NBC Sports – Craig Calcaterra: This offseason has been a slow one, yet again. At the heart of the matter is teams being unwilling to spend money. They show investors powerpoint presentations of their business plans, make money from activities that have nothing to do with actually playing baseball, and maintain the status quo at all times. It is good for the pocketbooks of the owners, but it results in non-competitive teams. Fans want competition, they want their favorite club to be actively trying to be better. Nobody wants boredom, stagnation, or cares about powerpoint presentations in lieu of on-field improvements.
Sporting News – Jacob Janower: Major League Baseball teams expect their players to be baseball-ready all year round. This extends to their players currently toiling away in the Minor League Baseball ranks. At the same time, MLB owners do not want to pay MiLB players the federal minimum wage, let alone an actual living wage. The end result is that players end up taking side jobs in the offseason where they often make more than they do playing baseball professionally. No player should have to do this, not when MLB teams can afford to pay each and every one of them much more than a liveable wage, but MLB is a disgusting organization that is content to wallow in a neverending cesspool of its own design.
Forbes – Ryan Davis: Micah Bowie pitched in the major leagues for six seasons. He was never a great pitcher, but he was a serviceable arm who made it to the highest level of baseball in the world. He’s been retired since 2008, and now he’s saddled with a mountain of medical debt that keeps on growing. He’s been getting some assistance from MLB and clubs like the Oakland A’s, but none from the Major League Baseball Player’s Association. They have denied his appeals for aid, and have left one of their own to fend for himself. What’s the point of a union if it refuses to take care of its members when they need help the most?
Lead photo courtesy of David King – flickr
