Wilson Ramos kidnapped

[Frayed Knot]

Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos was kidnapped at gunpoint on Wednesday in his native Venezuela where he was home playing winter ball.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/nationals-catcher-ramos-kidnapped-venezuela-14920325#.TrtPSa5w6qI

[MFS62]

Frayed Knot wrote: Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos was kidnapped at gunpoint on Wednesday in his native Venezuela where he was home playing winter ball. http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/nationals-catcher-ramos-kidnapped-venezuela-14920325#.TrtPSa5w6qI

If they pay his ransom ,maybe they won't have the money to sign Reyes.
Seriously, that's terrible. Hope he is released unharmed.

Later

[Guest themetfairy]

Holy shit!

Prayers for his safety - this is horrible.

[metirish]

Jesus, that's awful but as the article points out not uncommon over there.

[smg58]

Bizarre, horrible, upsetting. My prayers are with him and his family.

[Edgy MD]

Predicition: A few teams start operating their academies for Venezuelan baseball prospects out of Costa Rica or the DR.

I've tended to think that MLB had a Blackwater-type security firm looking after the players during the winter league season, and that the the real vulnerability has been during the MLB season to players' extended families or to former players.

[Edgy MD]

Buster Olney: Team officials telling lots of off-the-record stories today about how other players faced kidnapping threats in Venezuela.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I seem to remember posting something here about being concerned for Josh Thole's safety in Venezuela. I don't recall when that was, or what prompted that concern...

[Edgy MD]

Don't dig that thread up. I won't look good.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Too late!

[Edgy MD]

I don't look that bad.

[Benjamin Grimm]

You look about two years younger.

[Edgy MD]

Twenty five pounds lighter maybe.

[stevejrogers]

Edgy DC wrote: Buster Olney: Team officials telling lots of off-the-record stories today about how other players faced kidnapping threats in Venezuela.

Aaaaaaand this fourm wonders why a pool in Panama was set up with a lethal (with the lethal being on purpose by the home owner or not) amount of electrical voltage running through it's security system...

[Edgy MD]

Steve, you got a blanket point you're trying to make about everybody but you?

[stevejrogers]

Edgy DC wrote: Steve, you got a blanket point you're trying to make about everybody but you?

No, it just clarifies a point that was made that certain forumites brought their First World ideology to the table on. In the future I'll use CERTAIN FORUMITES then.

[Edgy MD]

How about you stop being circumspect?

[metsmarathon]

kidnappers always use the pool. everybody knows that.

[Benjamin Grimm]

SteveJRogers wrote: No, it just clarifies a point that was made that certain forumites brought their First World ideology to the table on. In the future I'll use CERTAIN FORUMITES then.

Yes, how I envy you for your wisdom.

[ashie62]

Am I a forumite?

[Edgy MD]

You're a forumite. I'm not sure if you're a certain forumite. You may be a certain other forumite.

[Edgy MD]

I've tended to think that MLB had a Blackwater-type security firm looking after the players during the winter league season, and that the the real vulnerability has been during the MLB season to players' extended families or to former players.

Yup. Bud's got his own muscle:

The Department of Investigations, or DOI, was created at the recommendation of George Mitchell and his �Mitchell Report� of Dec. 2007. A month later, commissioner Bud Selig announced the formation of the DOI and installed former New York policeman Dan Mullin as its head. Mullin is the cousin of NBA Hall of Famer Chris Mullin. The DOI has full-time agents in place in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, just as it does in the United States. The agency worked closely with Venezuelan officials during the separate 2009 kidnappings of Victor Zambrano�s mother and Yorvit Torrealba�s(notes) son, and routinely monitors the day-to-day security concerns in those nations. A baseball source said Thursday morning that Ramos would be best served if the league said little on the very delicate matter.

MLB's vice president and DOI head Dan Mullin.

[seawolf17]

I'm not defending Steve, but that was one of the first things I thought of too.

[MFS62]

Rescued.
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-venezuela-ramos-abducted

Later

[Edgy MD]

Way to go, Dan Mullin!

[metirish]

Thanks God