Contractually Speaking

Jonathan Papelpon is unhappy. Not because of playing time or the team's play or his own performance. He is unhappy with his pay. This is not a new dilemma in the world of sport but sometimes when you look into the facts you realize that they don't have a reason to be upset.

People often complain about the amount of money that professional athletes receive considering that they are playing a game as their profession. But there are some things that need to be taken into account when assessing this. This is still their job. I understand that it may not be as important as being the mayor or developing cures for cancer but it is still their chosen profession that they are looking to be able to enjoy and retire from someday. For most players this professional is surprisingly fleeting. Whether by injury (Carl Pavano) or self destructive behavior (Len Bias, anyone?) or just because they aren't good enough to stick around (hello, Brian Rose). These athletes need to be able to take what they can get while they can get it.

In addition, salaries are driven by the amount of money that is put into the profession. When you think about your jobs you realize that how much you make depends on how much the company around you makes and how long you have been with the company. Athletes are the same. Why are baseball salaries so much higher than hockey ones? Because the obscene amount of money that the teams and the league get from TV contracts and merchandise and ticket sales.

But something that some of these athletes forget (I'm talking to you Mr. Papelpon) is that your talent is not the sole determining factor in your salary. Years of service plays a large role. Two guys who put up identical numbers in contract walk years will not get the same deal if one is a two year player (Pap) and one is a 10 year player (Rivera). Pap talks about wanting to set the bar for the future of people in his position. But his position is a transient one at best. How many closers have a few fantastic years and then fade into the sunset (John Rocker & Mitch Williams come to mind). Because it is a stressful position that wears on a player. Not many can be the Lee Smith, Mariano Rivera, or Trevor Hoffman who can continually do the job for years on end. Papelpon needs to understand this. And he needs to understand that he requires a couple more years under his belt of continued success (which I feel confident he will have) before he can start talking about be the bar setter for closer contracts.