Once a Knucklehead…

Milton Bradley and Jose Offerman were both in the news again this week, and, needless to say, it isn’t good.

Milton Bradley has been sued by the owner of the luxury apartment Miltie lived in in Chicago during his brief tenure as a Cub.  According to the landlord, as soon as the Cubs suspended him for the remainder of the season late last year, he moved out of the apartment and ceased to pay rent, even though the lease required him to continue paying for several more months.

The landlord is seeking only about $41,000, plus, I assume, interest and attorneys’ fees if provided for in the lease (they usually are).  I have little doubt that Miltie will eventually pay up — these are usually pretty simple cases: either the lease required Miltie to keep paying rent or it did not, probably the former, assuming it was a one-year lease.

Still, it doesn’t say much for your character that landlords have to chase you around the country for what amounts to chump-change when you’re making $10 million a year.

Meanwhile, Jose Offerman, who had been managing in the Dominican Winter League, has been banned for life after trying to punch an American umpire following a disputed strike call in a DWL play-off game.  After the incident, that umpire and three other American umpires left the country after receiving threats of violence from fans.  As a result, the Dominican League will be forced to use solely Dominican umpires for the championship series.

Some of you might remember that Offerman’s playing career in the U.S. ended with an ugly incident in the Independent A Atlantic League in 2007.  After getting hit with a pitch, Offerman charged the pitcher Matt Beech with bat in hand and ended up striking both Beech and catcher John Nathans with it.

In February 2009, Nathans sued Offerman for $4.8 million in New York State court alleging permanent injuries from being hit in the head with Offerman’s bat.

After the bat-wielding incident, a court subsequently ordered Offerman to undergo anger-management treatment.  Obviously, it didn’t take.

Here’s video of the recent incident from ESPN.  It’s hard to tell if Offerman’s swing actually made contact with the umpire.  However, the umpire sure goes down as if he’s been clipped on the point of the chin.  Either that, or the ump chose an opportune moment to take a dive.

Regardless, that kind of conduct is unacceptable on a baseball field, and Offerman got what he deserves for doing it.  I hope we don’t hear anything more about Offerman in the future, although he strikes me as the kind of guy about whom we’ll hear that he’s been shot, shot somebody or otherwise up on serious charges five or ten years from now.

As for Miltie, I’m sure we haven’t heard the last bad thing about him.  In that regard, he’s almost as reliable as death and taxes.