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Congressional Baseball Game Players Designated for Assignment

Bishop, seen here at bat, won't be back for the 54th Annual Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)
Bishop, seen here at bat, won't be back for the 54th Annual Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)
By Jason Dick
Posted November 12, 2014 at 5:00am

Baseball’s offseason can be quite cruel. Events that take place far from the baseball diamond alter rosters and the fortunes of teams. So it goes with the Nov. 4 elections, which bumped two incumbent members of Congress who won’t be back for the 54th Annual Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game this coming summer.  

Already, the GOP roster was set to lose Rep. Jack Kingston, who lost a Senate primary bid in Georgia and knew early he wouldn’t be returning for the 114th Congress. Election Day wrought further havoc for both rosters as Reps. Timothy H. Bishop, D-N.Y., and Vance McAllister, R-La., lost their re-election bids. Call them the Designated for Assignment Caucus.  

Bishop will leave a hole at third base for the Democrats and was a veteran bat and glove for manager Pennsylvania Democrat Mike Doyle’s squad, which has won six straight games against the GOP team.  

McAllister, elected to Congress in a special election in November 2013, has only the one game of experience, but it was a memorable one. He was able to get a hit off of his home-state colleague, Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, the Democrats’ star pitcher.  

Speaking of whom, Richmond has a torn labrum in his pitching shoulder, which will require surgery . He has vowed to return to the mound next year, but such injuries and the recovery time can be tricky.  

And there could be drama over in the GOP dugout, stinging from so many losses as of late. Earlier this year, the Republicans’ long-time manager, Rep. Joe L. Barton of Texas, withstood grumblings about his tenure and a shadow push to replace him with a fellow Texan, Rep. Roger Williams, a former professional baseball player. Barton survived, all the while ceding some decision making to Williams.  

Now that Williams has given up, for now, his interest in taking over the National Republican Congressional Committee , he might be tempted to go full bore for the only leadership position left to him: Skipper of the GOP baseball team.  

The offseason drama continues.  

Related:

Cedric Richmond Has ‘Every Intention’ of Pitching Next Year


Complete Coverage of the 2014 Congressional Baseball Game


Williams Won’t Challenge Walden For NRCC


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