Why They Get The Big Bucks

 I’ve been wanting to write something for awhile now about baseball player’s salaries. Wait! Don’t cut and run, thinking you already know what I’m going to say. Believe it or not, this is not an angry rant about how much money these guys get for throwing a ball around; I’m actually here to defend them. Here’s why they get the big bucks:

 History:  There was a time when baseball players made bubkes. So little were they once paid that most ball players held other jobs in the off-season, some even during the season. Worse even than their lousy paychecks, players were treated like chattel: any player could be traded to any team at any time and he had to just shut his mouth and go. They had no say about their pension fund. There was no such thing in baseball as collective bargaining. Baseball was the only business in the country that was, mysteriously, exempt from national antitrust laws. The standard player’s contract included a reserve clause stating that if a team and his player did not reach a contract agreement by a certain date, the club could simply go ahead and renew the old contract without the player’s consent. The players had no recourse other than retirement.

Curt Flood, a St. Louis Cardinal who objected to being traded in 1969 to the Phillies, sued, which started things rolling in a new direction. Even though Flood lost his lawsuit, it did go all the way to the Supreme Court, and even though it lost there as well, Flood’s campaign was responsible for changes that finally came in 1975, when the owners’ association agreed to free agency. In 1998 Congress passed the Curt Flood Act, eliminating baseball’s exemption from antitrust laws.  (For more of this history, see Stepping Up: The Story of Curt Flood and his Fight for Baseball Players’ Rights, by Alex Belth.) 

I like to compare the ballplayers’ situation to that of old rock ‘n’ rollers like Jackie Wilson, for instance, who made tons of money for record company executives, yet died sick and destitute. When musicians finally got their rightful due, they went overboard, so that now we can’t download a song without paying for it, or even reprint lyrics for free.  While most ball players would probably do just fine with half the amount of money they make, once they got a taste of power, they got carried away -- just like the musicians.

Arduous Training. Baseball players, like professional dancers, skaters, and other athletes, typically undergo a training period that begins in early childhood. Not only must they learn the sport, but keeping in shape for such rigorous physical labor is a 24/7 pursuit -- a way of life, not just an exercise plan.

Wrecked bodies. I read somewhere that every player has to first confront the sheer terror of standing perfectly still while a 96 mile-an-hour baseball comes hurtling in his direction. Natural instinct, after all, is to run for your life. These guys get hit with balls, tear their ligaments, crash into walls and each other, pull their muscles, bang their limbs, rip off their flesh and break their bones. They suffer lconcussions with lasting effects, and undergo major surgeries that can take years to recover from. Playing baseball is hell on the human body -- which brings me to...

Enforced retirement. By the time a player reaches his late thirties he’s lucky if he can still walk, let alone run, throw or just see the damn ball. Because of developments in surgical techniques as well as greater knowledge of health maintenance in general, players, who used to retire in their 30s, are now playing into their 40s and even beyond. That's still  early to lose one's primary source of income. The lucky ones go on to coach, manage or announce games, but they all have to earn as much as they can in their productive years in order to stash some away for later.

 Unbelievable Pressure. Picture this: It’s the ninth inning of an important game, or even a run-of-the-mill game, and you’re at bat. The score is 8-7 in your opponent’s favor, and bases are loaded. A base hit sends the tying run home. A double wins the game for your team. And a Grand Slam -- if only! -- will go down in history. On the other hand, if you strike out, or pop it up, or get an out in any one of the numerous ways it can occur…well, you get the picture. Plus, it’s a home game, so your fans are roaring, cheering you on, praying for you to come through. Just to throw another element into this pressure cooker, millions of people are watching the game on television.

Every time something like this happens in a ball game, I turn to my son, who thinks players make way too much money, and I say, “See this! Right now! Right now he’s earning every penny of his salary.” I really believe that. No matter what happens, the incredibly intense stress of those few minutes cannot be calculated in dollars; as the credit card ads say: Priceless.

 And that’s why they get the big bucks!