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Former Major League Baseball commissioner Fay Vincent is not a Mark Cuban fan.
During an interview on ESPN Radio on Wednesday morning, Vincent said his dealings with former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner make him leery of another boisterous, flamboyant owner in the game, a description that has fit the Dallas Mavericks' owner.
"I went through the Steinbrenner business. Some of the behavior of owners can be very troublesome for commissioners," Vincent said. "I don't think Mr. Cuban's been an easy partner or owner for (NBA commissioner) David Stern, and that would put me on my guard if he were to come to baseball."
Vincent banned Steinbrenner from baseball for life in 1990 after it was discovered Steinbrenner hired someone to dig up dirt on Yankee outfielder Dave Winfield. Steinbrenner was reinstated in 1993, a year after Vincent left office.
Cuban has been fined repeatedly for criticizing officials, has been involved in trash-talking matches with players and coaches and has been somewhat of a headache for Stern at times. However, like Steinbrenner did with the Yankees, Cuban has turned the Mavericks into annual contenders. The franchise won its first NBA championship Sunday.
Cuban has made failed attempts to buy the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs and has expressed some interest in buying the Los Angeles Dodgers, if they were to come up for sale.
But Vincent doesn't think Cuban is mature enough to own an MLB team.
"The rules are the rules," Vincent said during the radio interview. "I think this enormous criticism—the screaming about officials, the kinds of things that got him fined by David—those are not the actions of a sensible, responsible owner.
"I mean, winning is not everything, and I'm afraid for some of these owners. They get so carried away with winning, they believe that's the objective."
Apparently, Vincent wants owners to be "gentlemen" and not focus so much on winning—the thing that has made the Mavericks and Yankees successful.
"I think it's more important for owners to be gentlemen, play by the rules, respect the authorities, do what's good for the sport, than it is to manage a franchise into total success," Vincent said. "The subtleties make the difference. George Steinbrenner was a real problem in baseball, and I think Mark Cuban is a real problem in basketball."
Tell that to a fan base. Winning is what any fan wants from his favorite team, in any sport. Cuban might not be the easiest owner for Stern to handle, but it probably is a safe bet that Stern loves what Cuban has built, establishing the Mavericks as a viable franchise and a key part of his league.
And although current MLB commissioner Bud Selig has helped squash Cuban's bids in the past, he probably would prefer to deal with the occasional outburst from Cuban than have Frank McCourt retain ownership of the Dodgers.
http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2 ... ngs-in-mlb
[youtube:3j7nsmbw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMk5sMHj58I[/youtube:3j7nsmbw]
Personally I would love for him to buy the Indians or any other team.
During an interview on ESPN Radio on Wednesday morning, Vincent said his dealings with former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner make him leery of another boisterous, flamboyant owner in the game, a description that has fit the Dallas Mavericks' owner.
"I went through the Steinbrenner business. Some of the behavior of owners can be very troublesome for commissioners," Vincent said. "I don't think Mr. Cuban's been an easy partner or owner for (NBA commissioner) David Stern, and that would put me on my guard if he were to come to baseball."
Vincent banned Steinbrenner from baseball for life in 1990 after it was discovered Steinbrenner hired someone to dig up dirt on Yankee outfielder Dave Winfield. Steinbrenner was reinstated in 1993, a year after Vincent left office.
Cuban has been fined repeatedly for criticizing officials, has been involved in trash-talking matches with players and coaches and has been somewhat of a headache for Stern at times. However, like Steinbrenner did with the Yankees, Cuban has turned the Mavericks into annual contenders. The franchise won its first NBA championship Sunday.
Cuban has made failed attempts to buy the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs and has expressed some interest in buying the Los Angeles Dodgers, if they were to come up for sale.
But Vincent doesn't think Cuban is mature enough to own an MLB team.
"The rules are the rules," Vincent said during the radio interview. "I think this enormous criticism—the screaming about officials, the kinds of things that got him fined by David—those are not the actions of a sensible, responsible owner.
"I mean, winning is not everything, and I'm afraid for some of these owners. They get so carried away with winning, they believe that's the objective."
Apparently, Vincent wants owners to be "gentlemen" and not focus so much on winning—the thing that has made the Mavericks and Yankees successful.
"I think it's more important for owners to be gentlemen, play by the rules, respect the authorities, do what's good for the sport, than it is to manage a franchise into total success," Vincent said. "The subtleties make the difference. George Steinbrenner was a real problem in baseball, and I think Mark Cuban is a real problem in basketball."
Tell that to a fan base. Winning is what any fan wants from his favorite team, in any sport. Cuban might not be the easiest owner for Stern to handle, but it probably is a safe bet that Stern loves what Cuban has built, establishing the Mavericks as a viable franchise and a key part of his league.
And although current MLB commissioner Bud Selig has helped squash Cuban's bids in the past, he probably would prefer to deal with the occasional outburst from Cuban than have Frank McCourt retain ownership of the Dodgers.
http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2 ... ngs-in-mlb
[youtube:3j7nsmbw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMk5sMHj58I[/youtube:3j7nsmbw]
Personally I would love for him to buy the Indians or any other team.