Major League Baseball: A Pox on All Your Houses

MLB ^ | Recovering_Democrat

[Recovering_Democrat]

My opinion? The entire lot of you: owner and players are idiots. You're dumping on your own product, do you know that? Both groups have plenty of blame to go 'round.

OWNERS

You haven't had the guts to get a real commissioner since Bart G. died. My instinct is you wanted to run the show: a show in which you've been given anti-trust exemption. Instead, you gave the job to a fellow owner.

You guys rake in billions, yes, but have you noticed your market share? Among most Americans, if I recall my Gallup Poll readings correctly, you're running 2nd place to the NFL and among the urban youth, you are probably behind the NBA.

So you've added intra-league regular season games and added a team per league to the playoffs. Great. You've also expanded the league to preposterous proportions: how many non-competitive markets are there now? Too many. You're not the only idiots though.

PLAYERS

Your league minimum is $200,000. Your average salary, if the cable news show I saw is correct, is $2.4 million. The stars among you CHARGE FOR AUTOGRAPHS. Your pension isn't an Enron-styled black hole. The celebrity you enjoy is rare.

How much more do you need to be happy? Believe me, I am all for the individual getting what he can for his work. I do not begrudge A-Rod his millions: he negotiated it, and you all should get what the market will bear. So why do you need this union garbage anyway? How about letting your talents determine the salary, and not some union suit? Forget about the lack of loyalty between a team and a player or a city and a player: I'm not even going to ask for that--how about just all of you negotiating your own deals without the union structure? Then you can get paid as much or as little as you're worth. Here's a crazy idea: negotiate a deal where your pay is equal to your performance. Insane, eh?

I just think you guys, like the owners, are spittin' on the fans for the sake of a few more million. Most of the people who pay your salary are baseball fans who just like watching a game. You're doing your image a real disservice by whining "it ain't enough!"

[Recovering_Democrat]

just mho.

[Peach]

After the last strike, it took years for us to watch baseball again. If they strike this year, they will lose more fans than they ever had. Overpaid, no-talent prima donnas.

[Night Hides Not]

Don't forget that each player brings in close to six figures annually from their share of trading card rights. How come that is not reported?

BTW, I've got a few thousand baseball cards I'd like to get rid of, cheap. Most are from 92-94, i.e. before the last strike.

During that strike, a card company was giving away an autographed Matt Williams baseball with the purchase of a box of cards. At least the ball is worth something, but not as a collectible, IMHO.

[Crusader21stCentury]

If they strike the President should issue an executive order removing the monopoly exception. Open up baseball to the free market and screw the owners and the players.

[lainie]

Hear, hear. I was one of those raised-on-the-Cubs girls for the first (however many) years of my life. We were even known to cut school, not only to go to Wrigley, but we'd cut school just to watch a big game on television (I'm not proud of this).

Anybody else remember when Ryne Sandberg "retired" right before the strike, then came back out of retirement as soon as they all went back to work? I haven't watched baseball since.

pitiful. Phooey on all of 'em. And I'm still trying to figure out why in the world GWB is "furious" at the prospect of a strike. Who cares!

[NeoCaveman]

NFL Kick off Thursday September 5th....

[MadIvan]

I never understood why baseball was exempt from anti-trust laws. Break that, break the monopoly and let's see what happens.

Regards, Ivan

[TotusTuus]

They're considering a strike at the one year anniversary of 9/11 when we all can honor real heroes such as firemen and military personnel who get paid oh so much money! Brilliant guys, just brilliant...

[lainie]

Mike Fish says neither side can afford a strike.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/mike_fish/news/2002/08/09/fish_mailbag/

I think both sides are just subservient enough to their dominating greed to give up the forest for the trees (and then wonder what happened).

[Mr. Mulliner]

ping

[hove]

MLB sucks. Thank goodness for FOOTBALL!!!

[Sabertooth]

((((((growl)))))

[Mr. Mulliner]

In your opinion, does it suck because you don't like baseball or because of the political and financial problems associated with it? If you're not a baseball fan to begin with, what's the point of coming to a thread like this and complaining about it? And if you're a fan of baseball, but not the way things are run, why not elaborate on what football does that baseball can learn from?

[My2Cents]

I agree with you, Crusader, but it would probably take an act of Congress to repeal the anti-trust exemption. But Bush should ask for it, and Congress should act quickly.

[tomkat]

new list ?
thanks for the ping !

[wdkeller]

These clowns get paid millions of dollars to hit a ball with a stick. If they don't want to hit a ball with a stick, fine. I'm sure we can find something more useful to spend our money on.

[crusher999]

I'm here in Arizona and being able to see the likes of Shilling, Johnson, Gonzalez, Counsel, Miller, Williams, Womack, Spivey, Grace and the rest of our World Champion DiamondBacks is fun and exciting.

It would kill me NOT to watch, but if this strike happens...I'M DONE!

[Michael2001]

Good post. Today's athletes and owners are ruining once great sports (baseball is not the only one). I'm starting to enjoy European soccer more and more.

[2Trievers]

Bumperoonie Babe! &;-)

[Guillermo]

You may not see Counsell anymore this yr, as he is on the 15-day DL.