A dollar doesn't go quite as far as it used to. Inflation is on the rise and the cost of living has been steadily rising ever since it cost money to live. This is prompting certain employers to give "cost of living increases" of anywhere between one and five percent. Unless of course you happen to be a baseball player, in which case you will have already enjoyed an average 79% increase in your base salary over the last two years. That according to a report issued by Major League Baseball's Player Relations Committee.
Yes, baseball fans, overall the players you love to watch have been paid nearly $300 million dollars more than they were just two years ago. I mean really, we wouldn't want our players to starve or have to go without the bare necessities of life on the shameful $370.2 million dollars we were paying them in '89.
"Now," you might ask, "just what have I gotten for my $300 million dollars?" Well, I thought you'd never ask. You were able to support such athletes as Bill Wegman, a pitcher for Milwaukee who has a 51-51 career record and has spent 306 days on the disabled list for the past five seasons. Don't worry about 'ol Billy, though, because Milwaukee signed him for $9.5 million over the next four years.
But that's not all. You also got Glenn Davis for Baltimore. You remember Glenn, don't you? Actually, I'd be surprised if you did, seeing as how he played in only 49 games last season because of a nerve injury in his neck. Well Dave's neck may be feeling a little better these days, now that he's signed a $6.665 million dollar contract for the next two years.
But enough about the players themselves, what about the teams? Well the Oakland A's spent more money than anyone else in Major League baseball--a whopping $39.2 million dollars. And what do they have to show for it? Well they came in fourth place in the AL West. In fact, Minnesota and Atlanta who (in case you've forgotten) were the number one and two teams this last season were number 15th and 19th respectively as far as paying their players goes. Hmmm. Kind of makes you wonder, doesn't it?
Now don't get me wrong--I'm not saying that I think professional baseball players are paid too much money. What I'm saying is that I think professional baseball players are paid WAY too much money. This all wouldn't be so bad if I didn't know that the money to pay these outrageous salaries was coming out of the pockets of sports fans nationwide. Every time we shell out money for exorbitant ticket prices we are helping to support these multi-millionaires.
However it would appear that we, the ordinary sports fans of America, are slacking off on the job. Apparently we aren't getting enough revenue to the teams. In fact the situation has gotten so bad that some of the players have had to take up second jobs--like Jose Canseco of the A's. Yes that poor, needy young man who makes barely enough money to survive (about $5 million) has been forced to supplement his income by charging 10-year-old kids $25 bucks for his autograph. However Jose, and many other players who also charge for autographs may soon have to look for other work--once the kids come to realize that these players' autographs depreciate just as fast as our respect for "heroes" who are nothing more than selfish, greedy, profiteers.