Pros And Cons: A Feather In A Salary Cap

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A Feather in a Salary Cap Why should the President of the United States make less than a Major League Baseball rookie? Professional athletes acquire a whole heap of money, and there are some people who believe that star players make way too much money. For example, many superstars in baseball, basketball, and football enjoy multi-year contracts that are worth more than $100 million. Because of these unreasonably high salaries, many people think salary caps are a good thing for the players. On the other side of this debate, others believe that the players should not have a salary cap because the players work hard to earn their paychecks. This paper will examine the pros, cons, and my viewpoint on whether professional athletes should have a …show more content…
First, some people argue that salary caps are good because they help keep expenses down and makes it fairer for other teams. Some superstars reap ridiculous amounts of money. Arthur Belisle, Spartans Daily Journalist, reports that Alex Rodriquez, a New York Yankees Outfielder, makes around $27.5 million a year, Miguel Cabrera, the Detroit Tigers third baseman makes roughly $30 million a year, and the Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard makes $25 million a year. Belisle opines that, “A quarter of a billion dollars to swing a bat for the next 10 years is ludicrous when you step back and actually think about it.” Belisle adds that, since the star players already make money from their endorsements, why do they genuinely need more money on their paychecks? (Belisle) Furthermore, some high-paid superstars can be a horrendous value. Ronald Blum, AP Sports writer, points out that in 2013 the top three most expensive baseball players were all starting the season on the injured reserve list. Combined all together, these three players make almost $77 million dollars in a single year. Carlos Gonzales, All-Star outfielder, implies that “everyone knows it is not about all the money it is about how they are going to play …show more content…
David Stern, NBA Commissioner writes, “Owners would like to secure profits and a return on their investments” (Beck). For all these reasons, a salary cap would be a good fit for sports teams. In contrast, others believe that salary caps are inequitable because it gives most of the money to owners and less to the players. Firstly, athletes earn their pay so the salary cap is unfair. A University Wire sports editor , “Professional athletes are paid exactly what they deserve because they work harder and sacrifice more than what most people think that they do.” The University Wire also points out that star players have a large amount more responsibilities both on and off the playing fields. University Wire notes that pro athletes have spent decades building their skills and their dreams, and deserve high salaries (U WIRE). In addition, salary caps are too complex and have too many loopholes to be effective. Reed Albergotti, Wall Street Journal reporter, points out that owners hire a “Capologist” to help them avoid salary cap rules. Michael Duberstein, NFL Player Researcher, asserts that the NFL team owners are spending more money for players than the

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