Remembering Marvin Miller


In organized baseball's nearly 150-year history, there are three men that tower above all others: Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson and Marvin Miller. Yes, this diminutive man who never suited up, never wore a glove or swung a bat ranks in the Pantheon. This former Steelworkers Union attorney, recruited to lead a near-impotent Players Association by Jim Bunning, Robin Roberts and Harvey Kuenn, changed the game as much or more than Jackie or the Babe.
Convincing the players that they were grossly undervalued and underpaid, he led a labor revolution that raised all the boats! Miller began the legal process that led to free agency, which opened the door to baseball the way we now know it While the owners may have resented (more likely plain hated) this determined man of law and principle, his leadership transformed the game's labor/management relationship and led to the mega-money deals that have infused the national pastime with riches never before imagined.
I met Marvin in the winter of 2011 at the Pinstripe Passion collectors show in New Jersey where he signed autographs for fans who recognized and honored his place in history. Yet, Miller has been ignored by the Baseball Hall of Fame. Obviously, he made enemies, especially in "high places." But any objective assessment of "game changer" has to include Marvin Miller.

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