Major League Baseball was greeted Wednesday with more news from the Dominican Republic that it didn't need. Sports Illustrated reported that Michael Inoa, the 16 year old who just signed a $4.25 million deal with Oakland, was mentored by a man who ran a gambling operation in that country.

Inoa worked with Edgar Mercedes for three years before signing with the Athletics earlier this month, and Major League Baseball executives have taken note. It's likely an investigation, even a small one, will be started, but the problem for MLB is twofold. One, wagering on sports is legal in the Dominican. Two, MLB desperately needs Latin American talent. So baseball doesn't want to be seen as punitive, especially when dealing with a 16-year-old. After all, it's going to be a long, long time before Inoa could potentially throw a big league ballgame.

Still, this is awful news for MLB, which was already dealing with a different scandal in the Dominican Republic. MLB scouts and executives, including Washington Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden, are under a federal investigation for allegedly skimming money off the top of bonuses paid to teenagers signed from that country.
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This Hall of Famer was a player, manager, general manager, and league executive in nearly 50 years in baseball.
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In the see-saw battle that is the NL East, the Mets rebounded to defeat the Phillies 6-3 on a 3-run HR by Jose Reyes in 6th inning at Shea. Stay tuned for the series finale, a daytime affair. The Marlins failed to make it a three-way tie atop the division, falling at home to the Braves 9-4 to remain a game back.

The CC Sabathia choo-choo train just keeps steamrolling along as the Brewers won their 7th straight, with a sweep over the Cardinals. The highly coveted ace of this year's midseason trade market has proved to be worth every penny by throwing a shutout in his third straight complete game, improving to 4-0, 1.36 ERA in 33 innings since donning the Brewers uniform.
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                1  2  3   4  5  6    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Blue Jays       0  0  1   0  0  1    2  6  0
Orioles         0  0  0   1  0  X    1  6  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Rangers         1  2  0   2  1  0   2  0  0    8 11  1
White Sox       3  0  0   0  1  0   1  5  X   10  9  4

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Tigers          2  1  2   0  0  0   2  0  0    7 13  0
Royals          0  0  0   0  0  0   1  0  0    1  4  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Indians         2  0  0   2  2  0   1  3  1   11 14  0
Angels          0  2  0   3  5  2   2  0  X   14 19  2

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Twins           0  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  1    1  9  0
Yankees         0  0  0   0  2  3   0  0  X    5  9  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9  10 11 12    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Red Sox         0  0  2   0  0  1   0  0  0   0  0  3    6 11  0
Mariners        0  0  0   1  0  2   0  0  0   0  0  0    3 11  2

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Athletics       0  2  0   0  0  0   0  0  1    3  6  0
Rays            0  0  0   0  3  0   1  0  X    4  6  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Cubs            1  0  0   0  3  0   0  6  0   10 10  0
Diamondbacks    0  0  0   2  1  0   0  3  0    6 10  2

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Padres          1  0  0   0  0  2   0  1  1    5 10  1
Reds            0  0  0   0  1  3   5  0  X    9 13  1

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Dodgers         0  2  0   1  0  0   0  0  0    3 11  0
Rockies         2  0  3   0  0  0   0  0  X    5 11  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Braves          0  0  2   3  0  0   1  3  0    9 12  0
Marlins         0  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  4    4  7  1

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Pirates         4  1  1   0  0  0   2  0  0    8 14  0
Astros          3  1  1   1  0  0   1  0  0    7 11  1

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Phillies        0  2  0   0  1  0   0  0  0    3  6  1
Mets            2  0  1   0  0  3   0  0  X    6 10  0

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Nationals       0  0  0   0  1  3   0  0  0    4 14  0
Giants          2  0  0   0  1  0   0  3  X    6 10  2

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Brewers         0  0  0   0  1  1   0  0  1    3 11  0
Cardinals       0  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  0    0  3  0

He first broke into the big leagues as a shortstop at age 19, though he didn't become a starter until three years later, after a quick trip back to the minor leagues.
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As it gets later in the season, it is becoming more and more obvious that this could very well be Ken Griffey, Jr.'s last year in uniform. His batting average has hovered well below .250 all year and he doesn't hit the ball nearly as far as he used to. Both can be attributed to a slow bat. Griffey has to start his swing so early now that he can't make adjustments, which is the main reason he went nearly a month between hitting long balls early this year.

And it's not like this is a recent trend. After batting .286-.390-.568 before the All-Star break in 2007, his averages plummeted to just ..266-.350-.411 in the final 62 games of the year. His best month in 2008, at least in batting average, was May when Griffey hit .250. However, that month also saw him collect just seven extra-base hits and slug a paltry .360.

It's a foregone conclusion that the Reds will decline the 2009 option they hold on his contract and Griffey will become a free agent at the end of the year. If he wants to play next season, he's going to have to make some concessions. It's likely he would have to sign a one-year contract laden with incentives with an American League club where he could be a designated hitter. And since he's currently hitting below .200 against left-handed hitters, he'd likely be used in a platoon role.

Griffey deserves to be mentioned with the great players in history. He was the dominant player in the American League in the 1990s. He hit for average, power, stole bases and played outstanding defense. So what's the deal now? The Kid is 38 now and is struggling with the same affliction that's hampered every great player -- age. (At least the ones who didn't "help" themselves chemically.)

Here's a look at the final seasons of some of the great sluggers in history:

PLAYER..............YEAR--AGE---BA--OBP--SLG
Willie Mays..........1972---42---.211---.303---.344
Mickey Mantle......1968---36---.237---.385---.398
Hank Aaron...........1976---42---.229---.315---.369
Barry Bonds..........2007---42---.276---.480---.565
Babe Ruth.............1935---40---.181---.359---.431
Joe DiMaggio......1951---36---.263---.365---.422
Ted Williams.........1960---41---.316---.451---.645

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He won two pennants as field manager, but he was less than successful as a general manager. His teams were rarely in contention, partly because he passed on signing a 16-year-old named Willie Mays.
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Detroit based The Shy, an acoustic rock trio, has put together a music video tribute to Tiger Stadium called "Somebody To Love". The band is trying to raise awareness that time is running out to save the landmark ballground, which has already seen parts of the wall surrounding the park come down. The video can be seen at the band's web site, theshy.com.
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Get ready to see many, many replays of George Brett going manic, as virtually every sports highlight show will devote at least some time today to the infamous "Pine Tar Game," played on this date in 1983.

Brett, the star third baseman for the Kansas City Royals, was ejected in the top of the ninth inning from one of the best known regular season games in history because he had pine tar on the barrel of his bat. Brett had just homered off Yankee closer Goose Gossage, giving the Royals a 5-4 lead. New York skipper Billy Martin (who tearfully submitted his resignation as manager of the Yankees on this date in 1978), appealed to the umpires, led by crew chief Joe Brinkman. The enduring image from the videotape is of home plate umpire Tim McClelland turning to Kansas City's dugout and holding his right arm in the air to signal that Brett was out, but as crew chief, it was ultimately Brinkman's call. The arbiters were following the letter of the rule, which said pine tar couldn't be more than 18 inches from the handle of the bat. Brett went ape, charged out of the dugout, and had to be restrained by teammates (and Brinkman) to keep him from getting to McClelland. With the home run nullified, the Yankees went on to win the game, at least for the time being.

The Royals immediately protested the game, and AL president Lee MacPhail agreed that while the pine tar was in violation of the way the rule was written, it didn't violate the spirit of the rule, which was in place to guarantee that a player didn't gain a competitive advantage by doctoring the bat. MacPhail upheld Kansas City's appeal, and the game was finished three weeks later on Aug. 18. Showing himself to be a good sport and a true gentleman, Martin appealed to the new umpiring crew that was working on Aug. 18, saying the game couldn't be completed because they didn't know that Brett and the runner who scored ahead of him had touched all four bases. However, the umpires had affidavits signed by Brinkman's crew saying they had, and the game continued. Martin, continuing to act like a child, put left-handed hitting first baseman Don Mattingly at second base and pitcher Ron Guidry in center, though the Royals quickly finished out the win, this time for good.

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Joe Cronin was one of the most virulent racists ever to be in charge of running a big league ballclub. As general manager of the Red Sox, he refused to integrate the team. In his first year as GM, Cronin's scouts were calling him constantly, pleading for him to sign Willie Mays, who was playing at the time for one of Boston's farm teams, the Birmingham Black Barons. Though Mays was willing to sign for just $5,000, Cronin passed and Mays wound up playing most of his Hall of Fame career for the Giants. The Red Sox were the last major league team to integrate, and it was no accident that they didn't promote Pumpsie Green until after Cronin had been named AL president.

Cronin was a career .301 hitter as a player. He first broke in with the Pirates, but played only part of two seasons before being sold to the Kansas City Blues, who in turn sold him to the Washington Senators, where he played the first half of his career, and won the 1933 AL pennant as a player/manager. He finished his playing (and managerial) career with the Red Sox, who won only one pennant in Cronin's tenure. He was named the club's GM when the 1947 season ended, and he remained in that capacity until being elected AL president in early 1959.

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The Baseball Early Bird is a new, free daily newsletter published jointly by the two leaders in the field of baseball reference: Sports Reference Inc.--which produces Baseball-Reference.com--and 24-7 Baseball, L.L.C.--which produces The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia.

Gary Gillette, son of lifelong Tigers' fan Charles Gillette, is The Early Bird's Executive Editor and Co-Publisher.

Sean Forman, son of Yankees' fan Floyd Forman, is The Early Bird's technical guru and Co-Publisher.

Doug White, whose father switched his allegiance to the Cubs after the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, was the lead writer of today's Early Bird.

Toke Nelson's middle son, Rod, contributed to today's issue.

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