This season is turning out to be a headache for the Cincinnati Reds. Not only because of their performance on the diamond, but for the reasons beyond. A new lawsuit, filed by a former MLB slugger, is threatening the franchise, not just financially, but in terms of reputation as well. While teams deal with cases or claims from time to time, this one may burn more than just a hole in the Reds’ pockets, as per a former MLB team president.
Earlier this week, former Brewers slugger Darin Ruf filed a lawsuit against the Reds over an incident that happened in 2023. For Ruf, that small incident turned out to be the cause of a career-ending injury. While there were hopes that the Reds might escape the lawsuit without serious damage, former Miami Marlins president David Samson has issued a stark warning. If what he’s saying is to be true, the road ahead might be rocky for the Reds.
While talking on his show Nothing Personal with David Samson, Samson broke down the details of the case. “My view of the Darin Ruf lawsuit is, the Reds have a problem,” he said. He also predicted how the case might play out going ahead.
“What will happen here is Darin Ruf is using this lawsuit to begin a negotiation. The Cincinnati Reds will alert Major League Baseball. They’re gonna take a look at their insurance. They’re gonna alert their insurance company, hire lawyers, and there’s gonna be a settlement here because Darin Ruf is gonna get money,” Samson added.
Samson’s takes usually don’t go wrong. But the Reds have to hope this one is the exception.
Darin Ruf appears to have a legitimate claim. He alleges that he suffered permanent and substantial deformities to his knee after colliding with an unpadded metal tarp at Great American Ball Park during a game against the Reds in 2023. He spent 60 days on the injured list and that marked the last time he stepped onto an MLB field. Ruf seeks punitive and compensatory damages, alleging negligence from the Reds’ side.
Well, the Reds may try to minimize the amount by saying that Ruf was already old, and the most he would have gotten was a free-agent deal. But even if he had gone for free agency, he could have easily landed at least a $3 million deal, and if it were for at least 4 years, $12 million is what we’re looking at. That is not a small amount at all, Ruf could have made a name for himself with that. Thanks to the injury, he was robbed of all of this.
So, if Samson’s warnings turn out to be true, the Reds are going to lose — because ensuring safety on the field is their responsibility. However, in another injury case recently, Samson expressed a different perspective.
Samson’s comment on Pirates fan injury strikes a different note
Hard to forget the young Pirates fan named Kavan Markwood, who fell 21 feet from the seating area at the PNC Park, suffering severe injuries. They rushed him to the hospital, but the fall impacted his skull, brain, spine, ribs, and lungs. He has been slowly recovering ever since.
Baseball fans everywhere united in wishing Markwood a speedy recovery. Amid all that, a comment from Samson was found insensitive by the fans. In an appearance on the Dan Le Batard Show, Samson said if he were the Pirates’ president, he would not pay the medical bills.
He further explained his position by saying, “I would make it very clear that we were not at fault, the railings were set to code, that we did everything we were supposed to do, including responding to it immediately with life-saving care. But in this world of litigation, we would have to settle at an amount — but, no, I would not want it much higher than five figures.”
Well, it’s understandable Samson approaches things professionally without emotional bias, but the fact that the injured fan was young, it made him sound less sympathetic.
However, in that case, unlike the Ruf one, the team bore no responsibility. That was the core reason why Samson had a different opinion there. The fans, though, still expected a more compassionate approach. What’s your take on both these incidents?
The post Reds Gripped by Fresh Panic as Former MLB President Issues Stark Warning After Ex-Star Sues Franchise Over Negligence appeared first on EssentiallySports.
