OMG Cubs Owner is a Sexual Harraser and Other Misleading Bullets

The first off-day in what seems like eons is upon us. Off-days, however welcome, are a little less fun the day after a loss. To the White Sox. By one run.

  • Well, Geovany Soto is healthy, which robs Mike Quade of any possible legitimate explanation he had for allowing Koyie Hill to hit with one out in the 8th inning and the tying run on third last night.
  • The explanation Quade did offer? “At that point, with Campana on third, I wanted the best chance to make contact,” he said. “I thought Koyie has gotten some big hits, and I wasn’t sure we needed a base hit there. If he puts the ball in play, I feel like we have a shot….It didn’t work out.” I can only shake my head, as I’ve grown weary of parsing these kind of ridiculous post hoc explanations. Ok, I can do one more thing than shake my head: lefties have just three hits in 37 at-bats against Jesse Crain this year, the pitcher against whom Hill was supposed to “make contact.”
  • Cubs Owner Ricketts Sued for Sexual Harassment.” Raise your hand if you’re wondering why such a shocking story would be relegated to a mere bullets post. Would telling you that Sports Illustrated, among others reporting the story, decided not to include the operative first name of the Ricketts in question – Joe – explain it? Let me make two things clear: (1) The Ricketts family owns the Cubs, and Joe Ricketts is the patriarch of the family. Thus, yes, he is an owner of the Cubs. (2) This is a legitimate story to report. Those two things said, we all know of whom we think when “Cubs owner Ricketts” is mentioned. We’re thinking of Tom Ricketts, the Chairman and face of the ownership, and I can’t help but think that the ambiguity in the headline was intentional. I’m reminded of the time that some bit actor in ‘The 40-Year-Old Virgin’ stabbed his wife, and the headlines the next day screamed, “40-Year-Old Virgin Star Stabs Wife.”
  • Worse, Joe Ricketts isn’t even being accused directly of sexual harassment! He’s being accused of sexual harassment retaliation. It is alleged that he fired two Nebraska employees after they claimed they were sexually harassed by TD Ameritrade’s COO – an unseemly (and rightly actionable) claim, to be sure, but hardly the same thing as “that old guy grabbed my ass!” SI took an AP story, and slapped the most incendiary possible headline on it. It’s unbelievable, really. SI needs to audit the way its headlines are crafted. This one is unethical, and maybe a little dangerous.
  • Darwin Barney is expected to begin a rehab stint this weekend. He’s not eligible to come off the DL until June 29.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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