Pituitary Cited for Miltion Bradley's 'Mood Swings'

A malfunctioning pituitary gland may be at the root of Seattle Mariners outfielder Milton Bradley's continuing difficulties with anger management, according to a former media acquaintance who has conversed with Bradley on many occasions.

"It's a problem with the pituitary gland; that would be my guess," commentator Les Grobstein told listeners on Sports Talk Radio 670 The Score in Chicago. "It causes wild mood swings."

Bradley, current awaiting a Feb. 8 arraignment in Van Nuys, CA, has been released on $50,000 bail after being arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department on a felony charge of making terroristic threats against an unidentified woman in the vicinity of Bradley's home in nearby Encino.

Police declined to provide details of the incident, in which officers responded to the woman's telephone complaint. "He's been arrested. That's all I can confirm," an LAPD spokeswoman said.

Grobstein noted that the former Cub was publicly praised by several teammates after Bradley left the team for Seattle in a trade for struggling pitcher Carlos Silva following tension between Bradley and then-manager Lou Piniella.

"They said he was a good teammate. But a lot of players said privately that they were thrilled to get him out of there," Grobstein said.

Researchers have cited findings in which the cause of antisocial behavior has commonly been misdiagnosed as a personality disorder when a malfunctioning pituitary gland is actually to blame. In up to two out of 10 cases, it's the pituitary that may be the culprit.

Nolan Ryan Seen Favoring Old Four-Man Rotation

Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan, now in his latest manifestation as president of the Rangers, is bringing an "old school" approach to the game not only by asking minor league prospects to pitch longer, but speculatively to prepare themselves for a return to the historical four-man rotation rather than five-man rotation.

Ryan -- who once threw some 240 pitches in a single game -- has sent word to minor league camps that he wants each prospect to increase their personal pitch count targets to last at least one more inning per outing, thus projecting them into the seventh and eighth innings of games, according to recent comments by acquaintance, broadcaster and former Rangers manager Kevin Kennedy.

The move has prompted unconfirmed speculation in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex that Ryan is eyeing a return to the familiar four-man rotation used during much of the 61-year-old strikeout king's career. Kennedy believes the switch to the five-year rotation and other more modern innovations are the result of "copy cat" strategists.