Conspiracy?

The Cubs and the Brewers are locked in a very tight pennant race....Bud Selig used to own the Brewers....Houstons manager is Cecil Cooper....Cooper is very close friends with Bud Selig and worked for the Brewers for most of the 90s....so can someone explain to me how the Astros started 3 straight rookie pitchers against the Brewers this week and no one suggested it was a ploy to assist the Brewers? Seems alful fishy to me....

 

What do you mean no one suggested it? It has been all over talk radio (national and local and I don't live in any of the cities involved)

 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5147175.html</p>

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<span class="timestamp">Sept. 19, 2007, 1:07AM
</span> <span class="storyheading3">Cooper calls Selig to explain rotation
</span> </p> <p class="copyright"> <span class="author">By BRIAN McTAGGART
</span> Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle </p>

Astros interim manager Cecil Cooper called baseball commissioner Bud Selig before the start of the series against the Brewers on Monday to explain why he would be starting three rookie pitchers against a team in a pennant race.</p>

Matt Albers made his 16th start Monday, and Felipe Paulino made his first major league start Tuesday in place of Roy Oswalt, whose wife gave birth Tuesday. Juan Gutierrez will start today in favor of Woody Williams, who has been moved to the bullpen.</p>

A few members of the Chicago Cubs, who are tied with the Brewers atop the NL Central, criticized the Astros' rotation. President of baseball operations Tal Smith also called Cubs general manger Jim Hendry to explain.</p>

"I just wanted to assure him we were going to put the best team out there, the best guys we have available," Cooper said. "I don't want to say Woody hasn't pitched well, but he's struggled of late, and we're going to give the kid a chance."</p>

</p>

 

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/cu...-csep19.article</p><h1 class="story_headline">Astros give Cubs rotation explanation </h1>

</p>September 19, 2007 BY GORDON WITTENMYER gwittenmyer@suntimes.com

Before the Cubs had a chance to raise their eyebrows over Houston's watered-down rotation this week against division contender Milwaukee, Astros president Tal Smith contacted the Cubs on Monday to explain.</p>

''Tal did it the right way,'' Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said. ''He's a pro. He got out in front of it. I'm more than satisfied with his explanation. I've got no beef with the Astros.''</p>

The Brewers missed Astros ace Roy Oswalt because his wife was to have labor induced. And veteran Woody Williams volunteered this week to move to the bullpen to allow the Astros to use prospects in the rotation the rest of the year.</p>

</p>
That meant rookie Felipe Paulino making his first major-league start in place of Oswalt on Tuesday and rookie Juan Gutierrez going today.

Conspiracy buffs in Chicago have been on this since the rotations were announced, with the fact that Houston's interim manager, Cecil Cooper, was a player on the Brewers' 1982 World Series team only adding to the intrigue. Cooper also reportedly took the initiative to quell any possible controversy before it started by calling commissioner Bud Selig, with whom he remains close since his days with the Brewers.</p>

''I can't say I haven't looked and seen a guy named Paulino throwing [Tuesday] and not known who he was,'' Cubs second baseman Mark DeRosa said. ''That's no knock on him. It's just when you see Oswalt's name pop up, it gives you a little different feeling inside.</p>

''But you can't worry about it. They've got their work cut out for them, with Atlanta [for four games] and San Diego [for four more], teams still fighting to get in the postseason. So I don't think anybody's going to feel sorry for us with the way Houston's handling their rotation.''</p>

Said manager Lou Piniella: ''We can't concern ourselves with what Houston or anyone else is doing. ... I don't have any comment on that.''</p>

</p>

 

How would it be a scoop? </p>

It has already been in newspapers and on ESPN Radio?</p>

 

I didnt hear anyone talking about it or read about it, I just noticed the names in the rotation were unfamiliar....if others noticed as well, that does lend some credibility to the theory

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (TheBeef)</div><div class='quotemain'>I didnt hear anyone talking about it or read about it, I just noticed the names in the rotation were unfamiliar....if others noticed as well, that does lend some credibility to the theory</div>

The Astros President called the Cubs on Monday to inform them of what was going to happen in the Astors series with the Brewers.</p>