I'm trying to figure out what bothers me more at this point...the fact that I haven't blogged in well over a month, or the fact that no one really seemed to notice. The fact of the matter is that I have been so overwhelmed with work lately, that the last thing I want to do when I get home is jump on the computer and blog about my lack of a life. Of course, this really wouldn't be any different than normal - the lack of a life, that is - except for the ridiculous amount of work that's been droppe don my desk lately. Hopefully, I'll get back on track. Time will tell.
Until then, I hope to gain back the 2 or 3 readers that I once had.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
The Greediest Men in Baseball (at the moment)
I am listening to local and national sports talk radio discussing the Manny Ramirez free agency debacle, and I am profoundly disgusted that this situation even exists. Let me break it down form you, in case you’ve been living in a cave over the last few months…
The Dodgers are offering Manny Ramirez $45 million dollars over two years to play baseball. Yes, take a look at that number - $45,000,000.00. The breakdown is $25 million the first season, and $20 million for year 2.
Before I get on my soapbox, let me first say that there is no human being on the planet that deserves to be paid $25 million for doing anything, let alone for playing a game for half a year. If you break it down, Manny would make $154,321 per game, assuming he played every game in a season (not including playoffs). Taking it a step further, assuming a baseball game lasts an average of 3-½ hours, he would make $735 a minute. A MINUTE!!!! Outrageous!
Manny Ramirez may be the best player in baseball at the moment. He’s got all the skills – bat, arm, above average speed. But, to paraphrase the best baseball movie of all time, Bull Durham, “I don’t know about that [multi] million-dollar arm, but I got a good idea about that 5-cent head.” The fact that a scenario like this even exists, regardless of the economy, is simply ludicrous. I don’t care how good he is – or how good he thinks he is – Manny does not deserve to be paid $25 million for playing a game.
My hope in all of this is that the Dodgers, and the rest of MLB for that matter, look at Manny and say “Adios. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.” No one man should ever be allowed to make more money than the GNP of most third-world countries.
And the worst part is Manny has no bargaining room here. The Dodgers are the only ones in the “Manny Sweepstakes.” In fact, as I look at it, maybe the Dodgers should be the focus of this rant for their complete and utter stupidity for caving to this ridiculous demand. It’s not like there’s any other teams throwing money at Manny. To date, not one other team has inquired about picking him up at his current contract demands. Unless, of course, you believe the second idiot in this mess, Manny’s agent, Scott Boras (emphasis on the second syllable).
As an agent, Boras is supposed to be looking out for his client. But, in this situation, it’s obvious Boras is looking out for his payday. If Manny gets paid, Boras gets his cut, which will be in the millions of dollars as well. So there’s no reason for Boras to tell Manny to take the money. If Boras believes the Dodgers will pay more, he’ll keep asking for more. It is pure, unadulterated greed at it’s ugliest.
I realize that nothing I say here is going to change the situation. The Dodgers will eventually cave and pay Manny the money he wants, and Manny will tell everyone that it wasn’t about the money but about respect and whatever garbage he thinks we’re stupid enough to believe. And Boras will sit back on his fat behind and thumb through the millions he made off of this one transaction for doing, basically, nothing of value other than whine and complain.
I can only hope that MLB institutes a salary cap soon. Otherwise, this is going to become a yearly occurrence, with the next star looking to get paid absurdly more than they’re ever worth. And the biggest problem in all of this is that the fans will ultimately be paying the price for this greed in the form of higher ticket prices, higher parking rates, higher concession prices, etc.
Dodgers, tell Manny to go home and play Wii baseball for a year and see if anyone misses him!
The Dodgers are offering Manny Ramirez $45 million dollars over two years to play baseball. Yes, take a look at that number - $45,000,000.00. The breakdown is $25 million the first season, and $20 million for year 2.
Before I get on my soapbox, let me first say that there is no human being on the planet that deserves to be paid $25 million for doing anything, let alone for playing a game for half a year. If you break it down, Manny would make $154,321 per game, assuming he played every game in a season (not including playoffs). Taking it a step further, assuming a baseball game lasts an average of 3-½ hours, he would make $735 a minute. A MINUTE!!!! Outrageous!
Manny Ramirez may be the best player in baseball at the moment. He’s got all the skills – bat, arm, above average speed. But, to paraphrase the best baseball movie of all time, Bull Durham, “I don’t know about that [multi] million-dollar arm, but I got a good idea about that 5-cent head.” The fact that a scenario like this even exists, regardless of the economy, is simply ludicrous. I don’t care how good he is – or how good he thinks he is – Manny does not deserve to be paid $25 million for playing a game.
My hope in all of this is that the Dodgers, and the rest of MLB for that matter, look at Manny and say “Adios. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.” No one man should ever be allowed to make more money than the GNP of most third-world countries.
And the worst part is Manny has no bargaining room here. The Dodgers are the only ones in the “Manny Sweepstakes.” In fact, as I look at it, maybe the Dodgers should be the focus of this rant for their complete and utter stupidity for caving to this ridiculous demand. It’s not like there’s any other teams throwing money at Manny. To date, not one other team has inquired about picking him up at his current contract demands. Unless, of course, you believe the second idiot in this mess, Manny’s agent, Scott Boras (emphasis on the second syllable).
As an agent, Boras is supposed to be looking out for his client. But, in this situation, it’s obvious Boras is looking out for his payday. If Manny gets paid, Boras gets his cut, which will be in the millions of dollars as well. So there’s no reason for Boras to tell Manny to take the money. If Boras believes the Dodgers will pay more, he’ll keep asking for more. It is pure, unadulterated greed at it’s ugliest.
I realize that nothing I say here is going to change the situation. The Dodgers will eventually cave and pay Manny the money he wants, and Manny will tell everyone that it wasn’t about the money but about respect and whatever garbage he thinks we’re stupid enough to believe. And Boras will sit back on his fat behind and thumb through the millions he made off of this one transaction for doing, basically, nothing of value other than whine and complain.
I can only hope that MLB institutes a salary cap soon. Otherwise, this is going to become a yearly occurrence, with the next star looking to get paid absurdly more than they’re ever worth. And the biggest problem in all of this is that the fans will ultimately be paying the price for this greed in the form of higher ticket prices, higher parking rates, higher concession prices, etc.
Dodgers, tell Manny to go home and play Wii baseball for a year and see if anyone misses him!
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