Fairball

Rating:
Summary: Finally, a Comprehensive Plan to fix Baseball
Review: Bob Costas has taken the time (and laying his reputation on the line) to put forth a case to put the Game/Business of Major League Baseball on the right track to insure its place of prominence in the sporting world. The result of his efforts is a well thought out, capable and possibly, doable plan to fix the problems that have been growing since the strike of 94/95.

Granted, not all of the ideas are original to Mr. Costas, but he places all the ideas together, something I haven't come across before. As stated earlier, Mr. Costas premise is that the future stability of baseball has been further weaken by the owner's decisions since the last strike. Among Mr. Costas' solutions are: a revenue sharing arrangement, including local the team's media revenues and gate receipts; a salary cap complete with a floor; no radical realignment of the divisions; and the elimination of the Wild Card.

Along the way Mr. Costas chides both the owners and the players for their selfish, self-motivated attitudes, which left unchecked, just hurt the game.

One drawback to the book is the last chapter in which Mr. Costas discusses nine minor points that are best left out of the book, as the subjects do not fit the book's theme, with the exception of the debate on the DH.

In the Introduction, Mr. Costas states that his effort is to draw distinctions between progress and mere change. Mr. Costas' book does just that and is a good starting point for all baseball fans to discuss the future needs of the game.

Rating:
Summary: Considering the fan
Review: Bob Costas understands what makes baseball unique and appealing to its followers. He has provided a vision and plan that would return a semblance of competitive balance to the game. He is less concerned with whether owners or players are the primary blame for the decline in baseballs' public following, than to what can be done to return it to predominance in our national psyche. I agree completely that most fans do not begrudge the players the millions they make or the owner's right to make a profit. What we hate is that 25 teams serve as a minor league development system for the 5 or so elite teams that snatch up their stars just as they attain peak abilities. He is also right on target when it comes to the dilution of pennant races with wild card teams and balanced schedules, the dh and even Pete Rose. I would like to add a plea to spare us from the 200 dB musical assault we must endure at the ballpark, not only between each half inning, but now before each home team batter. Just give us good baseball and a chance for all well managed teams to compete.

Rating:
Summary: Philosophically dubious
Review: There isn't a book's worth of material here, that's for sure. This could easily have been boiled down to a lengthy magazine piece for Sports Illustrated. And his prose is merely serviceable - far short of George Will's eloquent standard.

I'm not familiar enough with the background of this debate to say whether his ideas are "original" or not. But they're certainly plausible enough to warrant examination. My only real beef with them is philosophical in nature, I suppose. He repeatedly insists that the few superstar players asked to sacrifice under his salary cap proposal could easily afford the loss.

First of all: they wouldn't be "asked" anything. They would be legally prohibited from earning their full market worth. Say it's "for the good of the game" if you like, but that seems like one slippery damned slope to me. Second: I don't know if that's a judgment you're entitled to make, Bob. I'm sure you're making plenty of scratch these days too. Feel free to donate as much of your salary to the Expos - in the name of "competitive balance" - as you like. But taking money out of someone's pocket - even Alex Rodriguez's pocket - without their consent is usually called theft.

Rating:
Summary: For Every Problem, There Is a Solution
Review: Though Major League Baseball is mired in a sea of problems, most dealing with economics, these are not problems that cannot be fixed. Bob Costas offers some cogent solutions to remedy most of these problems in order to restore the competitive integrity of the game. Costas' proposal to implement not only a salary cap but also a salary floor benefits not only the majority of the owners but also the players who make the minimum salary. He talks at length about the wild card and how he believes it should be abolished; I absolutely agree. Given the best-of-five first round, the team with the best record in each league should be rewarded, as the two best teams in each NFL conference are, with a bye (this is mentioned in the book, along with many more reasons for why there should be no wild card). Basically every major issue is brought up by Costas that needs to be rectified, and for many he answers questions many skeptics may pose. I would love to hear his evaluation of the most recent CBA, along with his take on the issue of steroids in baseball.

Rating:
Summary: some good ideas about fixing a great game
Review: Bob Costas brings up so interesting facts about how to save baseball it can also be stated as a case to save all profesional sports like the NHL so this is a good book for even non baseball fans

Rating:
Summary: Good ideas to level the playing field...
Review: I checked this book out of the library after seeing Bob Costas on the YES Network's "Center Stage." I've always admired Costas for both his intelligence and his love of baseball; he seems able to throw around facts and statistics from regular season games played thirty years ago. I also like Costas's seemingly "romantic" view of the game, although he denies that he has that attitude.

As baseball is played now, the Braves and Yankees (and probably a few other clubs) have a decided advantage over most other clubs based solely on their wealth. The rich teams buy the best players, win the World Series, make more money, and buy the best players, and win again, and make more money, etc. etc. Teams like the Devil Rays and the Expos really don't have a chance in hell of ever winning a pennant unless things change (or unless they do what Florida did in 1997 - spend tons of cash on outstanding players, win the Series, and then have a firesale).

This book has some totally valid ideas on how to make the game better... specifically, how to level the playing field so that every team has a chance. The ideas that Costas offers in this book are WORKABLE, and would appeal (for different reasons) to everybody involved in the game - from wealthy owners to poor owners, and wealthy baseball stars to rookies. And these ideas would accomplish what Costas and the rest of baseball fans want... they would LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD. After implementing these ideas, the World Series winner wouldn't be the one with the most money, rather the one with the best farm system, the one that made the best managerial choices, and the one whose players played the best. That's how the game should be.

Some of Costas's other ideas seem to be a matter of his personal preference; ideas that he feels would make the game more exciting. Such as no DH, no Wild Card (which he argues would make pennant races more exciting in September), leagues with only three divisions, etc. I don't necessarily agree or disagree with his ideas on these matters, but he may be correct - it might make the game more exciting.

I'd love to see Costas's ideas implemented. And I say this as a Yankee fan! If anybody is benefitting from the current model of business in the game, it's my beloved team... but still, I'd like to see other teams get a fair shake. Dominating the other teams year after year gets a little boring after awhile!

Rating:
Summary: Good Start
Review: I read Mr. Costas' book becuase the labor landscape in baseball hasn't changed much since the beginning ot the 2002 season, so I figured it was still valid. This book educated me on the state of the baseball economy. I am looking at the current labor negotiations with a different perspective now. I feel it is a more informed prosepective. I think that some of the proposals in this book are a bit altruistic for the money grabbing players and owners to try. For example, the players have already said that they will not accept any form of salary cap or floor. They are acting as if they are in a free economy. Considering the United States doesn't have a completely unregulated economy, I find this very arrogant. While I can see the merits of Bob Costas' plan, I just don't think I will live to see the day the players will accept it. After all, it is 2002 and 25 Million doesn't go quite as far as it did in the 90's.
I love his "3-0" plan to eliminate the wild card. I believe that it would restore the feel to the pennant races that fans remember. I liked his idea of moving the Houstan franchise to the American League (although eliminating the two Florida based teams would be acceptable) to create balance leagues makes sense. I also enjoy the concept of an unbalanced schedule.
While this plan is very altruistic, it does serve as a starting point. I am not so naive as to believe that the owners and players haven't seen it, nor understand it. I just think that the almighty dollar is king of baseball and will continue to be until some sort of comprehensive plan is developed, whether it be Mr. Costas' or someone elses.
This book is straight forward, educational and easy to read. I recommend it highly to any baseball fan that wishes to make some sense of the chaos in baseball today.

Rating:
Summary: Bob for commissioner
Review: To tell you the truth, I don't even like Bob Costas. I never liked the way that his on-air comments during games he was broadcasting seemed calculated to make the audience feel like they nothing about the game. However, the fate of baseball is a big concern of mine and I could not pass up a chance to hear what one of the games biggest fans had to say.

If there is a solution to the current labor strife that besets baseball, it could definitely be put into place by Costas. Costas presents a well thought argument which outlines his plan for the return of baseball to its position as the greatest game in America. Because Costas does not have a rooting interest on either side of the bargaining table, he is able to look at both side with equal clarity.

Costas is able to discern where both sides would best be willing to give a little room. The book is definitely an eye-opener for any fan concerned with the fate of their game. If Costas could only be the arbitrator at the next labor meeting, we may never need another strike or lock-out, and especially not another missed World Series.

This is an excellent book and and can easily be devoured in one sitting. Costas writes quite clearly and his arguments are well planned. Definitely a must have for any baseball fan.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Suggestions for Reviving Baseball
Review: As most baseball fans are painfully aware, our sport is slowly losing market share to football and basketball, and perhaps even hockey. Much of this degradation is due to the sport's inability to adapt to the changes brought on by free agency and the gradual separation of teams into large and small markets. Bob Costas has sat down and put together a modest plan to resolve these problems and start making baseball fun again.

Costas correctly identifies the major problem facing baseball today: that there are three groups of interested parties, rather than the two that negotiations always assume. Rather than just owners and players, owners further subdivide into large-market and small-market owners, and the large-market owners have different interests than small-market owners. Costas recommends first getting the owners on one sheet of music, then asking the players and owners each to make sacrifices to improve the overall system. His suggestions seem logical, and might work very well to make baseball America's National Pastime again, but I doubt either the owners or the players would be willing to make the sacrifices necessary, even when they're in their best interests.

Costas writes in a relaxed, conversational style, so much so that you can almost hear his voice as you're reading. It makes for a pleasant read you can complete in an hour or so, and the material will certainly make you think. Even fans who've lost interest in baseball might well find Costas' views interesting, and certainly all fans who would like to see competitiveness return to baseball would be well served to assess Costas' argument and make their own decisions about his ideas.

Rating:
Summary: What Baseball Should Do, But Won't.
Review: This book is a fast read and a quality look at major league baseball. Although I don't agree with all of Bob's arguments, he makes a strong case that baseball needs a well thought out fix. Recent talks of contraction will not go away in the near future. Although I am a big fan of the N.Y. Mets, unless revenue sharing is eventually approved, you will soon only have New York, Los Angeles and Chicago teams competing for the World Series....since they are the largest television market franchises. I generally oppose salary caps, but the players union has never made a good argument as to why a mediocre player should command salaries of $1 million or more. However, I do not expect the commissioner to be strong enough to handle any of these issues. Nice book, worth the purchase.