One thing that bothered me the most about the Jack Wilson/Josh Fogg media event was the fact that it was a media event. The PG ran a photo of Jack standing at a podium with mikes and so forth. They weren't off-the-cuff remarks. It was an attempt by these players - two captains of the team, formally or informally - to do a little stump-speaking. I'm not sure what they expecting to accomplish. Or who they addressing. Fogg is the team's union rep so it's more or less his job to be like that on demand, but even still it's hard to see what he hoped to accomplish.
Who were they talking to? The fans? Should a 23-year-old player with one good year on his resume make as much as ... I don't even want to get into how much teachers, firefighters, and heart surgeons make. As should be clear, that was not a good debate to seed among your fans, Jack. Win a championship - heck, win 81 games - and maybe we can try that one again with better luck. Or maybe not.
Were they talking to the reporters? If it's important for the beat writers to know that the players think management is stingy, why go on the record?
Were they talking to their fellow players, around the league, or to the players in the Pirates' minor-league system? Again you wonder why they would go to the media to communicate this information.
Maybe they weren't thinking. That appears to be Jack Wilson's defense in this essay for the Tribune-Review.
We all win some and lose some. Jack lost that one, I think. It's no big deal--unless he loses the next one. It's behind us as soon as there's some better story to dwell on. How about Jack Wilson posts .375 OBP in April?
If they players want to get rich, more power to them. But let them not forget that winning is surest path to a big payday. If Ollie wants to hire Brink's Cash in Transit services to toodle around with the mega-bones, he better pitch well in some playoff games. You need that to get the mad money.
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