Steroids and role models
by Valatan on Apr 3, 2010 7:39 PM EDT
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PrintI've been thinking more and more on the steroids issue in the aftermath of the McGwire signing, and the subsequent cavalcade of nonsense that followed. Something hasn't quite seemed right about the whole thing. In fact, a lot of the self-righteousness in the steroid age has been confusing, at best, to me. i think I've finally figured out why. Follow me after the jump if you dare.
I think the thing that has bothered me is how much attention has been given to the steroid issue, and how little of the arguments actually hold up if you consider them in a broader perspective. I'm not necessarily talking here about the people who are discussing competitive balance. I understand these arguments somewhat, at least. Sports, as a product, are about competitive balance. If you do something illegal to enhance your performance, (or gamble on the sport), you are endangering the competitive balance of the game. I can at least understand the argument that harsh penalties are necessary to prevent this. If the steroid arguments stopped here, I would be completely fine with it. But the thing is, this argument is typically the tip of the iceberg.
It seems that the harshest rhetoric about steroids seems to relate to various forms of morality--"it's illegal!", 'what a horrible example for kids!', or 'what a dishonour to players past!'. To me, these arguments are disingenous, at best. And the reason why? We routinely ignore OTHER illegal and immoral behaviour on the part of players. In particular, several players are either convicted of or have public record incidents of spousal abuse. Yet, there is very little controversy surrounding these players. You don't see people protesting Phillies games and throwing taunts at Brett Myers. Nor does Julio Lugo receive any abuse about this, either. It is just silently accepted by fans.
And the thing is, it is very easy to understand how players can fall for steroids--you're in a career where you have, at best a 20 year shelf life, and realistically, more like 5-10. Everything is super-competitive, and you are at constant threat of being discarded. It's very human to want to get every edge that you can, and you see others around you using it and succeeding, While it is not commendable to fall into this temptation, it's hardly incomprehensible, either.
Now, contrast the above with hitting your spouse, sometimes in repeated incidents. While THAT is a problem as old as time, too, it's not exactly like it's a completely understandable one. It is an entirely reprehensible one. Yet, when players do it, it is noticed on a small scale, and shuffled under the rug. It was not even discussed; in the recent Elijah Dukes thread here, for example.
In the end, baseball is baseball and morality is morality. But if we are going to direct moralistic arguments at baseball players, I would suggest that we keep a focus on things that are really important, and things that affect only baseball. When a player says 'yeah I did steroids, I don't think it helped me as much as people claim, but I was worried about being hurt and I made a bad decision.' and STILL gets condemned, it bothers me that you don't even have to force players who did far, far worse to say ANYTHING in public about it.
And that's about all of my opinion on that.
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Very well said.
I don’t agree with taking steroids but the fact is in the long steroids are only going to harm yourself physically. Unless you count the role model thing which I don’t because in the end those kids chose that themselves. If you hit your wife or drive drunk you could hurt other people who did not choose to endanger themselves. It’s hypocritical and it needs to stop.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
And even if you're factoring the role model thing?
Which one is the worse role model?
They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...
Seriously.
Steroid users are really modeling doing whatever it takes to be the best you can be. Granted I think they went about that the wrong way and they should just model hard work but that is still the basis of their actions. Wife beaters are modeling treat women like dirt and when they do something you don’t like it’s okay to hit them.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
there is roid rage though
which can and has led to more than “just” hitting a spouse – just saying.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
But that's not why they took the steroids.
Someone hits their wife with the intent to hurt her. I guess it’s similar to drunk driving but I think the cases of roid rage hurting someone else are a lot less than drunk driving hurting someone else.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
well, when all these cases of roid rage
causing people to intentionally murder their families, i think some of morality is justified. the drunk driver killing someone may be more prevalent, but they didn’t do it intentionally. and i’d guess a majority of spousal abuse situations involve drugs, whether roids, alcohol, or whatever – they didn’t drink the alcohol with the intent of abusing the wife; same as with steroids, it is just the result.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
The main point is there is a double standard in the media that seems to be saying steroids= not okay.
Spousal abuse=we’ll just sweep it under the rug and pretend it isn’t there.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
i don't personally see a double standard
only a difference in magnitude – the spousal abuse i think is well-covered and not swept under any rug. it just seems that way because of the overblown coverage of steroids. if the spousal abuse got the same coverage it now does, and steroids got less coverage (even less than spousal abuse), then i think you would have no problem.
i remember when brett myers was discussed on here as a possible acquisition and everyone was well aware of his douchery. reading the orioles site after they got lugo, the same issues were discussed. in short, yes, steroid coverage is overblown, but spousal abuse is not swept under any rug.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
In comparison to steroids it is.
Especially since steroids are not nearly as bad a moral decision as beating up your wife.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
And I understand why they think they should cover it more because it directly affects baseball.
But they should cover how it directly affects baseball not the morality.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
i don't know that beating up your wife is a moral decision
i doubt it is given much thought. i would guess it comes from something deeper, whether nature or nurture. you decide to take steroids; this could lead to beating up your wife. you decide to drink or do drugs; this can lead to beating up your wife. i think steroids is a moral decision; beating up your wife is not a decision at all, but the result of some deeper problem.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
I think it is a decision.
You decide to hit your wife. You can say all you want about how you were caught up in the moment but you chose to do that. Sorry but you did.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
i just find that too simplistic
unless you want to say reflexive actions are thought-out decisions, which in the abstract i could consider, in the sense that twain said instinct is petrified thought. generally, i don’t think there is ever much rational thought involved, it’s just a blind rage and they don’t know what they are doing – except for the rare case of premeditated abuse, in which case i would agree with you that it is a decision.
i’ve known women who know their husband has anger issues and yet intentionally provoke him knowing full well what will happen, but then lord that black eye over him to their advantage. now that is definitely a calculated decision.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
I think you make a decision to act on your anger.
And you make a decision to do nothing about it if you know it’s an issue. And those women made stupid decisions too but maybe they made those decisions for the same reasons kids act out in class, they want some kind of attention because they are not getting loving attention.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
It is not okay for you to blame a women for getting hit.
It is not okay for you to blame anyone for getting hit. There is never an excuse to hurt someone. Those women may be doing that for control but if those men didn’t beat them they wouldn’t feel the need to have control over him. People are messed up sometimes but everyone makes decisions whether they’re influenced by drugs or anger they’re still decisions.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
you'd have to assume mental health
for that argument.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
If you hit your wife, honestly, IMO, you should be castrated with a dull rusty knife and then have the initials WB branded on your forehead.
by MO'toole on Apr 4, 2010 1:14 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
i'm not advocating hitting your wife (unless she begs)
this began with me saying that it is not swept under the table, but that it is merely a perception because of the magnitude of how much steroids are blown out of proportion.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
yep, it's all hyper morality police trying to to push their jaded views on the rest of us
it’s time for them to STFU
Hope is the worst of all evils, for it prolongs the torment of man
I see the role model point, but I don't think kids are truly bothered about this.
In fact, if the media stopped talking about it, then kids wouldn’t have to know. Instead, it’s everywhere, probably making kids more jaded at a younger age.
Joker and I were debating Kobe Bryant’s situation awhile back. His jersey is #1 in sales for kids. (And maybe overall, I don’t remember.) And I think there are several reasons for that, but one reason is perhaps that parents don’t want to tell their kids that Kobe stood trial for rape. And parents don’t want to tell their kids that Elijah Dukes threatened his baby mama with death and violence. And I don’t blame those parents for not telling kids that kind of stuff. I know my mom would’ve done her best to shield me from that stuff until I was 13 or so. All these grown-up problems are, and should stay, just that.
You can read it in any tone you like.
There are ways to tell kids adult things so that it doesn't scar them or is inappropriate.
As an Early Childhood Education major all of my classes stress honesty with children without being inappropriate. It’s important kids know who to look up to and who is not a good person to model yourself after and why.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
i have to catch myself when my nephews are here & the tv's on
so they won’t see a commercial or something on a show that will mess them up. that’s really hard to get to
Hope is the worst of all evils, for it prolongs the torment of man
Right but I don't see the need to
go out of my way to tell a kid “Why you wearing that Bryant jersey? He stood trial for rape.” It’s one thing if they find out about it, but it’s another to go out of your way to expose young kids to that stuff.
My best friend uses me as an “auntie” for her daughter. She can ask me anything and I will be honest with her. It’s been a policy since she’s been little. But I don’t bad-mouth the kid’s deadbeat dad just because she brings him up.
You can read it in any tone you like.
That's not really what I meant.
I meant maybe not buying the kid a Bryant jersey because you know what he did. And you should never badmouth a kid’s parent. That is a different situation in my opinion, a parent does not equal a sports star to a kid, or they shouldn’t.
And I’m not saying you say oh by the way this Elijah Dukes person hits women. I’m saying it is not up to the media to make moral judgements about steroids if they are going to sweep the other stuff under the rug. They can say that it enhanced their baseball performance unfairly and that is why they are against it but they shouldn’t say he is a bad person because what he did is illegal and therefore he is a bad role model when people who do worse things are not bad role models or don’t matter. The point is they should stick to how it affected their baseball performance, not the morality of it if they aren’t going to have consistent morals.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
by ClemsonGirl on Apr 3, 2010 9:37 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
why shouldn't you tell a kid if their parent is a horrible person?
i don’t get that. if they’re a deadbeat i think the kid should know so they don’t grow up with the wrong idea about who their mom or dad was
Hope is the worst of all evils, for it prolongs the torment of man
Not when they're like 5.
They’ll figure it out. You shouldn’t tell them they’re a good person either. But most kids still love their parents even if they suck. Telling them their parents are bad people makes them think they are wrong for loving them and they most definitely are not wrong for that.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
We just disagree about this stuff, I guess.
I mean, if my daughter wanted a Martha Stewart cupcake cookbook, do I not buy it since Martha served time in prison? If you look hard enough, you can moralize anything and find dirt on anyone.
You can read it in any tone you like.
In that post I said the same thing you just said below.
About the jersey thing I think if they ask for it you can get it for them. But I would guess a lot of parents just got their kids Kobe jersyes because they liked Kobe. Also it’s more about the media moralizing the steroid issue instead of focusing solely on how it affects baseball performance. It almost seems in this day and age the media would rather you beat your wife than take steroids. That may not be true but with the way they treat everything it’s how they come off.
Also rape is a little different than a Wall Street fiasco, I hope you’d agree. :)
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
they are synonymous
figuratively, of course.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
Obviously I agree about that.
(And Martha was railroaded, but that’s a whole ’nother story.)
But Kobe wasn’t convicted. Martha was. Both have boatloads of cash. Now, maybe this says something about gender and power, sports celebrities vs. other celebrities, and those issues could be discussed for days and days and days.
What I initially said was this:
His jersey is #1 in sales for kids. (And maybe overall, I don’t remember.) And I think there are several reasons for that, but one reason is perhaps that parents don’t want to tell their kids that Kobe stood trial for rape.
I didn’t say it was the only reason Kobe’s jersey is #1, just that it is likely a reason, and an understandable one. Many 8 year olds don’t even really know what sex is, let alone a violent sexual act, and I can understand parents not broaching that subject with a kid who just likes watching Kobe play basketball.
Me personally? I would steer my kids towards a LeBron jersey. :)
You can read it in any tone you like.
LeBron has kids out of wedlock
Why is he a better role model? When you start making role models out of athletes you better be awfully choosy, because even the good ones aren’t perfect (Tiger Woods, for example).
Maybe your kid should consider a Tim Duncan jersey. Or just stick with an Albert Pujols jersey and stay out of the NBA for role models all together.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
I don't care if people have kids out of wedlock.
And besides, both kids are with his high school sweetheart. It sounds like they may be having a third child, as well.
You can read it in any tone you like.
I agree with this
I have more of a problem with people having kids, than people having kids out of wedlock.
Lighten up, Francis - Sergeant Hulka
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
by mattyfrommo on Apr 4, 2010 10:39 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Then you have a double standard
Clearly.
If Kobe being accused of rape makes him a bad person because it’s morally wrong to rape someone else and you don’t want your kids following that example, then how is it ok for LeBron to be a role model when I’m guess that you don’t want your children to have out of wedlock kids with high school sweethearts at age 18?
That’s a pretty astounding double standard actually.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
WHAT?
Rape – A TERRIBLE VIOLENT CRIME – is totally different than underage premarital sex that results in a pregnancy. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you say something so ridiculously and patently ignorant and insulting.
And to call my morality into question at the same time? AWESOME.
You can read it in any tone you like.
That's what I thought, to you, the acquittal doesn't matter, he was guilty regardless of what the court decided.
Rape and Accusation of Rape (since acquitted in a court of law) are two different things. I could accuse you of rape and we’ve never even met. Be careful with making judgments on people based on compulsory evidence that can’t stand up to the scrutiny of a trial. Someday it might be YOU on trial for something you didn’t do.
You’re now comparing something that happened (pre-marital sex resulting in children) with something that didn’t happen (rape). I would say that actually doing the former is a whole lot worse than being wrongly accused of doing the latter.
Bottom line, you shouldn’t make role models for your kids out of people you don’t know because you can’t judge their character efficiently. I hope to be a better role model for my newborn daughter than any celebrity or athlete can ever be. I’m not flawless, but at least I can apologize directly if I let her down.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
I never said that.
You’re putting words in my mouth. Please don’t talk to me anymore. Thank you.
You can read it in any tone you like.
Yes you did and no I'm not
Don’t start arguing a point if you aren’t going to be consistent and truthful.
Thanks.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
Shit
Here we go again
Lighten up, Francis - Sergeant Hulka
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
Nope, I'm done
It’s clear that we can’t have a “debate” because one of us isn’t interested in having a consistent argument. They just want to cast stones at others.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
never badmouth a child's parent to them
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
i think it depends on the level or dirtbag said parent is
Lighten up, Francis - Sergeant Hulka
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
Eh...
My dad was a grade A dirtbag and it made me feel squirmy when people bad-mouthed him. My mom and grandfather were the only adults who didn’t talk shit about him. Hence, I have the most respect for them. It’s painful learning those lessons, but learning them on your own is necessary.
You can read it in any tone you like.
I also have a very personal reason for my beliefs
not my dad, but the opinion is there nonetheless. I probably should not even be in this conversation
Lighten up, Francis - Sergeant Hulka
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
I guess I'm really jaded, but
I don’t think many people a worthy of being considered role models. Especially on the basis of their avocation.
Yup.
Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco didn’t raise me. If I would have gotten to the level of pro ball I would have carefully weighed my options with roids.
At the time (mid-late 90s) the “right/wrong” of it wouldn’t even have came into play because everybody knew everybody was doing it. School did a good job of educating me about side effects and what-not. Wrestlers dropping dead in their 40s (gee, lets pick on baseball) also would have played a role in my decision.
I think if I was on the cusp somewhere, like if steroids made a difference between AAA and the Pros, or 40hrs to breaking the record, then yeah, I woulda loaded up and not thought twice about it.
"How depressing is it being you? Would you equate it to being a lifelong Cubs fan?"
My point is really more about the media
And the claim that we are making this huge deal about steroids because steroid use is immoral, illegal, and makes players bad role models. There are sports stars who have done far worse things than steroids, things that are even more illegal, and we dont’ hear the endless bloviating about it from the likes of Jim Rome.
We can drop the endless moralism over steroids, and make the conversation one about competitive balance, or we can start pointing out the REAL bad things that people do. What parents do when discussing this sort of thing with their children is a wholly different thing, and is best left between them and their parents. In this case, I would likely tell my (hypothetical) children that Kobe likely hurt someone, and that talent at basketball does not necessarily make someone a good person. But that is a decision that is extremely dependent on the parents and the kids involved.
They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...
Like I also said -
“In fact, if the media stopped talking about it, then kids wouldn’t have to know.”
I agree that endless media droning is a big problem. But it’s up to adult consumers to change the channel and not support publications that sensationalize this crap. They’re talking about it on the radio in front of your kid? Pop in a CD. Obviously you can’t keep kids from hearing about it, but you can limit exposure when you’re around.
You can read it in any tone you like.
Sure.
And I’m not about to tell parents how to raise their kids. That is a rough and complicated decision for parents to work out for themselves. And I agree that we should just turn the channel from media outlets that are just spewing crap.
But part of that process is calling the media outlets out on this. Why this issue? Why THIS hard? I honestly would be fine with going back to the old-style, ‘your personal lives is none of our business’-style reporting. But if we’re going to judge players’ personal lives, and push this role model nonsense, we should actually think about what is really important some. The Cardinals signing Julio Lugo should have been more controversial than them signing Mark McGwire. Or there should have been no controversy. That’s really all I"m trying to say.
They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...
I think we agree i just didn't say it right.
This isn’t about parents to me. It’s about the media moralizing steroids while not seeming to care as much about other actual moral issues. If there argument is steroids affect baseball performance and that’s why we talk more about steroids then fine, that’s a good argument. But keep it to baseball and not morality.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
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Evan Lysacek: 2010 Olympic Gold Medalist ♥
by ClemsonGirl on Apr 4, 2010 12:31 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Kobe Bryant
He was also acquitted of rape, so let’s keep that in mind.
It’s also been the only incident involving an issue of this kind, does dozens of outreach events for NBA Cares, has his own foundation, and is active in his community. Does that absolve him of being accused of rape? No, it doesn’t. Does being acquitted of the crime because the evidence wasn’t good enough to convict him absolve him? No, it doesn’t. But long term actions speak a lot louder than isolated events, and I think Kobe has done a very good job to make up for his transgressions. His wife is still with him, he seems to be a great dad to his two little girls, yet we consider LeBron, who has kids out of wedlock with a long time girlfriend to be better role model? That’s an interesting perspective to say the least.
This is what drives me nuts about the Tiger Woods thing. He didn’t do anything illegal. He did exactly what we expect of other famous athletes and rock stars to do, and we’ve even celebrated a lot of those guys for doing it. If Tiger Woods was an NBA All-Star (Magic Johnson, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan), most of this would have been swept under the rug. But because he’s involved in a sport of supposed “gentlemen” and married to a supermodel that everyone knows it’s a huge deal.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
I did keep that in mind when I said he stood trial.
He obviously wasn’t convicted or there would be no debate about this, y’know?
You can read it in any tone you like.
i think she was a nanny
not a supermodel.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
I think she was a supernanny.
“trophy wife” is probably not the preferred nomenclature, but it fits, too.
Anyway, Tiger did plenty of illegal things- half the people who came forward admitting to having sex with him were prostitutes, and that is illegal in every US State, and that includes the $$$$/hour prostitutes. He should have done jail time for what he did, and the fact that he didn’t is very interesting.
Well the girls would turn the color of the avocado when he would drive down the street in his El Dorado... -the modern lovers
supernanny
i like that.
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
You're right in general
but prostitution is legal in Nevada, or at least parts of Nevada
They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...
She modeled at one point, but was not a supermodel.
And then she became a nanny.
You can read it in any tone you like.
i think it was for ikea catalogues
"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."
She was in Victoria's Secret
That’s kind of the industry standard of “supermodel”.
Also, she made enough money from modeling to buy her own fucking island off the coast of Sweden.
I’d say that’s pretty successful.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
I am my childrens role model.
Sure we like Mark and his home runs or Kobe and his jump shot but I am the person they look to for morale advice. People in this country need to wake up. My child isn’t talking to an athlete or singer at the dinner table. They aren’t driving them to school or talking with them about their day. I am.
I can’t demonize a man or woman for the choices they make in their lives. If Big Mac wanted to take roids or Tiger wanted to get laid, it isn’t my business. I tell my children where my moral compass is and why I feel the way I do about the subject. Sometimes both pros and cons.
In regards to what ClemsonGirl said about jerseys of athletes who abuse women, I tell my children why this athlete is a dirtbag and not a role model. It is easy to explain things to kids. They see the world in black and white.
Sir Charles couldn’t be reached for comment.
"How depressing is it being you? Would you equate it to being a lifelong Cubs fan?"
Steroids taint the integrity of the game
Players inflated themselves with steroids, which inflated their statistics, which inflated their salaries, this inflated ticket prices. So all of us FANS are ultimately paying the price.
Why didn’t Bud ( In Greed We Trust) Selig and the rest of M.L.B. do anything about this problem? BECAUSE THEY ARE ALL GUILTY. Every trainer knew what was going on , which means EVERY coach, manager, GM and owner also knew they all turned a blind eye toward it.
Additional ’ thanks’ to George Mitchell for his ‘in depth’ investigation into this matter; the Red Sox should have an asterisk next to their World Series titles. Manny and Ortiz were juiced and they wouldn’t have done anything without them.
With Selig as commissioner the inmates are truly running the asylum.
And none of that mentioned morality. Good.
They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...
great job, George Mitchell
In not finding a single Red Sox player guilty, in your exhaustive “in depth investigation”.
Good thing the two best player on the red sox during your tenure were either found guilty, or admitted to being guilty, after you published your $$$$ report. (ortiz, manny)
Well the girls would turn the color of the avocado when he would drive down the street in his El Dorado... -the modern lovers
The thing about role models
is that sometimes you become one whether you want to or not. I only wish that Major League Baseball and Major League Baseball Players would remember that-at all times. I’d even extend that thought to anyone in the public eye-no matter how small you are in your own corner of the world-folks that care are watching and listening to you, whether you want them to or not. That means that your good deeds are magnified, and your bad deeds are magnified as well.
My family has decided to follow the amateur game this summer. We are going to spend our money and our vacation time following the Cape Cod League, and on our son that is playing on a college team in Minnesota. We opted out of our season ticket share (whoever got it, enjoy!) and donated that money to our local American Legion team.
It’s a weird thing for me, and for us. We still love baseball. We’re just not sure we love the professional version of it. Yeah, everyone who cheated played a part in that. At least for us.
She isn't crazy, she's just not impressed.
Oh, and could you get Mike Adams for the bullpen, please?
Everything said here is 100% accurate. Players want the money and glory not the responsibility attached – the price you pay for the amount you’re paid. The Cape Cod League is excellent and you’ll be back again after this year ; is your son playing in it?
Being a NYer the cost of a game is exorbitant 2- 4 decent seats + parking + food = $1000 if you are lucky. I coach and umpire Little League and try to follow HS and local colleges. The only people who can afford pro baseball are corporations and the players themselves.
MLB doesn’t want fans to go to every game and root their team on ; they want you at 2-3 games per year and to spend every cent they can squeeze out of you : it is such a shame.
by D4 on Apr 6, 2010 9:07 AM EDT up reply actions
Disagree 100%
It’s not their job to raise other peoples kids.
Borderline strawman: How do you like it when you’re at work and somebody wants you to do something that is clearly not your job?
I work in IT at citi. If someone came up to me and told me to go out and be a bank teller or be a janitor today I’d tell them to fuck off.
And it’s not a shame, it’s a mulit-billion dollar business. Maybe one day UNICEF will start a baseball league.
"How depressing is it being you? Would you equate it to being a lifelong Cubs fan?"
by rocKStark5 on Apr 7, 2010 10:28 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I love the Cape Cod League
I wish I could get out East and go to some of the games over a couple of weeks some summer.
That said, while it’s an amateur league, it probably wouldn’t exist without funding from MLB, who has been an outside funding source for the CCL (and a few other amateur leagues around the country) for the last 25 years or so.
Can Colby round out our new MV3?
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- Keeping good company: Albert Pujols becomes fourth-youngest player to hit 450 home runs
- Giancarlo Stanton misses cutoff man, and Logan Morrison is thankful he did (Video)
- Snoop Dogg delivers memorable first pitch at U.S. Cellular Field
- The Juice: Mesoraco’s grand slam helps Reds complete four-game sweep of Braves
