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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 30, 2002)
Troubled MLB must reach a cooperative agreement How bad are things getting for baseball? Pretty bad. The players’ union is setting a strike date, Commissioner Bud Selig foresees several teams going bankrupt, the owners are planning to relocate and eliminate some teams, and a recent retiree is writing a controversial “tell-all” book about his experiences behind the scenes. The biggest problem is the po larization of the haves and have nots in the game. The attendance in cities such as Kansas City and Montreal have been pitiful. The Royals drew 40,605 on Opening Day against the Minnesota Twins but have only averaged 15,400 since. Since an Opening Day crowd of 34,351, the Expos, who were close to extinction last fall, have only had one game with an atten dance of more than 20,000, and it took $5 tickets and $1 hot dogs to do it. Excluding those two games, Montreal is averaging only 6,600 fans per game. A third team that is suffering even worse is the Anaheim An gels. Since April 24, the Angels have been one of the hottest teams in baseball, yet during that time, Anaheim has had an average home attendance of 23,200. The average seems high compared to the Roy als and Expos but is pretty sad con sidering more than 12 million peo ple live in Los Angeles and Orange County — and the ballpark’s ca pacity is more than 45.000. The fact is that people are turned off by the disparity of team salaries in baseball. The more a team spends, the more fans it puts into a stadium. All the teams with top-10 salaries draw more than 29,000 fans a game. This is led by Arizona, San Francisco and Seattle, who all av erage more than 39,000. The Cubs, Cardinals and Ori oles average more than 32,000 fans a game because of tradition and years of fan appreciation. Unfortunately, they are excep tions to the rule. The disparity is not only be tween teams, but players as well. This year, the top 4 percent of the league’s money-makers will earn more than 20 percent of the play ers’ salary money. This is led by such team-hoppers as Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi (a former Athletic) and Rangers shortstop Alex Rodriguez (a former Mariner). These disparities are causing economic problems, and negotia tions between owners and players aren’t going well. Guest Commentary Peter Martini Nobody wants a repeat of the devastation of 1994, when the World Series was wiped out by an ugly strike. There are no easy an swers, but one might end up being a salary cap. I’ve always been against a salary cap for baseball and so has the players’ union for obvious reasons. But as Selig so generously point ed out a few weeks ago, as if we didn’t already know, six to eight teams could go bankrupt within the next two years if nothing changes in the economic system. Last fall, owners tried to help the economic situation by eliminating the Expos and the Twins. But a judge ordered that the Twins had a legal obligation to play in the Metrodome this season, thus tem porarily halting the contraction. By filling just 42 percent of the stands on average, the Minnesota fans aren’t making a strong case to keep the team. However, I believe the team can be saved. The Expos, on the other hand, are most likely done in Montreal after this year. Odds are they’ll ei ther be contracted or relocated. Washington, D.C., has lobbied heavily for the franchise and seems to be a front-runner if the owners decide to relocate. In short, baseball expanded too much, too quickly during the 1990s, so contraction wouldn’t be all bad if the right teams are cho sen — I vote for the Expos and Devil Rays. Then I would move the Marlins to the nation’s capital. Another problem just revealed is that former player Jose Canseco is going to write a book describ ing the behavior of players. As you can imagine, this has stirred up many emotions by players and former players who don’t want the book published. Barry Bonds said he doesn’t think finger-pointing will do the game any good. Former Padres All star Tony Gwynn said he believes Canseco is “worthy of considera tion” for the Hall of Fame, howev er, if Canseco writes his book, Gwynn would change his mind. Canseco wasn’t the most moral or fan-friendly player in the game, but one thing I’ve always admired about him is his Charles Barkley like frankness and honesty. I don’t think he would lie in his book, but he might exaggerate some things. It has been reported that Canseco said 85 percent of base ball players use steroids, but I find that very difficult to believe. Do I think the report is true? Yes. Do I think Canseco was honest? Yes. I think Canseco is honest about what he has seen in his career, but I don’t think his experiences repre sent baseball as a whole. However, people already think baseball players are overpaid, and if this book gets published, then they could view players as over paid druggies. Canseco’s book could also put a negative stigma on the perform ance and accomplishments of baseball players. Whenever a player hits a home run, fans will wonder if he or steroids did it. As it is, former player Ken Caminiti recently announced that he used steroids during his 1996 MVP season with the Padres. Either way, baseball needs to change its economic system and public perception. That goes for both owners and players. It can start this summer by having the two sides come together to set an agreement that can last for more than just eight years. If they don’t, and another strike happens, the sport could lose its fans forever. Peter Martini is a freelance reporter for the Emerald. His views do not necessarily represent those of the Emerald. bporiS brief Asian rivals present united front for World Cup Thirty years after Ping-Pong diplomacy thawed hostilities be tween the United States and Chi na, soccer diplomacy might prove to be a turning point in the rela tionship between three unfriend ly neighbors. PHOTO SPECIALS MAY 27-JUNE 2 2ND SET FREE! 3x5 prints: 12 exp $2.25 24 exp $4.25 36 exp $6.25 4x6 prints: 12 exp $3.25 24 exp $6.25 36 exp $9.25 From 35mm C-41 full frame color film. (Panoramic, half frame, and negatives exduded) 20% OFF APS PROCESSING: 25 exp. (one set/two set) $6.66/$9.96 40 exp. (one set/two set) S9.40/S14.20 Allow 1-2 days for APS processing. Glossy or matte finish. FUJICOLOR Korea and Japan, which have co existed in disharmony for cen turies, are co-hosts of the World Cup, and determined to present a smiling, united front as the globe peers in on Asia for the four weeks of the tournament. Isolated and poverty-stricken North Korea, still technically at war with South Korea and on bel ligerent terms with Japan, is hop ing the World Cup will lead to aid and some token of acceptance from nations that regard it as a Cold War throwback. “There is considerable friction in the entire area,” said June Teufel Dreyer, chair of the University of Miami political science depart ment. “Koreans like to describe their country as the nut caught be tween nut-crackers Japan and Chi na. Japan has a history of conquer ing Korea. The World Cup is meant Don’t Get Trapped In A SmaR Apartment • Basketball/Tennis Courts • 1 & 2 Bedrooms • Quiet & Large • Low Energy Cost • Air Conditioning • Laundry Hookups • Free Cable • Balcony/Deck Come check out our great apartments! 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South Korea, a five-time World Cup dud, is hoping to ad vance to the second round on home soil. Japan, proud of how its domes tic league has surpassed Korea’s in terms of talent, is also looking to make a worldwide impression. “Japan is looking nervously over its shoulder because its economy has been in the doldrums since 1990,” Teufel Dreyer said. “Koreans are very astute and hard-working. Japan sees a scrappy little rival.” Japan has periodically invaded Letter Head Written Home Lately?? m Cards & Stationery ■ Journals ■ Wrapping Paper ■ Photo Albums ■ Wedding Invitations 1801 Willamette Street 343-6374 Korea since the 13th century. Dur ing Japan’s annexation of Korea from 1909 to 1945, Korean children were educated in the Japanese lan guage, Koreans were forced to adopt Japanese names and many Koreans were forcibly taken to Japan to do menial work or serve in the Japanese army. After Japan was defeated in World War II, Korea was split in two by the United States and the Soviet Union. In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea, and the Ko rean War raged for three years. The demilitarized zone still divides the peninsula. — Linda Robertson Knight Ridder Newspapers EXCITING OUTDOOR SUMMER I0R Fighting Wildfires! No exp. needed Training Provided Apply now! 10am-4pm (541)746-7528 1322 N. 30th • Springfield JUI*Y 22-AUGUST li as usual Introduction to Environmental Literature William Rossi, 2:00-3:50 p.m MUWH. ENG 230/CRN 42101 2002 SUMMER SESSION • JUNE 24-AUGUST 16 Register by telephone now. Pick up a free summer catalog in Oregon Hall or at the UO bookstore. It has all the information you need to know about ^ / JO Summer Session. http://uosummer.uoregon.edu/ ^ 01 Wud sit hec i a * r Tt rf •:TFS"J:
