November 1926
SUPREME COURT LANDMARK RULING
Today, the US Supreme Court ruled in the case of Houston v. Major League Baseball, finding in a 6-3 decision that Federal Baseball is not controlling law with regard to restraint of trade causes of action initiated by public entities. In this case, the City of Houston, Texas, as the lead plaintiff with several other cities in the western part of the country, sued Major League Baseball over what they claimed were illegal geographic restraints on franchise locations. In a majority opinion that was in places extremely critical of Federal Baseball but nonetheless stopping short of completely overturning that case, the court ruled that Baseball's restriction of franchises to cities no further west than St. Louis is a clear violation of federal law.
In a further, and highly unusual and shocking move, the Court ruled that MLB in its current configuration must be completely reorganized, and that no metropolitan area, regardless of size, will be allowed to host more than franchise.
Representatives of the City of Houston were joined by several west coast cities in celebrating this ruling. Mayor Oscar F. Holcombe stated: "This is a great day for Houston, and for all the western cities of this great country. We are looking forward to a great new spring with Major League Baseball in our new stadium, which will be complete and ready for play a full year before the original schedule."
...
Court Rules in Physics Case
In a brief and cryptic opinion, the Court also ruled today in the case of Reality v. Anachronism that the Federal Time and Space Act has no application to baseball leagues operating in cyberspace. The opinion was unanimous and no comment was offered in open court.
