Manny Machado....He rich!

[swidman]

As a Whitesox fan, I'm a little disappointed that Manny is going to San Diego, but for the contract length and $$$ amount, he can go and enjoy San Diego.

Let the rebuild continue as planned and let the kids develop. GO WHITESOX!

[FrobozMumbar]

I like sports as much as the next person, but player salaries have contributed to my loss of interest in pro sports. I'm at the point that I just don't want to contribute to that kind of stupidity.

[qwertyu123]

And Harper is about to be even richer.

[Jhawkz5]

I like sports as much as the next person, but player salaries have contributed to my loss of interest in pro sports. I'm at the point that I just don't want to contribute to that kind of stupidity.

This is really dumb when you consider how much money the owners pull in. God forbid someone take the highest salary someone is willing to pay them.

I assume if player salaries are driving your loss of interest then you're probably a huge minor league baseball fan since those guys hardly make living wages.

[Gooner]

I like sports as much as the next person, but player salaries have contributed to my loss of interest in pro sports. I'm at the point that I just don't want to contribute to that kind of stupidity.

You much prefer the exploitation of black athletes in college sports. Noted.

[FrobozMumbar]

This is really dumb when you consider how much money the owners pull in. God forbid someone take the highest salary someone is willing to pay them.

I assume if player salaries are driving your loss of interest then you're probably a huge minor league baseball fan since those guys hardly make living wages.

This post is filled with so many stupid assumptions it’s hardly worth responding to, but I will anyway. I don’t blame someone for taking the highest salary offered to them, but that doesn’t mean that I have to contribute to it. Why do you assume that means I’m cool with what the owners drag in - I’m not. I’m losing interest in it because of the expense of going to games. Those salaries are paid in part by ludicrous concession prices, and in the case of the NFL, ridiculous ticket prices — baseball still isn’t too bad, but it’s getting there. Apparently, plenty of people are willing to pay so I don’t blame the owners for charging what they can get. And, again, I don’t blame the players from demanding their piece of the action. I’m just becoming less inclined to go to games and that contributes to my loss of interest. I play golf so I still like to watch golf. I went to KU so I still like to watch KU. But for sports/teams that I don’t feel any kind of real connection to, the more unwilling I am to drop major cash to go to a live event. And as I feel priced out of live events, I lose interest in watching those sports entirely. Player salaries are just part of the bigger picture that I’m growing less inclined to look at.

[WolfShirtSophomore]

This post is filled with so many stupid assumptions it’s hardly worth responding to, but I will anyway. I don’t blame someone for taking the highest salary offered to them, but that doesn’t mean that I have to contribute to it. Why do you assume that means I’m cool with what the owners drag in - I’m not. I’m losing interest in it because of the expense of going to games. Those salaries are paid in part by ludicrous concession prices, and in the case of the NFL, ridiculous ticket prices — baseball still isn’t too bad, but it’s getting there. Apparently, plenty of people are willing to pay so I don’t blame the owners for charging what they can get. And, again, I don’t blame the players from demanding their piece of the action. I’m just becoming less inclined to go to games and that contributes to my loss of interest. I play golf so I still like to watch golf. I went to KU so I still like to watch KU. But for sports/teams that I don’t feel any kind of real connection to, the more unwilling I am to drop major cash to go to a live event. And as I feel priced out of live events, I lose interest in watching those sports entirely. Player salaries are just part of the bigger picture that I’m growing less inclined to look at.

Did you know you can bring your own food and drink into Kauffman?

[FrobozMumbar]

Did you know you can bring your own food and drink into Kauffman?

I had no idea. I haven't been to a game there since I left Lawrence/KC in 2004. Is this a new thing or have they always allowed that? I can tell you that they search bags at Giants, A's, and Niners games here - for security - but that doesn't stop them from enforcing the outside food and drink rule. The only exception is a sealed clear bottle of water, and I think that's limited to one per person, but I can't really point to why I think that's the limit.

[NoPantsChico]

I had no idea. I haven't been to a game there since I left Lawrence/KC in 2004. Is this a new thing or have they always allowed that? I can tell you that they search bags at Giants, A's, and Niners games here - for security - but that doesn't stop them from enforcing the outside food and drink rule. The only exception is a sealed clear bottle of water, and I think that's limited to one per person, but I can't really point to why I think that's the limit.

Kauffman has always been pretty generous about food, but the only drink they allow is sealed clear bottles of water.

Anyway, Machado's contract is a massive outlier, as players are getting increasingly smaller pieces of the pie. I know you mentioned other reasons are keeping you either at home or other places besides the ballpark (which is fine!), but the revenue streams outside of ticket sales are so massive that teams are making money hand over fist before even factoring in what they make off of people going to the ballpark.

A lot of MLB teams now are run by Ivy-educated, Wall Street types instead of baseball lifers and while they're more rational and incentive-driven than their predecessors in their approach to paying players, they're also not as motivated to win. That's sucking a lot of the fun out of the league and pushing it behind the other sports in marketability, making attendees more inclined to spend their dollars elsewhere.

[FrobozMumbar]

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy going to a game when the right situation arises. And I'll still watch compelling matchups on TV. But I used to be a die-hard NFL fan -- following players, teams, stats, etc., but the last time I went to a Niners game I spent something around $500 for two quality seats, some food and some drinks. I had a great time, but not $500 great, and I realized that NFL games were going to be few and far between. Which is sad as I grew up with Rams and Raiders (when they were in LA) season tickets. I make decent money, but there is no way I could justify spending that kind of jack on season tickets. After that, I just found myself not caring, not closely following the season, my interests changed, and my cash followed me to other things.

[NoPantsChico]

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy going to a game when the right situation arises. And I'll still watch compelling matchups on TV. But I used to be a die-hard NFL fan -- following players, teams, stats, etc., but the last time I went to a Niners game I spent something around $500 for two quality seats, some food and some drinks. I had a great time, but not $500 great, and I realized that NFL games were going to be few and far between. Which is sad as I grew up with Rams and Raiders (when they were in LA) season tickets. I make decent money, but there is no way I could justify spending that kind of jack on season tickets. After that, I just found myself not caring, not closely following the season, my interests changed, and my cash followed me to other things.

I definitely hear that. I didn't grow up going to Chiefs games, but I'll luck into a ticket every few years and while I enjoy it enough, the time commitment and patience needed to deal with the crowds can be a little much even when I'm just along for the ride.

[LARPHawk]

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy going to a game when the right situation arises. And I'll still watch compelling matchups on TV. But I used to be a die-hard NFL fan -- following players, teams, stats, etc., but the last time I went to a Niners game I spent something around $500 for two quality seats, some food and some drinks. I had a great time, but not $500 great, and I realized that NFL games were going to be few and far between. Which is sad as I grew up with Rams and Raiders (when they were in LA) season tickets. I make decent money, but there is no way I could justify spending that kind of jack on season tickets. After that, I just found myself not caring, not closely following the season, my interests changed, and my cash followed me to other things.

NFL has to be the worst value in pro sports. Not only is it probably the most expensive, it's also the most boring to attend live. 3.5 hours out of your day to watch 12 minutes of gameplay.

I don't get them anymore, but for awhile I got offered free suite tickets for NFL games pretty regularly due to my side job. Free food, booze, etc. I took them up on it once and after that decided it honestly wasn't even worth the hassle of getting to the stadium and back.

[KUGDI]

NFL has to be the worst value in pro sports. Not only is it probably the most expensive, it's also the most boring to attend live. 3.5 hours out of your day to watch 12 minutes of gameplay.

I don't get them anymore, but for awhile I got offered free suite tickets for NFL games pretty regularly due to my side job. Free food, booze, etc. I took them up on it once and after that decided it honestly wasn't even worth the hassle of getting to the stadium and back.

No doubt. There’s no way to get to a stadium that isn’t a massive pain in the ass.

[NoPantsChico]

When Derek Jeter of all people is prioritizing the "experience" of going to a game over the final score, something weird is definitely going on behind the scenes.

[WolfShirtSophomore]

Mike Trout - He Richer!