Les' account of the Press Pass Incident
eventually diverged rather significantly from the one several have shared here and elsewhere:
grobber33 wrote:
My,my what a lengthy thread! Guess I should be honored!
OK, here goes.....again. Below is a "reprint" of a post right here on CSFMB from a few years ago about the BS reason that Harvey Wells(the THEN GM of the Score) gave for running me out of there in August 2001:
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There are 3 ways to answer this(for the 1000th time--or more!). The very long way which I'll have in my Book in the future,,,the medium length version,,,and the rather short one which I'll put here!
***There WAS NO Credential violation.. If there was,, Major League Baseball would not credential me for the World Series or Allstar Game and I have been at All since 2001 and will be again this year!! That was an excuse by Harvey Wells(the then GM) who just wanted me out of there.
***Wells never wanted me hired in the first place in 1997,but guys like North,Gleason and Ofman DID want me there and I was hired above his(Wells's) objections! He never wanted local overnight shows. He tried to find reasons to get me out of there several times in the interim,,,and once Gleason was gone in Mar 2001,,,Wells found his 'excuse' in July 2001. Ted Cox even called that reason 'a ruse' in his Daily Herald column.
***North said on the air several times that I was 'screwed'. Of course he now work's with Wells Wife.Nothing against her,she had nothing to do with this.
***That extra Credential was used for a legit reason to get Post Game tape from that 2001 AS Game from Maggs,Lieber and Sosa(the 3 Chi Players)since I had to do my overnight show about 20 miles from Safeco Field and did not have time to get tape). MLB approved THAT USE of that pass. Jeff Schwartz(acting PD) knew of that. He was helpless however and had to keep his mouth shut. Wells was going to get rid of me and nobody could stop that. He even did it while 'Pappy' was on Vacation!!
***This kind of stuff is NOT unusual in this business--it happens ALL THE TIME! You take the good with the bad. Why Wells didn't like me,I have no idea,,,I was always respectful towards him,,,only he knows.
Yes,,THIS IS THE SHORT VERSION,,,,just wait for the long one,,down the road,,,it's much jucier! As for that Reporter who's name was on the pass,,we are talking about someone who was NOT a team player,,who was selfish,,,and who is OUT OF THE BUSINESS. Someone I was always nice to,but who was nasty to most people. That's all I'm saying on that!!!
To use a favorite Dan MacNeil line,,,,,,'I APOLOGIZE FOR NOTHING'!!!
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As for going back to either All Sports Station, the ball would be in THEIR courts, not mine. I know that the Score gets plenty of emails,letters,& calls etc from nice folks who have been supportive,but Mitch(whom I get along with just fine)has not spoken to me about anything along the lines of returning to their air waves. There is more to that than even I know!
What I'm currently doing consists of working Nationally for ABC Radio and AP Radio, the aforementioned ME-TV Sunday Program CPS Sports Review,and play by play in the summer of Chicago Sky games on WVON-AM 1690. I also run my own web site grobber.com which we update daily.
I do check this site out often and post when a subject calls for. I enjoy the hell out of this board!
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Antonio Gramsci wrote:
The crisis consists precisely in the fact that the old is dying and the new cannot be born; in this interregnum a great variety of morbid symptoms appear.