A Swing at Baseball Salaries

Baseball players may be making a lot of money, but this is no reason to condemn them. The author has his time frame wrong. Ballplayers begin training camps in February and finish in mid-to-late October; this is a nine-month not a six-month season.

Secondly, the author fails to mention that baseball players participate in games almost every day, which puts their bodies through rigorous abuse. Barry Bonds and Ryne Sandberg, whom the author mentions, very seldom are on the disabled list. Next, there are thousands of "kids" playing at the minor-league level. These players rarely make more than a few thousand dollars a year, and they do not stay in fancy hotels or travel first class. Also, the majority of franchises are in the black. One team showed a profit margin of $30 million in 1991; this stems from an increase in the already outrageous costs of parking, ticket sales, souvenirs, and concessions.

The author should condone the riches of baseball rather than condemn it. It is a hope for American kids to escape the ghetto and make a good life for themselves. Heath Novosad, Sealy, Texas

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