Has professional sports jumped the shark?

[Cru Jones]

The Miami Marlins have signed their star soon-to-be 25-year old outfielder for $325 million over 13 years.

You read that right: nearly 1/3 of a billion dollars for one player.

Has professional sports jumped the shark?

[azguy]

At least he's 25, The Angels spent god knows what on josh Hamilton who's a broken down, shadow of his former self and still has like 2 year and over $60 million left on his contract. Baseball owners are stupid, football owners are the smartest of the bunch.

[Angrypuppy]

Originally Posted by Cru Jones

Has professional sports jumped the shark?

In general yes, I believe so.

I know quite a few people that just don't really care anymore. Don't watch on TV, don't by the merchandise, and don't go to games. The value is no longer there, and in general the players act like a bunch of clowns.

I'm a season ticket holder for the local MLS team. It is a great value and the games are a lot of fun. I think Soccer in this country is starting to fill some of the void left by other more mainstream sports.

[seand442]

Extended contracts in any sport are just plain dumb. Anything more than 5 years is ridiculous. Especially baseball, which is losing popularity every year. Football could get away with it, but the players take too much of a beating to do anything more than 5. Plus, with major market teams having multi-billion dollar TV deals, money is an afterthought.

I've always been a football fan, but have turned into a very casual baseball fan and could care less about basketball, hockey and most other sports.

[G8RDPM]

So,I moved from S Fl a while ago but...
They are no longer the Fla Marlins.They recently moved to Miami from what they called North Dade.
They used to draw from Dade,Broward and even Palm Beach counties.Approx 6 million potential fans. Now,not so much. Complete respect for the player and his agent. $155k per game. Ridiculous, but,it's great to be him. Wonder what the entire franchise is worth?

[seand442]

Forbes puts them at $500 mil.
http://www.forbes.com/teams/miami-marlins/

[KellyM3]

I can't stand sports anymore every, well almost, every football player after making a routine play has to do what I call their idiot routine made up of some foolish pose or dance...I can't stand it... I go back to Earl Campbell who said something to the effect of....when scoring a touchdown be a man and act like you've been there before

Now everyone's a hero after a play... I hate it!!!!

[tfduff723]

College football and NHL for me. Can pretty much take or leave the rest.

[mailman]

If someone offered me that kind of money to do my job I'd take it

[wantonebad]

This isn't fantasy money folks, if there wasn't a market for top talent and a revenue stream for it's financing then these contracts don't happen... Sorry Cru but I see this as a generational grudge. My father said that million dollars contracts in baseball were not sustainable and that the contracts for Dave Parker/Nolan Ryan in 79 would ruin the sport. Truth is they were probably under paid. JMHO

[SMD]

Of course not. If they had, these contracts would not exist.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by Angrypuppy

...in general the players act like a bunch of clowns.

This is the sad truth and such behavior diminishes sports.

The problem is that professional sports is just another form of entertainment and a generation who doesn't expect sportsmanship from the players will likely still be entertained, so the show will go on.

For no fewer than 20 years, I've felt that one's time is better spent supporting the local athletes and sports programs, instead of feeding the professional sports beast.

It's hard not to do so, though, because there are so many products that sponsor the sports that every time you buy, say a Budweiser, you're supporting every sport that benefits from Budweiser advertising.

I admit that I love professional football and I always have, but I yearn for players like those of the past who had the dignity and self-respect to conduct themselves like men when in the public eye.

[dddrees]

Money, performance enhancing drugs, and poor sportsmanship have kind of killed the joy for sports for me. I think the last time I really followed baseball was during the Sosa vs McGwire era. What can I say, I was naïve. I no longer followed Basketball after Jordan retired the second time. I had followed Football for awhile longer, but this sport has become a reality show which no longer has an offseason. College sports has long been corrupt, for which every end of season champion normally has been found guilty of numerous NCAA violations. Then there's the Penn State mess and so forth and so on.

[wantonebad]

Not sure I buy into the "old-school values" vs. "the unrespectfull kids of today" argument, that has been going on for generations and usually involves older generations being jealous of younger folks freedom and ability to affect change or a perceived waste of their youth. I think respect is an important thing and a two way street. I also think striving for more and reaching higher is what elevates us all to the next level of achievement. again, JMHO

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by wantonebad

Not sure I buy into the "old-school values" vs. "the unrespectfull kids of today" argument....

Marc, you should watch some football from the pre-70s years and not just highlights.

The behavior of the men on the field was decidedly more professional than the players of today.

Yes, the players of today are faster and in many ways more talented, but they do lack the sportsmanship values of the past and for those of us who are old enough to remember, there can be no doubt.

[RetailSlave]

The "new" sports world is a business and not so much about entertainment anymore. Yeah it's always been a business but now more so then ever.
The athletes also look at it in the same sense. In the past players seemed happy to make it into the league, fulfilling dreams. Now it's making into the league, and fulfilling dreams of being millionaires. IMO,some players don't even care about rings or championships, it's about how my contract is bigger then yours and how I have more twitter followers then you. They also spend more time in the gym now... Not that they're working out more... It's because they spend half their time taking selfies. That's my opinion of the modern athlete and the big business of NFL, MLB, and the NBA.

[77T]

I lived to see another milestone - and another sign that the apocalypse is nigh...

Professional Sports is an oxymoron, don't you think?

On the one hand, there is sport - something best played by the unpaid for a trophy.

Then there is professional entertainment - not a sport anymore - more like WWE.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by RetailSlave

The "new" sports world is a business and not so much about entertainment anymore.

"There's no business like show business, like no business I know."--Irving Berlin, "Annie Get Your Gun."

[GB-man]

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

Marc, you should watch some football from the pre-70s years and not just highlights.

The behavior of the men on the field was decidedly more professional than the players of today.

Yes, the players of today are faster and in many ways more talented, but they do lack the sportsmanship values of the past and for those of us who are old enough to remember, there can be no doubt.

Probably because they had nothing to be exuberant about They were paid 25k a year and were not the celebs they are today.

While I think there are some bad apples that are highly publicized, there are plenty of players who don't make the news acting like professionals.

The owners, much like colleges and universities, are raking in the cash hand over fist with TV contracts etc. I prefer they pay those who deserve to be paid. The players have a talent the market deems worthy of substantial compensation.

All that said, I agree it is foolish to make log term bets on players. Virtually never makes sense for future success. It is about securing long term tv deals.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by GB-man

Probably because they had nothing to be exuberant about They were paid 25k a year and were not the celebs they are today.

They were men who played for the love of the game.

You are wrong about athletes not being celebrities in those days.

They were idols of popular culture, no less so than today.

Think Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Rogers Hornsby, Cy Young, Dizzy Dean, Lou Gherig, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantel, Ted Williams. These men and others were giants of their time.

[dddrees]

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

They were men who played for the love of the game.

You are wrong about athletes not being celebrities in those days.

They were idols of popular culture, no less so than today.

Think Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Rogers Hornsby, Cy Young, Dizzy Dean, Lou Gherig, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantel, Ted Williams. These men and others were giants of their time.

Even though most of these are way beyond my time, some of these might not be such great examples. Of course the press was different then too. They didn't tell all like they do today and of course Twitter didn't exist either. Babe might be questionable, but Mickey is surely a real bad example. However I think there are a few that are giants of today: Peyton Manning and Dereck Jeter are the ones I can think of.

[mtrunner]

The Marlins has to be one of the most mismanaged teams in all of baseball. I understand these deals are based on what the market will bear but in this case that isn't necessarily the case. The Marlins constantly make bad baseball decisions and this is one of them.

Jeffrey Loria is borderline criminal. He suckered Florida taxpayers into a $500 million dollar stadium then right afterwards dumped any player worthwhile or any player with a big contract. All Loria cares about is making money and not necessarily putting a good product on the field. They are handicapping themselves and will have problems getting other decent players around Stanton because Loria isn't going to keep digging into his pocket to pay other players big contracts. You can pay one guy all the money in the world but one guy on your team is not going to win you a World Series.

In addition, does anyone in Miami even care? Last year they couldn't give away opening day tickets and had the lowest attendance in baseball despite a state of the art stadium and Stanton having a stellar year.

[locutus49]

Look, our prisons are already full. We have to put criminals somewhere. Pro football is as good a place as any other.

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

They were men who played for the love of the game.

You are wrong about athletes not being celebrities in those days.

They were idols of popular culture, no less so than today.

Think Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Rogers Hornsby, Cy Young, Dizzy Dean, Lou Gherig, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantel, Ted Williams. These men and others were giants of their time.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by dddrees

Even though most of these are way beyond my time, some of these might not be such great examples. Of course the press was different then too. They didn't tell all like they do today and of course Twitter didn't exist either. Babe might be questionable, but Mickey is surely a real bad example. However I think there are a few that are giants of today: Peyton Manning and Dereck Jeter are the ones I can think of.

Those men were chosen because they were icons of their time, not because they were angels.

To a large extent, the players of those days were not criminal, even if they possessed all the human frailties that everyone is subject to.

Players kept their private lives private and the media respected privacy in a way that today they do not.

There are celebrities even today who manage to keep their lives private, mainly because the details of their lives are not salacious enough to be worthy of note.

[seand442]

While I agree there are some generational issues, athletes in earlier times also didn't have to deal with the constant media presence, 24 hr sports networks, facebook, Instagram, TMZ and every Tom, Dick and Harry with a camera looking to cash in on something that nobody would ever hear about even 15 years ago. If you have read about sports history, you will know the prevalence of just about any drug in a locker room/clubhouse, the drinking and debauchery and liaisons with women and everything that gets athletes in trouble nowadays. Additionally, I think there is a bit of societal issue where people who are not as well off and rich as some of these athletes want to see them get there come-uppens, of sorts. There's nothing like knocking someone off the top. There is also the, pay me $100K and I won't sell this picture/video to the media aspect. It's a different world nowadays, so I don't know if it's really fair to compare Mantle/Mays/Namath/Abdul-Jabbar to Bonds/McGwire/Rice/LeBron.

[GradyPhilpott]

Originally Posted by seand442

...I don't know if it's really fair to compare Mantle/Mays/Namath/Abdul-Jabbar to Bonds/McGwire/Rice/LeBron.

I think it's fair, taking into consideration changing variables.

There are threads of continuity concerning human behavior that make the writings of Shakespeare, ancient Greek philosophers and playwrights, and the Bible relevant even today.

To examine what is different about today's sports and sports during the 20th Century is the only way one can answer the question, have professional sports entered an irrevocable decline into relative obscurity?

[Cru Jones]

Originally Posted by mtrunner

The Marlins has to be one of the most mismanaged teams in all of baseball. I understand these deals are based on what the market will bear but in this case that isn't necessarily the case. The Marlins constantly make bad baseball decisions and this is one of them.

Jeffrey Loria is borderline criminal. He suckered Florida taxpayers into a $500 million dollar stadium then right afterwards dumped any player worthwhile or any player with a big contract. All Loria cares about is making money and not necessarily putting a good product on the field. They are handicapping themselves and will have problems getting other decent players around Stanton because Loria isn't going to keep digging into his pocket to pay other players big contracts. You can pay one guy all the money in the world but one guy on your team is not going to win you a World Series.

In addition, does anyone in Miami even care? Last year they couldn't give away opening day tickets and had the lowest attendance in baseball despite a state of the art stadium and Stanton having a stellar year.

how many "regular joes" want to watch a guy making 1/3 of a billion dollars run around on a field with a bunch of scrubs? it's not like a team with a limited budget can build long-term around stanton, can it?

anyway, beyond the crazy price tag, what upsets me is that loria (the team's owner) is the ultimate scumbag and him being an owner is one of the biggest stains of selig's tenure as commissioner. before having suckered florida's taypayers, he destroyed baseball in montreal.

to me, there's absolutely no doubt that this move was made with an eye toward securing a better local cable deal. once the marlins have that, loria will look to get out and cash in while the franchise has an even higher value than the current estimate of $500 million, leaving the next owner either with a player that opts out or with an immovable player with a heavily backloaded contract.

long story short, it's practically guaranteed that loria sells within the next three years.

so, not only does the deal mean higher fees for the fan, it's also fundamentally a cynical ploy to further line the owner's dirty pockets.

.........okay, rant over.........

[Wllnv19]

Originally Posted by Cru Jones

how many "regular joes" want to watch a guy making 1/3 of a billion dollars run around on a field with a bunch of scrubs? it's not like a team with a limited budget can build long-term around stanton, can it?

anyway, beyond the crazy price tag, what upsets me is that loria (the team's owner) is the ultimate scumbag and him being an owner is one of the biggest stains of selig's tenure as commissioner. before having suckered florida's taypayers, he destroyed baseball in montreal.

to me, there's absolutely no doubt that this move was made with an eye toward securing a better local cable deal. once the marlins have that, loria will look to get out and cash in while the franchise has an even higher value than the current estimate of $500 million, leaving the next owner either with a player that opts out or with an immovable player with a heavily backloaded contract.

long story short, it's practically guaranteed that loria sells within the next three years.

so, not only does the deal mean higher fees for the fan, it's also fundamentally a cynical ploy to further line the owner's dirty pockets.

.........okay, rant over.........

Would love to see Loria sell.. The fans in Miami won't support the Marlins while he's the owner. It's a shame because the Marlins have a lot of young talent on that team, but Loria has tarnished baseball in Miami

[SUBversive]

The answer to the op / thread question is yes.

But people keep paying the inflated ticket prices ... Inflated merchandise prices .... Beer food etc at games so I guess it just keeps going.

I take someone to a hockey game ... Pay through the nose for tickets food beer (I don't care it's worth it as business expense) but I sit in a sold out Boston garden and watch people spend money like drunken sailors and I wonder where the recession is?

[GB-man]

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

I think it's fair, taking into consideration changing variables.

There are threads of continuity concerning human behavior that make the writings of Shakespeare, ancient Greek philosophers and playwrights, and the Bible relevant even today.

To examine what is different about today's sports and sports during the 20th Century is the only way one can answer the question, have professional sports entered an irrevocable decline into relative obscurity?

I can't imagine how you would draw this conclusion. Professional sports aren't going anywhere.

Going back to the previous point, comparing the greats of the past to today's stars...I believe the point is that players today are under a microscope in ways players before were not.

Too few people whom achieve fame conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times AND avoid the pitfalls of drug abuse, womanizing etc.