Stevenson v. Baltimore Baseball Club, Inc.

Stevenson and his three fellow appellants were plaintiffs below in substantially similar slander suits, consolidated for purposes of trial, brought against Baltimore Baseball Club, Inc., the owner of the Baltimore Orioles and William Roberts, ticket manager of the Orioles. Each of the plaintiffs sought $250,000 in compensatory damages and $250,000 in punitive damages. At the conclusion of the plaintiffs’ case, the trial court granted the defendants’ motion for a directed verdict. This appeal followed.

Stevenson and his colleagues had been employed by the Orioles as part time “runners,” whose…