War is too important to be left to the generals, French Premier Georges Clemenceau once said. Is it time to wonder whether baseball is too important to be left to its owners?
Viewed even through friendly eyes, the national pastime is in disarray. Whether it's the kind of commissioner they want, how to negotiate with the players union or individual free agents, disciplining Cincinnati owner Marge Shott for racist comments, the owners seem not to know where they're heading. Attendance is slumping and TV revenues, life-blood of their treasuries, are about to tumble.
As if that wasn't enough, some in Congress are again asking pointed questions about baseball's exemption from anti-trust laws. No other major sport has it. The Supreme Court, which granted the immunity in 1922 on sentimental grounds, has virtually conceded that the ruling was wrong. But it passes the buck to Congress to undo its error.