Luke Scott Brought Guns Into Clubhouse

Gilbert Arenas got in a lot of trouble this year -- both on the court and off -- after he brought firearms into the Wizards locker room. Teammate Javaris Crittenton suffered a similar fate after he reportedly chambered a bullet during the same dispute.

One might expect that, given the public outcry over the gun scandal, players would be aware that bringing firearms onto team property is a bad idea. Orioles DH Luke Scott disagrees. He claims to have learned of Major League Baseball's gun ban just recently, even though it went into effect last Summer.

"I've carried them in the locker room, and nobody really knows about it," he told the Baltimore Sun. "I know how to handle myself, and I stow it away where nobody really knows about it." Evidently. And while he admits to understanding why MLB would implement such a rule, he still has his objections.

"Barring a tactical entry where terrorists come in and hold us hostage, that's about the only thing that could possibly warrant me carrying a gun in the clubhouse. That's highly unlikely, and I admit that. But my personal belief is I don't want to suffer from the poor choices of others." Click here to see the Sun's full story.

Comments

[lapdogs]

01:36 PM on 03/04/2010

Remind me to go to my next basketball or baseball game wearing a full military uniform (flak jacket included) along with a helmet.

What has the world of sports turned into?

[jl4141]

01:30 PM on 03/03/2010

First thing I want to know -- which the story does not have -- is whether the guy had a permit or not -- whether he broke Maryland state law. I couldn't care less about MLB policy on the issue.

[Iheartmichaelvartan]

10:54 AM on 03/03/2010

Welcome to Baltimore where you do need a gun for protection, but not in the Oriole's clubhouse.
Get real, maybe if you were around North Ave., but not the clubhouse, there is more police protection there than in the whole city!
What an idiot.

[E1k]

10:06 AM on 03/03/2010

Just wondering how many laws this guy has broken in every other town he plays in. In Chicago it is illegal to have a hand gun.. for a few hours more anyway. But still in Illinois you have to have an FOID card to process any firearm in the state... what about other places he plays? Or is it just that Baltimore is the only place he fears?

[Spartan112]

11:15 AM on 03/03/2010

Baltimore could only dream to be so lucky.

[HUkid07]

02:29 PM on 03/02/2010

HMM... Just checking to see if there's any outrage in here like with the whole Arenas thing... UMM, not so much I see. Wish I could say I was surprised.

[Bashir Hood]

08:26 PM on 03/02/2010

i came back to check as well. not surprised either. not even a slap on the wrist? wow

[Vetinari]

08:50 AM on 03/03/2010

Could that be because he didn't pull the gun out against anyone?

Besides, he is a baseball players, they can do whatever they want and still be considered heroes. Haven't we learned that now?

[TheFabOne]

10:46 AM on 03/02/2010

.........Uh, Gilbert Arenas' lawyer and the FBI would like a word with you, sir..........

[KIVPossum]

09:08 AM on 03/02/2010

So you can carry your gun to walmart, to church, and to the bar, but not to a locker room?

[clearthinker2008]

10:46 AM on 03/02/2010

If you are white, sure.

[ProperGanda]

11:44 AM on 03/02/2010

Tiny little detail you missed, that he didn't pull the gun out against anyone

[plzchuteme]

08:44 AM on 03/02/2010

So, his personal belief is that he doesn't want to suffer from the poor choices of others, but it is okay for others to possibly suffer from his own poor choices. I suspect that he has, and will, continue to make many. Packing heat in the locker room is just one. He is precisely the kind of paranoid, delusional freak that should not have a gun. If he believes that terrorists are going to storm the clubhouse of the Baltimore Orioles...the Baltimore Orioles, for God's sake, what must this guy think about when he's out on the street where there are real characters?

[thebirdstheword]

08:15 AM on 03/02/2010

hmmm, think you have a touch of paranoia if you think al-qaida is gonna storm your locker room?

[mrFawkes]

03:25 AM on 03/02/2010

..."I don't want to suffer from the poor choices of others,"...concludes Luke Scott. Your first mistake was not employing original thought, instead you poach from "24" with some Baueresque BS babble,
Your second mistake; instead of keeping your weapon safe (tenet #1 in weapon ownership) you should have kept your mouth safe--and shut (there are other Amendments besides the Second that protect you from self-incriminating).
Let's just hope there is more pop and delivery in your bat this season than in your pre-season bravado

[JStading]

02:29 AM on 03/02/2010

For people who are really astonished that this happens, lemme break it down for you:

Professional athletes are typically not that smart, they tend to come from violent places, and an astonishing percentage of them have criminal backgrounds. Just doing a quick google search shows that 85% of NBA players own guns and that 40% had been charged with a felony. The NFL enjoys similar states with roughly 21% of their players being charged with serious crimes.

Is anyone astonished that the combination of an ungodly amount of money being dropped into the hands of a kid who grew up poor, constant talk about how great they are, and a general belief that they are above the law results in behavior like this?

[RusStyles]

08:56 AM on 03/02/2010

Link on the stats and breakdown of the type of "felonies"--please...Look, anyone that grows up in a downtrodden, tenement-filled, single-parent environment with vastly inferior (dilapidated) schools; a dearth of living wage jobs; leading to an inevitable drug trade and the concomitant violence, and further escalation of the revolving-door, unjust prison industry, will have--at best--a 20% chance of escaping unscathed...

The kids who show exceptional athletic ability--early-on--have the best chance to escape this vicious cycle. Some will get caught-up in the fast life like Marvin Barnes, who's one of the nicest and charismatic guys you'd ever want to meet. What they need is more support and structure, and mentoring from older players--the Grant Hills--who are upstanding professionals and positive contributors to their communities.

There'll be a percentage of athletes who have addiction problems, which mirrors the general populace. I know surgeons who are drug addicts; judges who are functional alcoholics...But these high profile pros glide under the MSM radar and maintain the esteemed status of their profession. The nanosecond an athlete, especially a black one, gets a DWI; caught with weed; cheats on his wife; etc...It gets blown-up all over the MSM even before all the facts are uncovered.

Ultimately, athletes will have to get smarter...And as they continue to learn from the dumb mistakes of the Gilbert Arenas', I have no doubt they will...

[JStading]

11:52 AM on 03/02/2010

Linking on Huff Po tends to get comments dropped.

Google "nba percentage felony" and the first result (from The America Spectator") has the numbers.

My comment was directed less at race issues and more at the idea that you cannot expect kids (who are often 18-23 when they start) who had zero structure in their lives to be able to handle that kind of money. Especially when they are being told by everyone that they are the best X the league has ever seen. Just because you can throw a long pass or nail a jump shot doesn't mean that you're a role model.

[dogsipod]

11:58 AM on 03/02/2010

considering that in most cases you lose the a few rights when you are convicted of a felony...like the right to vote and own a gun, i doubt that 85% of players say they own weapons and 40% are felons.

i am pretty sure that 90% of statistics posted in comments sections are made up though...and yes i am being sarcastic.

[JStading]

01:41 PM on 03/02/2010

"Just doing a quick google search shows that 85% of NBA players own guns and that 40% had been charged with a felony. "

Charged with a felony does not mean that they were convicted. Felon in possession is also an astonishingly common crime - I wouldn't be surprised if the statistic was correct.

[opprobrious]

01:59 AM on 03/02/2010

"I don't want to suffer from the poor choices of others"

No. I'll make my own poor choices thank you.

[RusStyles]

11:30 PM on 03/01/2010

Here is yet another example of the double standard as it relates to black athletes. I guarantee you this will NOT attract hundreds of posts castigating Luke Scot with derogatory adjectives such as thug, stoopid, hood, etc...It won't make the national MSM and discussed ad nauseum. It will blow over faster than a fart in a windstorm, and the little discussion this might garner will be wrapped around the Right to Bear Arms BS...

[opprobrious]

01:58 AM on 03/02/2010

I'm white coincidentally, and I agree with you. I'm guessing the Tea Party NRA types are already considering how best to show their support.

[davidariley]

02:19 AM on 03/02/2010

in the words of teddy riley: "yep, yep"

[omobob]

11:10 PM on 03/01/2010

Typical civilian hubris. Civilians neither have the proper training nor educated mind set concerning the use of deadly force. Just another wanna be danger to himself and those around him.

NRA member and competitive shooter.

[Talossa]

09:59 PM on 03/01/2010

This is why they are called Gun Nuts.