How Curt Flood 'Ruined' Sports

Today is the 40th anniversary of what seemed like a fairly big, but hardly earthshaking, baseball trade: Curt Flood, Tim McCarver and two others to the Philadelphia Phillies; Dick Allen and two others to the St. Louis Cardinals. Pretty cut-and-dried. Until Flood refused to report and then asked the commissioner to make him … a free agent.

We all know what happened after that, and if you don’t, check out a series of stories on Fanhouse, including a pair that I wrote.

And then check out some of the comments on those stories, then decide whether you agree with them. Flood is, in fact, the Father of Free Agency … and four full decades later (technically, three and a half, because it wasn’t fully granted for baseball players until 1975), it’s still held as gospel by a stunning percentage of fans that free agency “ruined baseball.’’ Or, more comprehensively, “ruined sports.’’

(Continue to The Steele Drum)

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Remember Curt Flood?

Today, I discuss some Cardinal history and recall my all-time favorite St. Louis player, Curt Flood.

Flood was primarily a center fielder for the Cardinals and played 12 of 15 years with the birds on the bat logo. He retired in 1971 as a Washington Senators' member.

Flood displayed a steady presence on the Cardinal's World Series clubs in 1964, 1967 and 1968. Flood, who wore uniform number 21, hit mostly singles and doubles in his career. He totaled 1861 hits including 271 doubles. He battled a respectable .293. He was an outstanding outfielder and never had a fielding average less than .900 in his career. He totaled 1.000 in 1966.

(Continue to Paul's Redbird Report)

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