Corruption of professional baseball discussed in upcoming Geek Speak at BHSU

Dr. David Cremean, professor of English at BHSU, traces major historical events in professional baseball that led to scandals and corruption in the upcoming Geek Speak lecture "Lawyers, Home Runs, and Money: The Long and Ongoing Corruption of Professional Baseball, America&rsquos Past-its-Time." The presentation will take place Thursday, Oct. 27 at 4 p.m. in Jonas Hall, room 110 at BHSU. Event is free and open to the public.

The Black Hills State University Geek Speak lecture Thursday, Oct. 27th will explore the major scandals and corporate corruption that changed how professional baseball is perceived today.

Dr. David Cremean, professor of English at BHSU, will present "Lawyers, Home Runs, and Money: The Long and Ongoing Corruption of Professional Baseball, America&rsquos Past-its-Time" Thursday, Oct. 27 at 4 p.m. in Jonas Hall, room 110. The event is free and open to the public.

Baseball was Cremean&rsquos first love, and Pete Rose, Major League Baseball player and manager, his first hero. In his presentation, Cremean will include examples of early professional baseball scandals, noted and unnoted, from the 1919 "Black Sox Scandal" to the long-time money dominance of the New York Yankees and Walter O&rsquoMalley&rsquos move from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, along with the scandalous color line.

"One of the most famous scandals in baseball was the Black Sox Scandal. It happened when several White Sox baseball players made an agreement with gamblers to intentionally lose World Series games for money," says Cremean.

The emphasis of the upcoming Geek Speak will be the history of corporate corruption. According to Cremean, problems between ownership and commissioners&rsquo offices created a pattern in baseball history.

"The more we know about life, areas of sports and how they reflect our values in society, the better we can understand what is happening around us," says Cremean.

Cremean argues that the money dominance of the New York Yankees reflects corporate abuse and Cremean expresses his concern for how it reflects business practices in America.

"Is there really any competition if someone can buy their way through the baseball series?" asks Cremean.

Cremean&rsquos goals for the presentation are to educate people about the facts and myths that surround baseball, and to spark conversation around questions such as "Why are sports so highly valued in society?" and "Are sports ultimately an escapism, and ultimately a lie?"

The Geek Speak lecture series, sponsored by the BHSU University Honors program, features academic discussion and topics not normally discussed in the traditional classroom. The goal of the weekly lectures is to expose students to diversity within the disciplines.

For more information, contact Dr. Courtney Huse Wika, director of the University Honors Program and assistant professor of English, at 605-642-6918 or email Courtney.HuseWika@BHSU.edu.

In addition to the on-campus presentations, some Geek Speaks will also be presented at the Jacket Zone store in downtown Spearfish. The following on-campus Geek Speak presentations, which are held Thursdays at 4 p.m. in Jonas Hall, room 110, are scheduled for this semester:
  • Nov. 3, "Are We All Related? Race and the Embrace of The Other," Jace DeCory, assistant professor of history and American Indian Studies, and Dr. Tim Steckline, professor of speech
  • Nov. 10, "Violence Against Native Women Occurring at Epidemic Rates. What is Being Done?" Dr.  Nikki Dragone, assistant professor of English
  • Nov. 17, "Supersymmetry, Superstrings and the quest for the Theory Of Everything," Dr. Parthasarathi Nag, professor of math
  • TBA:  The University Honors Student Capstone Defense