FIND ME A JOB IN BASEBALL

Perusing the baseball articles this evening, as a way to change up all of the football news and opinion, much of the baseball news is about signing new people to the team. Every baseball team in the MLB is trying to fill its roster with the best of the best so that they can go all the way next October. Or November if they elongate the season any more.

Anyway, that's not new news. Teams for every sport try to get their hands on the best of the best so that they can be the best. But what strikes me is how much these players are getting paid. If money was the only way to get to the World Series (as Steinbrenner believes it does) than all of these teams will definitely make it this year.

Take for example the recent acquirement of Nick Markakis to the Baltimore Orioles. He is getting 66.1 MILLION dollars (I feel like Dr. Evil from Austin Powers) as a right fielder for six years. Let us divide 66.1 million dollars by six and see his upcoming annual salary. Hmmm... well if we rounded so the numbers were nice, Markakis would be making roughly 11 million dollars every year for playing right field. The MLB might as well have baseball year round, otherwise he is getting a steal from the Orioles' bank account.

Now I realize that there are other players in baseball that make much more than this measly 66.1 million dollars. Take for example, A-Rod who had a 275 million dollar contract for ten years. The man isn't finding a cure for cancer here, or even doing much besides hitting on Madonna and giving her private lessons. Give me ten percent of that and I would be happy. I also know that baseball isn't the only sport that is paying its players more money than some small countries have in their bank accounts. I just like to complain at the fact that baseball players bore the heck out of its fans and they are getting paid an exorbitant amount.

Compared to the 66.1 million buckaroos, it would then seem like the veteran catcher, Brad Ausmus, is being gypped. Ausmus just signed a mere one million dollar contract to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Come on LA! You cant fork over 11 million dollars per year? How veteran is he?

The one that takes the cake for a "poor" deal is the one year, 750,000 dollar contract for Henry Blanco. He will now be the catcher for the Padres, and boy he must be crying at how #@$$^!@ his paycheck is going to be for that year. Maybe he should start hanging out with Madonna, or move to Baltimore.

In a time and place where people are worried about losing money in this downward spiraling economy, how can journalists write these stories? How can players accept this much amount of money for playing a game, and sometimes not all that well? The worst of all is when players refuse to play for a team because the salary is just too "low." I'm sorry, would you like 200 million dollars to play semi decently while people lose their jobs everyday? Go rule a country, at least the dictators are doing more work every year than these baseball players, or basketball players. Again, if these people found cures to diseases and created an environment where global warming would cease (If you don't believe in it, you're a rich republican! just kidding, I think...) then maybe I could see why maybe people should be earning that much. Maybe. Earning 750,000 dollars in baseball seems like it's a good deal, at least to me. Maybe these teams should cut their salaries and invest into the economy. But what do I know.

So, baseball teams will still fork over the millions of dollars to make sure their team is good. Maybe the Orioles will actually get a break this year. But probably not. Anyway, what do I know? I guess we should all learn a lesson from George Steinbrenner. I mean, the more you pump money into the team and its players, the more chances they will win the World Series at the end of the season, right? Right?

-The Jaxster