Getting paid to play a game

Tom Selleck, better known for his character on the 1980s TV show, Magnum PI went on to star in a baseball movie, Mr. Baseball. This movie is of an aging American player spending the twilight years of his career in Japan. Halfway through the movie, he manages to establish a relationship with his Japanese manager, Ken Takakura. Selleck shows up at Takakura's house unannounced with a bottle of whiskey and a cigar and informs Takakura that he just learned a Japanese custom of the subordinate being able to tell the boss what is on his mind and none of it will be held against him. Selleck goes on to tell his Japanese manager that instead of coercing the players into doing well, he should loosen up and take some risks. He finishes by stating, "Baseball is a game and games are suppose to be fun. We are getting paid to play a game."

Last week, on my lunch break, I was listening to the radio in the car and was flipping the channels between Rush "Limbo" and Jim Rome. After getting fed up of listening to how Obama's pastor has a big mouth on Rush's show, I actually picked up something on the Romes's show that was more than some out of work college grads playing around with a karaoke machine and rapping to a Prince song. Rome mentioned that the Red Sox were threatening to boycott the season opener in Japan against the Athletics. Their reason? The coaches and players were making $40K for the game but the staff and administration that were slated to make the trip were not.

While it is comforting that the players and coaches are looking out for someone besides themselves, I simply can not relate to how pathetic and greedy professional sports have become in the United States. The biggest culprit is pro baseball. With the home run slugger and pitching ace of our generation being questioned for using steroids to the 1994 season when the only championship was played in Japan. Their is nothing more contradicting that seeing some fat and disgusting baseball player (David Wells, Goose Gossage and Irabu) who consider themselves athletes. Then when those who have some pride in their appearance realize, "Hey, I'm a ball player." decides to get in shape, they cheat with steroids.

Anyway, it would be one thing if the coaches and players were making $40K a year. I'll admit, the trip to Japan is nothing more than a spectacle and the organizations (Red Sox and A's) are the cute little dogs and ponies making it happen. But these guys are filthy rich. Are they talented and gifted? Sure they are. They signed up for this and are making plenty of money. If those who were not receiving any stipend from this event felt that they were unjustly being left out, then the coaches and players should have passed a collection plate around like they did in the Russell Crowe movie, Cinderella Man. But, this isn't the Great Depression and they aren't some struggling boxer in the 1920s.

Evidently, they managed to sort this thing out and the game is on. But, you will never find me driving down to Atlanta to watch a game of overpaid bums who do not live in the same world as I do. For all of you that are suffering from insomnia, watch a few innings of baseball. You'll be out like a light.

Are you like me and feeling the crunch at the gas pump? These guys are the ones that actually like the gas prices so that when they drive their un-green SUVs, there will be less people on the roads.

Imported American slugger, Randy Bass, found fame in Japan in the 1980s. He challenged the Japanese season homerun record (55). He's with 1/2 of the show "Utaban" Ishibashi. If you are familar with the Major League trilogy, Ishibashi was in parts 2 and 3.

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