cherson@fsleng.DEC (01/16/85)
First of all, I'd like to introduce myself as a newcomer to the net. I've been a baseball fan all my life, but within the last ten years my enthusiasm has waned considerably. If it wasn't for Peter Gammons'(the best baseball writer in America) column in the Boston Globe I don't think I'd follow it at all. I observed the "discussion" between Tim the Cubs fan and David Rubin. I think Tim is under the same illusion that many fans and some journalists are under. That is, that Baseball teams should remain under the ownership of the stereotypical '30's and '40's era owners. You know, the kindly old Lionel Barrymore capitalist, he's only in it to see the fans have a good time. Here in Boston we had one of those owners, Tom Yawkey. Unfortunately when people sentimentalize about Mr. Yawkey and how much of a "fans owner" he was they seem to overlook the fact that he was one of baseball's leading racists. The Red Sox were the last team in the major leagues to integrate, and when they did it was done in a sarcastic manner(i.e. the experiences of Pumpsie Green and Earl Wilson). The team to this day carries the stigma of having terrible relationships with it's black players (the few that there are). So I don't know if I'd prefer an owner from the "good old days" or the megabucks owners of today. You have to face the reality that professional sports teams are businesses, and as such theyhave to make a profit to stay alive, simple law of economics. The only thing authentic about the Cubs is Wrigley Field and that it doesn't have lights. Other than that they're as cold as any other major league team. I suggest that if you really want to see baseball at it's purest that you go to a minor league game if you can. In fact, go to a AA game or lower, AAA is is more refined and too close to the major league model. Disregard the occasional errors and bonehead plays, the not too manicured fields. It's all part of the game and its baseball, not show business.