Sorry Max, we just don't understand.
The notion players have "previously negotiated a pay cut" as Scherzer presented on Twitter last week is ridiculous. A prorated salary for less work forced by a global crisis is not a pay cut.
— Max Scherzer (@Max_Scherzer) May 28, 2020
And reduced pay for MLB players, or perhaps deferred, would not be out of line in 2020 under the circumstances.
We are in the midst of a pandemic. More than 100,000 Americans have lost their lives. Countless millions have suddenly become unemployed and have no idea how to pay for basic needs, including providing for children. Schools are closed. Businesses are tanking. Oh, and there was this video of a man in Minneapolis shockingly dying before the nation's collective eyes and ensuing chaos...
Few have been paid a $3 million signing bonus upon leaving college, and $186 million in salary over a dozen years - like Scherzer. They are not living in the same ivory tower top-end MLB players share with owners.
People are going to work under difficult and dangerous circumstances, yet just grateful for paychecks far less than MLB players have received during the pandemic.
Others have been furloughed and wonder if they will be returning. And there have been salary reductions across the board in many industries and institutions.
Now, nobody is suggesting Scherzer didn't earn his money. He is a rare talent, who has made the most of it. Nobody begrudges his success or wealth. Congratulations on winning more Cy Young Awards and the World Series since leaving Detroit.
This town knows he is a good guy.
But he's lost touch with reality. It's understood the owners are greedy, and the players have fought hard for their gains.
Yet these are very different times, and Scherzer's tweet is disheartening for those who love baseball. If this is about health, we understand. If there are players unwilling to participate, it shouldn't be held against them.
However, denying those willing to suit up under appropriate health guidelines, is wrong. Such traditional bickering between the millionaires and billionaires will assuredly be the ruination of baseball.
Baseball has never fully recovered from the labor stoppage in 1994 and the absurdity of replacement players the following spring. That's when it was as if the NFL officially replaced baseball as the national pastime. Before that, Mike Trout would have been better known as the best baseball player of his generation than as an Eagles' fan.
Obviously without fans, franchises aren't going to have nearly the same revenue stream. And in the long run, especially if the NHL, NBA and NFL play, and MLB doesn't because of finances, the gift that has kept giving to Scherzer and other players will shrink at an alarming degree.
But good for Scherzer. He's got his in abundance. Most in the game do not, though. Same goes for society.
Look about you. It's really bad and sad.
Although baseball can't remotely solve all these issues, it could play its part.
Please, Max Scherzer and everybody involved in the negotiations, embrace that notion instead of dismissing it.
