested, Washington Times sports business reporter Tim Lemke is conducting a chat regarding the new Nationals Park. As noted on the chat site: Nationals Park formally opens this weekend with an exhibition game between the Nats and Orioles on Saturday, followed by the official home opener on Sunday night against the Braves. The Washington Times' sports business reporter Tim Lemke will host a live chat on Friday at 1 p.m. to talk about what to look for, how to get there and, of course, answer any questions from fans. He'll also be happy to answer any other questions related to ticket sales, concessions, sponsorships or other sports business ...

Holding Pattern: Guillen, Gibbons Desciplines Stayed
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
In a sign that changes to MLB drug testing policy are about to occur, Major League Baseball and the Players Association have agreed to stay the discipline of Jose Guillen of the Kansas City Royals and Jay Gibbons of the Baltimore Orioles for 10 days to allow for further negotiations over revisions to the Joint Drug Agreement. As I write today on Maury Brown's Biz of Sports: The changes that are nearly at hand will reportedly include year-round testing for performance-enhancing substances (at this time, I have not heard or read whether stimulants will be included), more tests being conducted on the players, and changes in how testing is administered. On ...

Single Game Attendance Record Should Fall Tomorrow
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
Tomorrow night, the Boston Red Sox will visit the Los Angeles Dodgers in an exhibition game at the LA Coliseum as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the Dodgers’ arrival in Los Angeles. The game is a benefit for ThinkCure, the Dodgers’ official charity. The Dodgers have announced that to date they have sold 115,300 tickets to tomorrow night’s game and are expected to set baseball's world record for attendance, surpassing the estimated 114,000 for an exhibition between the Australian national team and an American services team during the Olympic Games in Melbourne , Australia on Dec. 1, 1956. ...

Wanna Bet? Red Sox, Mass. Lottery to Make Announcement
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
Pete Rose is banned from baseball for gambling. The door of every clubhouse warns players that if the gamble on MLB games, they too will be banned. Yet, baseball has continued to accept legalized gambling, or gaming, as no longer being a social taboo, and more importantly, a way to garner increased revenues. In 2006, the Red Sox were the first MLB club to reach a deal with a state run lottery. The deal as for scratch-it tickets for Red Sox cruise packages and jerseys used in games, as well as more traditional prizes of up to $1 million. At the time of the announcement, tickets were $5. It should be noted that baseball is far from the only professional sport to offer scratch-its, just the one that ...

MLB.com: Video-Alerts to Mobiles. High-Def Streaming
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
For those that get their MLB content online, this season sees the largest product offerings launch through MLB Advanced Media, and MLB.com in their history. Starting on Opening Day, the following products will be offered: Enhanced Gameday/Video Alerts According to BAM, MLB.com has enhanced the real-time application with real-time video alerts, in-depth Game Previews, the MLB.com Daily Rewind recap and other game-specific video. The real-time video alerts, up to 10 per game, will be available via an exclusive free trial for the month of April (see details below). In addition, those watching Gameday online, Major League Baseball will provide precise pitch speed, ...

When it Comes to Hot Dog Consumption, Mets Fans Rule
Published 3/28/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
It’s the food that’s as traditional as the game itself. The hot dog, in all its forms, is the perennial favorite at ballparks across the country. In what will surely make the American Heart Association cringe, the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council estimates that 30 million hot dogs will be consumed at the 30 ballparks across the nation this year. To place that in perspective the NSDSC says that those 30 million hot dogs would be enough to round the bases 41,776 times. And which fans love hot dogs the most? Would it be Los Angeles with the classic Dodger Dog? Nope, it’s Mets fans at Shea Stadium. According to a survey conducted by ...

A Beat Down? Quebec Government May Impose Rules on Fighting and Violence in Hockey
Published 3/29/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Hockey :: Business of Sports Network
... High-Def Streaming - The Biz of Baseball Wanna Bet? Red Sox, Mass. Lottery to Make Announcement - The Biz of Baseball Single Game Attendance Record Should Fall Tomorrow - The Biz of Baseball Holding Pattern: Guillen, Gibbons Desciplines Stayed - The Biz of Baseball Cowboys Increase Offer for Adam "Pacman" Jones - The Biz of Football Sean Taylor Murder Trial Postposned Till August - The Biz of Football ...

Some History of the Expos Relocation to DC and My Nationals Park Mea Culpa
Published 3/29/2008 by maury at Maury Brown's Biz of Sports
The turning point for my studies in sports as a business may have had far, far earlier beginnings, but there is certainly no point more important for me than the relocation of the Montreal Expos. As one that resides in Portland, OR. I worked closely with former Indiana Pacers general manager, and now owner of several NBA D-League teams, David Kahn on some of the material that was submitted to MLB regarding why the Portland market could support the relocated Expos and how to fund the development of a new stadium. Of course, the story of the relocation ends in Washington, D.C. where the Expos became the Nationals. The final part of this event culminates Sunday when the Nationals take the field ...

Bush League: President Didn’t Choose Acta Over Lo Duca
Published 3/29/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
On Sunday, when the new Nationals Park opens, President Bush will be part of the celebration as he throws out the first pitch. But, it will be manager Manny Acta that will be behind homeplate, not Nationals catcher Paul Lo Duca, who was named in the Mitchell Report. Could politics be coming into play? Not so, if you believe the president. As reported by The AP: The White House said Friday it had no input on the decision to have Nationals manager Manny Acta catch the ceremonial first pitch from President Bush on Sunday night. Acta was picked instead of starting catcher Paul Lo Duca, whose name appeared prominently ...

One and Done? South Coast League Suspends Operations
Published 3/29/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
After one season, the South Coast League officially is over. The South Coast League of Professional Baseball announced today that on April 1st, the league will be suspending business operations and postpone the 2008 season indefinitely.  The SCL launched in six markets located in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida in 2007. Most recent plans called for the replacement of one team by a new addition to the league out of Jackson, Mississippi. Cash flow issues have followed the SCL since launching last year. Earlier this week, SLC CEO Jamie Toole resigned, an ominous sign for the league. Talk has centered on relaunching the league next season. As reported ...

115,300 Attend "Whiffle Ball" Game at LA Coliseum
Published 3/30/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
    There are few things that astound us any more. Even less so, it seems, in sports. We’ve seen it all, or at least that is the conventional wisdom. As I turned on NESN tonight ahead of the exhibition game between the Dodgers and Red Sox at the LA Coliseum, an event marking the 50th anniversary of the Dodgers arrival in Los Angeles, as well as a fund raiser for the ...

Sunday Night: Nationals Park, Bill James on "60 Minutes"
Published 3/30/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
A Sunday night televison programming reminder… Nationals Park makes its Opening Day debut tonight on ESPN (8:05 p.m. ET) as the Nationals play the Braves. The $611 million ballpark is the final piece in a lengthy process that involved the relocation of the Montreal Expos to Washington, D.C. The relocation, stadium funding, and construction, had a number of twists and turns. As you can see, it turned out to be a very nice ballpark. As for back-story, try reading my column on my personal blog, Some History of the Expos Relocation to DC and My Nationals Park Mea Culpa. As one might guess from the article title, I was more than a critic of the process, so much so ...

Wanted: Basketball Bloggers
Published 3/30/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Basketball :: Part of the Business of Sports Network
... Mets Fans Rule - The Biz of Baseball MLB.com: Video-Alerts to Mobiles. High-Def Streaming - The Biz of Baseball Wanna Bet? Red Sox, Mass. Lottery to Make Announcement - The Biz of Baseball Holding Pattern: Guillen, Gibbons Desciplines Stayed - The Biz of Baseball Cowboys Increase Offer for Adam "Pacman" Jones - The Biz of Football Sean Taylor Murder Trial Postposned Till August - The Biz of Football ...

Cashing in on Nostalgia. Cashing in on the New.
Published 4/2/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
In America, the marriage of baseball and nostalgia can make for an intoxicating blend, and rightfully so. Baseball seems to bring us back to days with family and friends, and “the good old days.” And when it comes to saying goodbye to a ballpark that is revered, well, people far and wide will make the pilgrimage to say their final farewells. So, it should come as no surprise that MLB owners look to cash in on stadium swan songs, if they have longevity and rank something above the Kingdome. Ballparks are sliced and diced and sold to those that wish to put a piece of history in their home or office. Along with the selling off of history, ticket prices climb with the frenzy. To add ...

See Them All: 239 Players In MLB Born Outside US
Published 4/2/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
MLB announced yesterday that a total of 239 players on Opening Day rosters and disabled lists were born outside the 50 United States. Overall, 28.0 percent of the 855 Major League players (749 active 25-man roster players, 106 disabled or restricted Major League players) on March 30th rosters were born outside the 50 United States, representing 16 different countries or territories. In 2007, a record 246 players were born outside the United States, amounting to 29.0 percent of players on Opening Day rosters and disabled lists. The highest percentage of foreign-born players occurred in 2005, when 29.2 percent of those on Opening Day rosters and disabled lists were born outside the United States. The ...

Max Headroom: MLB.TV Doubles Activity Levels
Published 4/3/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, announced today that its out-of-market video package, MLB.TV, reached unprecedented Opening Day levels by delivering over 1.7 million live game video streams and adding nearly 36,000 individual subscribers during the first two days of games from March 31-April 1. Both figures represent increases more than double the comparable activities from the same time period in 2007. The traffic increase comes on the heels of the largest product launch in MLB.com's history , including "High-Def" streaming. Source: MLBAM Press Release ...

Jeter & Ortiz Throw Caps in the Ring for XM Campaign
Published 4/3/2008 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball
Getting tired (already) of Obama, Clinton, and McCain talk? Want new fresh faces on the campaign trail? How about Derek Jeter and David Ortiz as new candidates. Both Jeter and Ortiz have tossed their caps into the ring to campaign for XM Satellite Radio. The "race" is the new multimedia marketing campaign from XM that will run throughout the course of the season. A new XM TV spot offers a parody of election ads with Ortiz campaigning for the "Every Game" platform, while Jeter stumps for "Every Team." The TV spot and online ads are premiering this week. Baseball fans can visit the new web site ...