Quote:
Originally posted by Rich Ives
Only one culprit - the person signing the checks.
Really, would YOU turn down a HUGE salary increase? Hey, if the boss is willing to pay it, I'll take it.
|
I seem to remember at least ONE occasion when a player declined a MUCH better offer to stay where he was content. I believe the player was Ken Griffey Jr and the team was the Mariners. I know that he has since moved, but I don't believe money was the main motivation.
Put yourself in the owners position. I know that these are usually privileged individuals, but they DO put their money on the line when they own a franchise. To get a return on their investment they have to have a drawcard for the fans. That usually means a name player (or two or three), so the fans feel their team has a chance of winning its fair share of games. Otherwise the fans stay home. Of course
some of them are downright greedy about it, too.
I'm not saying we blame the players - they have a limited career life, and they're entitled to sell to the highest bidder.
I'm not saying we blame the owners - they have to provide an attraction to get a return on their investment.
I'm not saying we blame the fans - they want to watch good baseball played by the best players their team can afford.
Blame no-one. It is not productive. Fix the problem instead. That's the challenge. I say bring on mandatory salary caps with loss of points as the penalty for breaches. If the salary spiral in baseball has taken the players salaries BEYOND the game's capacity to support them, limit the salaries on a team basis to a level that CAN be supported for the good of the game.
Cheers,
Warren Willson