MLB Bullets Fought The Law

The St. Louis Cardinals are poised to announce that because of circumstances beyond their control, they intend to play all home games in Marion, Illinois, for the next 8 to 10 seasons. Big, if true.

• Where to start on the Cardinals? Someone in that organization is in a whole heap of trouble. We say that doctoring a baseball is illegal, but really, it's not. It's against the rules. What the Cardinals did is really illegal. Admitted Cardinals fan Will Leitch lays out a Q & A of the crisis and unlike a lot of Cards fans, he comes down pretty hard on those responsible.
• Tim Cowlishaw writes that this is no laughing matter.
• Deadspin, who played a part in getting this story rolling a year ago, says everyone involved appears to be an idiot.
• Rodger Sherman writes that the Cardinals did something stupid for no good reason and this takes recent "cheating" scandals to an entirely new place.
• Ben Reiter has seen the Astros' "Ground Control" and explains exactly what the Cardinals got their hands on.
• Grant Brisbee writes that the Cardinals broke the most important unwritten rule: "Don't be a dumbass."
• We always go to former lawyer Craig Calcaterra such matters. He gives some background of the law that the Cardinals allegedly broke, which dates back to 1984 and Calcaterra calls "poorly written." But he writes that the Department of Justice has used the law in the past to come down very hard on previous hackers and that the FBI and DOJ are going to take this matter very, very seriously.
• Jerry Crasnick plays the "innocent until proven guilty" card but also writes that baseball cheating has been taken to a new level.
• Bob Nightengale talks to some security experts and public relations people about the possible fallout.
• There are a lot of "blame the victim" stories out there and I'll only link to this one because David Brown admits he's blaming the victim. Yes, the Astros should have had better security, but if I leave the window to my house unlocked, that doesn't excuse John Mozeliak breaking into my house and stealing all my stuff. That's what's going on here.
• Jake Lourim explains what options are open to commissioner Rob Manfred as far as punishment goes. You're likely to be disappointed.
• Craig Calcaterra points out the political problems that Manfred will face. Manfred doesn't yet have the kind of political muscle that Bud Selig had and Cards owner BIll DeWitt has been one of his biggest allies.
• The headline says it all. Dear Cardinals fans, this is why nobody likes you.
• This Cardinals stuff overshadows the Padres firing manager Bud Black. Their Triple-A manager Pat Murphy will be the interim manager for the rest of the season.
• Christina Kahrl thinks that Black's firing is a result of Padres GM A.J. Preller's constant need to be doing something. She also examines Black's time as Padres manager and finds him to be perfectly competent.
• AJ Cassavell says the same thing: the Padres have 99 problems, but Bud Black ain't one. Although he does only mention three problems.
• Ben Lindbergh, on the other hand, says that the Padres are a lot worse than their record indicates and that while Black may be a good manager, he might not be the right one for the Padres at this time.
• Tom Verducci points out that "winning" the Winter Meetings doesn't necessarily translate into summer success.
• In the annals of "bad timing," the tickets for the first Padres game after Black was fired had a picture of Black on them.
• The Padres aren't the only winter "winner" having a rough time. Matthew Kory writes that the Boston Red Sox might really be as terrible as they look lately.
• At least the Red Sox got a bit of good news as Brock Holt became the first Red Sox player since 1996 to hit for the cycle. The Red Sox also ended a seven-game losing streak.
• Owen Watson argues that Pablo Sandoval needs to give up switch-hitting.
• The Orioles hit 8 home runs against the Phillies yesterday.
• The Orioles sent Wei-Yin Chen to the minors and he's not happy. And considering that he has the best ERA among Orioles starters, he's got a point. This looks like pure roster manipulation by the Orioles.
• The Marlins say they're planning to keep Dan Jennings as manager next season. Of course they are.
• With all the great prospects getting their major league debut this season, Rob Neyer wants to know why the Dodgers' top prospect, Corey Seager, is still in the minors.
• Joey Gallo is making the case to stay in the majors, even after Adrian Beltre comes off the DL.
• Why I don't care about the All-Star Game anymore.
• Why I don't care about the All-Star Game anymore, take two.
• CJ Nitkowski explains how hard it is to keep your cool when your team is terrible.
• Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker suffered a concussion after being hit by a foul ball.
• The best players from the Netherlands, ever.
• Photographs from the demolished Candlestick Park. Did they find any syringes?
• Here's something you're going to want to read because it's written by John Baker. Baker says that when people say "play the game the right way" what the really mean is "play the game the way I play it."
• The Staten Island Yankees will have "Game of Thrones"-themed uniforms. At the end of each inning, another player will be killed off, starting with the best player on the team.
• And finally, watch a man with no arms throw out the ceremonial first pitch at AT&T Park. And he even threw a strike.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.