Wednesday, May 16, 2012

ARE SHADY CHARACTERS HANGING AROUND YOUR GAMES?

It has come to the attention of the commissioner's office that there are betting lines being posted for Center City Softball League games, even though this is in obvious violation of league rules, which state emphatically that there can be no financial changing of hands involving league play without the standard 10 percent service charge being delivered to Club Edventure in small, unmarked bills hidden beneath the porta-potty at Dairy 4.
I think we all know the dangers of gambling and its possible effect on the public's confidence that CCSL play is "on the level." I will give you a quick example and in no way an I saying there was anything hinky about this result, but it is the sort of thing that the media can pick up on and make us look bad.
The Catahoula Refugees and the Zoo played on Tuesday night. According to a "betting line sheet" that I found crumpled near the trash can that the park commission has conveniently placed at the bottom of the hill near Dairy 2, the Refugees were 12-run favorites in the game and the "over and under" on the game was a total of 25 runs.
Well, and as you know I have to recuse myself in some ways from getting involved in this matter, because Commissioner Ed Venture (me) plays for Catahoula, but I don't know if there was anything "funny" going on, but it turned out that the 13-9 final score didn't cover the spread and the 22-run total was also under expectations. Now, it's clear that some members of the Catahoula team, without my knowledge, and perhaps even in cahoots with the Zoo, could have conspired to keep the score close and cashed in on the outcome. Guys, we can't have this in the CCSL.
What we can have, however, is a great time this coming weekend as Club Edventure looks for buried treasure along Forbidden Drive. Every contestant will receive a shovel (for a $45 service charge) and an official Edventure Booty Bag ($25 service charge). Come on out and see what you can find! And while we're digging through the dirt, let's remember to keep the CCSL clean!

No comments:

Post a Comment