Isn't that....

something.

You would think that the River Bandits would have learned to stay out of the hot button issues of the day after they accused Louie the LumberKing of taking PEDs during the the CNBC logo contest back in March.

Louie won going away. And that article that included the following:

As the Quad Cities River Bandits and the Clinton LumberKings prepare for their much-anticipated Elite Eight match-up on Thursday in CNBC.com's March Madness-style Minor League Baseball logo tournament, questions have surfaced regarding an apparent change in the appearance of Louie the LumberKing.

"I'm not going to point fingers, but I've had a lot of people asked me if I've noticed a change," said River Bandits Vice President and General Manager Kirk Goodman. "I really don't think it's fair to comment on the issue. I haven't spent much one-on-one time with Louie so I'm not going to speak to his personal habits or the obvious change in his physique, head size, and appearance."

has completely disappeared from the Bandit website.

They're at it again...

The Quad Cities River Bandits have made no secrets about their desire to enhance the quality of life in the community. On Monday, the club took this commitment to the next level by jumping into the political arena and publicly endorsing Bob Evans, the River Bandits' Director of Baseball Operations, to fill Illinois' vacant Senate seat formerly held by President-elect Barack Obama.

"This is a chance for the people to have their voices heard," said River Bandits Vice President and General Manager Kirk Goodman. "Bob is a lifelong Illinois resident, a fan favorite of many people in the Quad Cities, and he knows his home state as well as anybody. Moreover, the people of Illinois can benefit tremendously from the great value associated with River Bandits baseball."

If the reports from U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald are correct, and Governor Blagojevich is indeed trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder, then the River Bandits are prepared to enter the fray. The team is offering the Governor quite a bounty for the vacant Senate seat, including four club season tickets - featuring private wait staff delivering food and beverage orders directly to fans' seats - as well as two nights in a luxury suite at Modern Woodmen Park, and advertising for the State of Illinois on the brand new LED ribbon board that will be installed this spring. The team has also offered ten Northwest Bank & Trust "Back in Black-gojevich" t-shirts and five bobbleheads of former Illinois Senator Barack Obama, sponsored by Pepsi, from Modern Woodmen Park's Bobble-Election last August. The team will also throw in some pine tar and batting gloves to help with the greasy palms.

Yep. Jokes about political corruption. That's what baseball teams should be doing to promote themselves in the Christmas season.

By all means though, go right ahead, Bandits. There's no way this could end badly. As long as it gets mentioned in Baseball America and MiLB.com and various other websites, you'll be fine.