Friday Firings: Mark Cuban Detractor, Greg Anderson Coaching Little League

Every Friday the HR Department takes on several issues or people that need to be sent packing. This week, we defend Mark Cuban (not always easy) and criticize Greg Anderson (pretty easy).

Ultimately Cuban just wants to have fun.

Fire Fay Vincent's Criticism of Mark Cuban - Fay Vincent, the last MLB commissioner who wasn't a joke, said recently that Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is "a real problem in basketball." Vincent's reasoning? "I think it's more important for owners to be gentlemen, play by the rules, respect the authorities, do what's good for the sport, than it is to manage his franchise to total success," he said. He went on to compare Cuban with George Steinbrenner. Cuban is not the new Steinbrenner (that's Dan Snyder). Sure, Cuban has been a pain in the butt for up-tight NBA commissioner David Stern, but besides criticism of officials and sometimes childish but ultimately harmless behavior, what has he done that's so bad? Cuban's players like him and he treats the fans right. Anonymous owners are boring, and Cuban has done his part to draw attention and interest not only to his team but the league. His actions do far more to help his investment than hurt it. Does Cuban have some growing up to do at 52? Yep, but Dallas fans would rather have him in charge than Snyder, Steinbrenner, or a whole host of other owners.

Fire Greg Anderson's Little League Participation - After several years of coaching his son's youth baseball team, Barry Bonds' former trainer, Greg Anderson, was finally barred from the league because a parent complained. The only real surprise here is that it took this long considering how much youth sports parents love to complain (Hey parents - your kid isn't the next star. Deal with it.) The main issue wasn't that Anderson is a convicted steroids dealer, but that he hadn't undergone a background check, which is required of coaches. People who work with kids should undergo background checks, and it's really a mystery that no one noticed Anderson was unregistered until now. It's not like he's going to start giving "the cream" and "the clear" to 10-year-olds, but he's probably not the best influence on young ballplayers, either. Youth sports leagues aren't doing enough to simply make background checks a requirement - they need to actually make sure coaches are being screened. If Anderson wants to coach his son on his own time no one can stop him, but he should not be involved with the league.