Bill James calls all MLB players replaceable
His tweet stating this has since been deleted, but here's what it said: If the players all retired tomorrow, we would replace them, the game would go on; in three years it would make no difference whatsoever. The players are NOT the game, any more than the beer vendors are.
I agree with him. The game is the game. Yes, MLB players are of the highest quality. But it is the game they play that we come to watch. I enjoy baseball on any level because of the game, not the players. The quality of play only adds or takes away from the enjoyment. The players don't make the game, they just make the game better. The game will exist when all of these players retire and move on. It's discussed more in this article: MLBPA chief Tony Clark fires back after Red Sox consultant Bill James calls all players replaceable Thoughts? |
I agree with you & James. People will play a game no matter the talent. The NFL didn't die because Montana retired. The NBA didn't end cause Jordan retired. The NHL didn't end cause Gretzky retired. The PGA didn't end cause Palmer retired. Do I go on?
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I get his point but isn’t he still a consultant and thus employee of the Red Sox?
I can’t imagine that sentiment would go over too well with the front office and players. |
Hes not wrong.
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He alluded to the same thing in his 1988 Baseball Abstract and laid out his reasons why. A good article if you haven't read it.
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Counter point...I agree the game is bigger than the players, but I believe the players are more than Mr. James is making out. The public does go to see the big names. I know the game, like life, goes on when it loses "celebrity" players, but people did and do flock in abundance to see Ruth, Dimaggio, mantle, Brett, Ryan, Reg-gie, Trout, Harper, etc.
If I'm losing something in Mr. James POV, correct me if I'm wrong. I am open minded to correction in opinion. |
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Pujols was as valuable a player you could find in 2011. After he left St. Louis, the Cards still made the playoffs the next 4 seasons, including a WS. The Cards still were among the leaders in attendance. He was replaceable. |
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PS: I agree with Bill James. |
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Or you could just quote the entire James Earl Jones monologue from "Field of Dreams". Baseball can and has endured lots of trying times and transitions, and will continue to do so. The overreaction from the MLBPA, and the Boston Red Sox made me laugh my ass off. Seriously? You're equating what he said to actual replacement players, as in scabs? Really? C'mon guys, give your heads a collective shake. |
Major League Baseball has already been through a period when many of its players quickly exited the sport and replacements took the field: 1942-1945, It survived.
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Next time one argues that the players are not the attraction and the game is, I would be curious to know how much money one would pay to attend a game between Herb's Body Shop and Bill's Savings and Loan? MLB is a game of names and history. I do not pay to go to a game to see "someone" play I go to a game to see the best in the business play. I certainly don't want to wait three years to see the cream rise to the top again. Watching baseball without star players is like playing fetch with a dead puppy. You can do it but it won't be a lot of fun.
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He's absolutely right, and he's never given a damn whether players or organizations like what he says or not. Some players over the years have been really angry at him, because he's buried them in their books. But he says what he thinks is the truth.
Other writers and organizational people will of course attack him, because they want to be seen as defending the players. Journalists want access to those same players. GM's and managers have to interact with those players. And the guys replying in the article either are MLB players or were MLB players, so they're not going to side with James either. James was one of the first proponents of the idea of a replacement player, too. He hit on this sort of thing all the time in the 80's. That there's nothing intrinsically special about any major leaguer and there was no reason why an organization should stick with a below average Major League player when it could find a AAA player who was likely just as good. Before he showed up, many people thought that losing a single player to FA would cause as much as a 10-15 game swing in the standings. If ALL of the players disappeared, people would still remain fans of baseball and eventually we would watch whatever product is out there. If one team lost all if its players, it would be back in the hunt in a couple of years. Look at the Marlins in the late 90's, when they got rid of all of their WS winning players and built a new team from scratch. Replaceable. There's a few teams like that in MLB history. I've been a fan of James for nearly 30 years - he's a good writer as well as an insightful baseball guy IMO. I'd love for him to become the commissioner (of course that will never happen). |
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Baseball players become stars because they're on TV and playing in front of fans. Give those two teams the same exposure as an MLB team. along with some backstory about why their game is meaningful and I guarantee you someone would watch. Millions of people just watched those two Youtube lunkheads (forget their names) have a boxing match after all. Drawing fans is more about marketing than talent. |
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James clarifying his comments.
This conclusion of this column from the Miami Herald I think sums it up well. Quote:
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