Money, money, money all the time

Talk about it

A complaint I often hear in my house is that I don’t love money enough.

To do this job, you can’t love money. You just can’t.

But much like when I get a complaint about a story via an anonymous phone or email message, it goes in one ear and directly out the other. It’s the only way to survive.

I like money, which definitely puts me in the minority in this USA, where money is worshipped like nothing else.

No more true is that than in sports.

Has there ever been a time where money was more the focal point of everything, seemingly?

The NFL owners and players are currently squabbling over a $9 billion yearly pot. If it was possible for both sides to lose in these negotiations, I’d be in favor of that.

NFL players play one game a week, don’t practice in pads after August and have essentially a six-month job. I know about OTAs and mini-camps, but players are compensated for attending those on top of their yearly salaries.

The owners, on the other hand, are billionaires. You can’t buy an NFL team for less than a billion, meaning these are billionaires fighting over billions — only in America.

No sport bickers over money more than baseball, and right now they actually have labor peace.

But about the only stories making any news early in spring training focus solely on money.

The St. Louis Cardinals reportedly offered slugger Albert Pujols an 8-year, $200 million contract, or $25 million per season.

If you believe Albert Pujols is really 31 years old, like he claims to be, that would leave him knocking on the door of 40 at the back end of the deal. Talk about diminishing returns.

Of course, $200 mil wasn’t nearly enough and the fifth-of-a-billion dollar deal was flatly rejected. Reports say Pujols wants a $300-million deal over 10 years. And keep in mind he’s finishing up an 8-year, $111-million haul.

C.C. Sabathia is taking the same tactic as Pujols. The New York Yankees ace left-hander signed a 7-year deal in 2008 that pays him $23 million annually. Evidently, that’s not quite cutting it, though. See, the normally chubby Sabathia reported to spring training between 20 to 30 pounds lighter than normal this week.

Why?

Well, after the upcoming season, Sabathia can opt out of the $161-million deal, and try to land an even bigger one, and he probably will.

Asked how he lost the weight, he quipped, “I quit eating full boxes of Cap’n Crunch for breakfast.”

Albert and C.C. must look at NBA star Carmelo Anthony and laugh.

You see, Anthony is potentially leaving money on the table to have the opportunity to play where he wants. He’s not being pressured — and succumbing — to his union, like all baseball players do.

Anthony has a 3-year, $65 million deal on the table from the Denver Nuggets. However, he wants to play in his native New York for the Knicks.

Meanwhile, the NBA also is about to embark on labor negotiations and one thing is certain — player salaries are going to take a beating. It’s an absolute lock. Deals in excess of $20 million per season will become much less likely, if not flat out impossible.

Obviously, Anthony is not going to go hungry either way. And unlike former Minnesota Timberwolf Latrell Sprewell, he will still be able to feed his family. But $65 million is a lot of money, and would buy a whole bunch of Cap’n Crunch.

Sun sports editor Dave Selvig can be reached at (701) 952-8460 or by e-mail at daves@jamestownsun.com

Tags: pro sports, sports, salaries