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I suppose it's necessary to say something about the opening of Spring training for the Major League teams. Is it just me or didn't we just finish the World Series? I would swear it was late October or Early and one team got clobbered and the other team was the champion. A lot has happened since then and I've been diverted. One regrets that the big story just now, and probably for some little while, in baseball and the eye searing ten year deal Albert Pujols got. Currently-notice, currently-he's the highest paid player . As is always the case, today's ceiling is tomorrow's floor when it come to salaries. In 1960 the country gasped when 20^th Century Fox announced they would pay Elizabeth Taylor the enormous sum of ONE MILLION dollars to play Cleopatra. One Million, just think of it. Is there that much money in the world? But the world changes and, adjusting for inflation, today, were the lady living, she could easily nail fifty million and it would be considered a good deal. (Who remembers that Miss Taylor was NOT the original choice to play the role? That honour went to Joan Collins. It's interesting to think what might have happened if that bit of casting would have been adhered to.) But we're talking big money here, folks.BBBBIIIIIGGGGGGG MMMMOOOOONNNNNEEEYYYY.

Yessiree. I haven't read or read much about his contract-the staggering sum mentioned is enough-so I don't know if this is what it's potentially worth if certain goals and conditions are met.

But Muthagawd! What goals and conditions could possibly exist to justify that kind of money. It goes without saying that, somewhere in those ten years, it's expected that he and his team will win at least one-or more-World Series. And it's hardly farfetched to think that he might be expected to maintain a batting average of no less that Ted Williams in his best years. It goes without saying that he's not just a member of the team, but is available for whatever management wants him to do. PSA's by the gross, appearances whenever and wherever, no sick days even if he's concussed on the field in front of a stand full of cheering fans. He has to get up, score the winning run, save a fan from falling from the edge of the seats into a concrete track, and do a triple back flip whilst driving a Zamboni. Is that too much to ask? Not for a quarter of a billion dollars it's not. And, with no disrespect to the gentleman, can his performance or his persona justify that amount of money?

If your answer to that question is “yes” go outside and beat yourself stupid with a baseball bat. If he could cure cancer-all forms-end world povery and hunger-then you'd find me handing over every penny I've got and so would many others. But he cannot do that nor is he expected to. But what are the expectations? Trying to be reasonable, one might say that he needs to contribute all he has to his team, be a great popular player with the fans, get along with the other players.....and lets pause right there for a moment. The other players. Now you know and I know that somewhere on that roster there will be those who think he got a gold mine and they got the shaft. Particularly some player, close to retirement, who finds his salary cut for no reason that's given to him. But then no reason need be given; It's Albert Pujols. Across the board it's hard for me to imagine that this deal was greeted with gladsome cries and statements of appreciation for what management has done. Which is effectively semi-screwed all the other players. Perhaps they'll accustom themselves to him but that for some little while there may be a tense locker room. I could be wrong, I often am, but in this case, I'm going to bet it the way logic dictactes and that's only for the sake of publicity is the team nominally behind him and, oops, there's another group to be dealt with, the fans.

This is a super star player with a glowing record so, initially, he'll be as welcome as the second coming. However, it's a tall fence to jump to keep their loyalty particularly if things don't pan out as promised. This is, after all, a new team to him, the rhythms and dynamics are going to be different. How long before they all coalesce into a productive team that allows him to do what he does best? That's not a fatuous question, it's one that's going to be on the minds of the fans. Great that he's there and now what? In the stands there's going to be the obvious reminder that they, too, have contributed to his hiring and they do so every time they buy a ticket, patronize the concessions or buy a programme. They're all a few pennies more than before and while some of it is reasonably credited to inflation, only part of it, the rest is going to pay for the newly acquired player. Even over ten years it takes a lot of pennies to have a quarter of a billion dollars. In these parlous times, putting a hundred million in the bank and letting the interest compound at current rates won't produce that 250 million in ten years and, up front, there's the matter of a loose hundred million to be found.

Unfortunately, we live in an age where monies paid have almost eclipsed deeds and performance. Three years from now when a bigger deal has been struck between another team and another player, this will be forgotten save by the team who still has to honour it. At the time the deal was made it was bruited about that the only reason it went through was to prevent another team from acquiring his services. That other team must be doing cartwheels of delight, not only did they not get stuck with a player who may or may not perform over the many years of the contract, but they saved themselves a can full of money to use making equally good if far less expensive deals.

What Pujols has signed up for is, effectively, an infinity contract. Clearly it's anticipated he'll finish out his career there and, somehow, validate the monies he's being bad to do so. (And let us not forget what he can make from endorsements and other side deals.) But the history of these things suggests that other things might happen. Like him or not, they're stuck with him and, should they choose to sell him-after, say a three year slump-it might be hard to do. There's that enormous contract to be considered and, were I Mr. Pujols, I'd hang on to the right to every penny of it.

At the end of it, I suppose what I want is for someone in five or so years to go back and, just superficially, be able to say either, “Helluva deal, couldn't have been better” or, “Well, it might have worked if he hadn't pulled a (name a muscle relevant to hitting) and they lost him for most of two seasons. And there's a third option, in some ways, the worst one; He proves to be a good player, nothing more and eventually drifts back to the farm system as the most overpaid player in AAA ball.