Rookie Salaries? High Enough to Cap?

Why do students play college sports? Pride, leadership, because it's fun? Or because after your senior season you can be paid to play it? Most college athletes, especially the great ones, aspire to move onto professional sports. However, has anyone check the average of the first overall pick in the NFL lately? Well on average over the past five years, 64.4 million, with 34.74 million guaranteed, has been shelled out to pay for these first overall draft picks. Sixty four million dollars, before even proving yourself on the field!! Absurd. Of course, when you're a veteran in the league, playing every game for years and proving yourself, I think you may be somewhat angered at the money these rookies are receiving. In fact the average salary for and NFL player only comes in around 770,000 (Mehta). Junk change compared to Sam Bradford's recent rookie contract worth 78 million, with 50 million simply guaranteed. Therefore the seemingly exponential advice of rookies contracts toward unprecedented levels forces the question of whether or no to implement a salary cap on rookie salaries.

            There exists understandable reason to place a salary cap on rookie contracts. Many veterans, and coaches, believe a rookie salary cap will solve this problem of overpaying rookies. Bill Polian, president of the Indianapolis Colts stated, "That money should go to veteran players who have earned it in the National Football League. That’s a very stark example, but it exists. It's there, and it needs to be changed. And I don’t think many other people other than those such as agents who have a vested interest in the present system, would have a problem with that"(National Football Post). Even Rodger Goodell, the NFL commissioner said, “As a veteran player, you’ve proven your performance on an NFL field and that should be rewarded" (Wetzel), in favor of supporting proven veteran players over rookies.

            Obviously there exists a problem, which intends to likely be fixed. However, one could argue against capping rookie contracts, on the basis that all NFL teams are already capped. Therefore, adding more regulation and overhead would only drive down popularity and transparency. Plus, isn't up to the team how they spend their money, even if their picks are not worthy of the cash? As well, economically speaking, college prospects may not go in the direction of playing in the NFL, but in the MLB or another profession sport providing more immediate cash. This debate will increasingly become more prominent as players receive more and more money. However, the popular choice become law, and as it seems capping rookie salary contracts seems to have acquired enough support.

"Bill Polian Critical of NFL Rookie Contract System | National Football Post." National Football Post | All Angles. All Access. Web. 13 Oct. 2010. <http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Bill-Polian-critical-of-NFL-rookie-contract-system.html>.

Mehta, Suketu. "NFL Player Salaries." Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. Web. 13 Oct. 2010. <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/nfl-player-salaries.html>.

, Dan. "Rookie Salaries out of This League - NFL - Yahoo! Sports." Yahoo! Sports - Sports News, Scores, Rumors, Fantasy Games, and More. Web. 12 Oct. 2010. <http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=dw-draftsalaries042408>.

Have a Replay on Instant Replay?

        

            Organized Major League Baseball has been played for over a century, don't you think in those 124 years the hierarchy of baseball officiating would have perfected the game by now? I guess not. Baseball should be unanimously considered the most dysfunction of all the organized mainstream sports. Beginning with the lack of a salary cap, and ending with avoidance of implementing instant replay to assist umpires, baseball has become more conservative, and narrow minded, than any other sport. With installing instant replay in a constructive manor, as other sports have done, solely to aid umpires in permanently making the correct call, the credibility added simply by that maneuver would allow baseball to thrive in the modern technological age.

            One hundred and twenty four years of baseball, America’s oldest mainstream organized sport, has yield three hundred ninety five thousand two hundred and fifty two games (395,252) (Baseball-Reference)! During the MLB’s epic existence, only 20 perfect games have ever been thrown. That’s one perfect game for every 19,762.6 games. Those numbers are incredible, in fact, to unite a real world analogy to those numbers, sports writer Drew Silverman points out, “more people have orbited the moon (24) than have pitched a perfect game” (Silverman). Tell that to Armando Galarraga.

            Jason Donald woke up on June 2, 2010, unaware he would help in changing the world by that night. His new job, it was his first year, required him to show up at East of Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48216. Late in the night, his third opportunity to get a hit with his new job, he changed the world of baseball. He worked for the Cleveland Indians as a shortstop; and that night Armando Galarraga was the opposing pitcher and Galarraga was dominating. Jason Donald, a rookie, was the 27^th out in a perfect game; however, he ground to first, Galarraga covering, and was incorrectly called safe by first base umpire Jim Joyce. Galarraga was robbed from completing a perfect game, and became eternally part of baseball history, for the wrong reason. "I just cost that kid a perfect game," Joyce confessed after the game (Snyder).

           

            Yet, instant replay could have changed that. Obviously, baseball is one of the best sports in the entire world; and instant replay could single handedly allow baseball to transcend to a higher echelon over other sports. Yet, there exists no light at the end of this tunnel, no logical argument could convince current MLB commissioner Bud Selig, who stated, "At this point in time I agree with [not having replay]. I said I'd continue to review it and I will. ... I think where we are now is a very good balance" (Borelli), when asked about adding instant replay .He continues to remain conservative on the ideas of expanding instant replay. Human error does not have to be part of the game. It isn't fun, and should not seriously be consider a constant in the game of baseball. Umpires are human, and can easily be checked by simply reviewing the play. Joyce even stated, after studying the replay, "I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay” (Snyder).

            Today, flipping through the official record book of Major League Baseball, Galarraga's name will not be found. The play could have be reviewed in a matter of minutes, correctly changed, and a young man's story eternally engraved in the world of baseball. In the end, Galarraga was a tremendously good sport about the entire situation. Yet, he pointed out, “I’m sad, but I know that I pitched a perfect game. The first 28-out perfect game" (Walker).

 Borelli, S. (n.d.). Selig: No replay expansion, home field to remain at stake in All-Star Game -      Daily Pitch: MLB News, Standings, Schedules & More - USATODAY.com. News,    Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com.         Retrieved October 04, 2010, from             http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2010/07/selig-no-replay-  expansion-home-field-to-remain-at-stake-in-all-star-game/1

"Major League Baseball & MLB Encyclopedia - Baseball-Reference.com." Baseball-         Reference.com - Major League Baseball Statistics and History. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/>;.

Silverman, Drew. "Just How Improbable Is Pitching a Perfect Game?" CSNPhilly.com -    Philadelphia Sports News and Video. Web. 04 Oct. 2010.          <http://www.csnphilly.com/05/30/10/Just-How-Improbable-is-Pitching-a-            Perfec/landing.html?blockID=244120&feedID=704>;.

Snyder, S. J. (n.d.). Fallout For Galarraga and the Tigers: Could Jim Joyce, and the Foiled            Perfect Game, Bring Instant Replay to Baseball? - TIME NewsFeed. TIME NewsFeed -    Breaking News and Updates. Retrieved October 04, 2010, from          http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/06/03/galarraga-fallout-could-jim-joyce-bring-instant-            replay-to-baseball/

Walker, B. (n.d.). Selig won't overturn call that cost perfect game - Baseball- NBC Sports. Sports             News Headlines - NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, PGA, NASCAR - Scores, Game Highlights,     Schedules & Team Rosters - NBC Sports. Retrieved October 03, 2010, from      http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/37479309/ns/sports-baseball/

MLB's Salary Cap Inequalities

               

            The time has come to set a salary cap within Major League Baseball. The inequality gap between the rich teams and the poorer teams limits the credibility of the entire game of baseball. Compared to the Pittsburg Pirates, Alex Rodriguez makes as much money in one year as their entire payroll for a single year! How lop sided is that fact? As of today, September 22, 2010, Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees has 510 at-bats. As of today, September 22, 2010, Alex Rodriguez's, of the New York Yankees, annual salary of 33 million is baseball's his salary of all time (MLB Salaries). Divided by his at-bats, the monumental salary he makes means he makes 64,705.88 per at-bat.

            Looking at the baseball standings while the Yankees dominate the Rays, the Yankees are now 1.5 games ahead of us in the AL East. Well they should be; with the money allocated to buying players I do not understand how they do not win 162 games a year. To allow any team to even actually compete shouldn't happen. Now I know they haven't won all their 27 World Series rings within the last 15 to 20 years-when their payroll first became extremely inflated-but I'm observing the present time and how their, and other teams, payroll hurts the integrity of the entire game.

            What I am proposing is adding a salary cap to Major League Baseball in order to produce a more cohesive environment for competitiveness . What's the problem with that? The only teams which should despise a salary cap are the teams at the top of the payroll lists. In order for baseball to become a more loved and honored sport would be to implement this salary cap, as more people will be more accepting of the bigger teams, and pay more attention to the smaller teams, which would hopefully win more often with a leveled playing field. Personally, I don't know  if anyone else feels this way, when I am watching a game without the Rays playing it in, I will usually root for the team with the substantially lower payroll. Everyone, besides Yankees fans, loves watching them falter to the Oakland Athletics, as their pay roll quadruples the Athletics' (MLB Salaries).

 "MLB Salaries - CBSSports.com." Sports - CBSSports.com Sports News, Fantasy Scores, Sports Video. Web. 22 Sept. 2010. <http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/salaries/teams>.