It was pretty common knowledge Bowie Kuhn had his grip on MacPhail back then. I can't remember where I read it, but Kuhn pretty much told MacPhail hell would be had if he didn't uphold the protest (that's a pretty good move because of MacPhail's previous employment with the Yankees). Kuhn was a more powerful commissioner than people gave him credit for.

It would help if you could ever verify anything you contend.

Okay, so that just means there were two idiots involved instead of one. Who cares? McClelland did his job and was stabbed in the back by his boss. What more needs to be known?

For something that is "pretty common knowledge," it is odd that I can do a google search on "pine tar mcphail kuhn" and get nothing about how the commissioner's office in any way interceded in McPhail's decision. You would think that there would be at least one article devoted to this common knowledge.

However, you do get a link to four nekkid girls and a hyena doing Jaegermeister shots in a bar outside of Fargo, and a live link to a fat guy with no shirt on doing live commentary on the leaf changing colors on the one tree in Wahoo, Nebraska.

BTW, show me a McPhail who didn't drink and I'll show you a McPhail who is a liar.