The German poet Rainer Maria Rilke once wrote, "The cunning enmity of fame, later, which makes you innocuous by scattering you all around." I reflected on these words shortly after learning of the mega 15-year $765 million contract that Juan Soto signed with the New York Mets. The super-talented outfielder was already well-regarded for his skillset, but this new deal catapulted him into the stratosphere of dollar signs and lofty expectations. Naturally, everyone is buzzing about this. Today, after leaving the gym, I stopped by a Tim Horton's and discussed the contract with two workers there. They also couldn't believe it.
How does $765 million break down?
Sportskeeda was kind enough to provide this information!
Juan Soto will earn the following:
$51 million per year
$8.5 million per month
$314, 815 per game
$133, 396 per hour
$2,018 per minute
$34 per second
This is truly staggering and naturally, everyone is talking about this contract, loyalty, the need for a salary cap, etc. As a New York Yankees fan, I was disappointed, but Soto now embarks on a new adventure; on a contract that could eventually become, in the words of Ezra Pound, "golden chains of loveliness". At what age will his production begin to diminish? 34? 35? Time will tell. But I certainly do not wish him any ill will, I just hope that with all the social media-driven hype around this contract, he does not become innocuous by being everywhere.
Source: msn.com
In today's episode of Pardon the Interruption, co-host Tony Kornheiser whimsically asked whether Soto's agent, Scott Boras, might be the Devil or not. Such was the surprise that Soto did not stay with the Yankees. The agent has a reputation for extracting astronomical contracts for his players and this latest announcement ensures that his villainy among baseball owners and general managers, will not lose any of its "luster".
For baseball fans, this year will be remembered as one that provided us with milestones being reached by some of the game's most famous players. Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees tied and then
Photo credit: CHRISTIAN PETERSEN / GETTY IMAGES
surpassed the American League homerun record set by Roger Maris in 1961. Perhaps more impressive is the 700 homeruns that Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals achieved recently. He is now one of the top three homerun hitters of all time. What an amazing accomplishment!
Today someone else entered the 700 Club: Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo, the goal scoring machine who does not seem to age. Naturally, this did not receive much attention in the North American market, but it is still worth celebrating. As Albert Pujols played his last game yesterday, Cristiano Ronaldo seems to keep going forward at full tilt, dazzling defenses with his technical wizardry, speed and moxie. I really wish newscasts in the US would have celebrated his remarkable achievement.
The historian Arnold Toynbee, in a 1947 article for The New York Times, posed the following question, "Are we asking whether history is governed by inviolable laws, which have not only taken effect in every past case to which they have applied, but are also bound to take effect in every similar situation that may arise in the future?"
A Norwegian and an American are, unwittingly, putting that thesis to the test. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has managed Manchester United since 2018, arriving with the accolades that he received as a player for that team. From 1996-2007 Solskjaer scored 126 goals in 366 matches for the Red Devisl. In 1999 his last-minute goald in the UEFA Champions League final lifted Manchester United over Bayern Munich, cementing his legacy with his team's fans. After retiring in 2007, Solskjaer managed Molde, a team in his native Norway and Cardiff in Wales, before being appointed interim manager of Manchester United in 2018. He signed a three-year extension on July 24, 2021.
Across the pond, Aaron Boone, was named manager of the New York Yankees on December 4, 2017. Boone's claim to fame for Yankees fans occurred on October 16, 2003 when he it a game-winning home run off of Time Wakefield of the rival Boston Red Sox to win the series and propel the Yankees into the World Series. Like Solskjaer's late-minute goal against Bayern Munich, this became Boone's signature moment. Unlike Solskjaer, Boone had no managerial experience when was selected to be Yankees manager.
Bitter Rivals Get the Last Laugh
Source: Peter Powell/EPA, via Shutterstock
This month both managers suffered humiliating defeats at the
hands of their most-hated rivals: Liverpool for Manchester United and the Red
sox for the Yankees. On October 5th the Boston Red Sox ended the Yankees'
playoff hopes with a resounding 6-2 victory at Boston and on October 24th
Manchester United were bludgeoned by Liverpool 5-0 in their own stadium--Old
Trafford, known as the "Theater of Dreams". Liverpool rewrote the
script into a "Theater of Nightmares". How bad did it become for
Solskjaer? As the game for Manchester United progressed from "extremely
poor" to "catastrophic", Liverpool fans sarcastically serenaded
Solskjaer by singing "Ole's
at the Wheel". They were not going to let him forget that he was at
the help of the car wreck that played itself out before his very eyes.
In Boston following the Yankees' defeat, fan chanted "YankeesSuck", this has become a tradition over the years. But the Liverpool
fans showed more creativity, spirit, and let's be honest, rhythm in their
"homage" to Solskjaer. The "Yankees Suck" chant sounds cultish in its repetition. Neither Boone nor Solskjaer seemed visibly
affected by the derisive chants that rained down upon them. Perhaps this
ability to shake off negative comments is a strength of their personality. But
does that make them good managers?
Boone has been soundly criticized for having been hired despite
having no managerial experience. Even with his past efforts leading Molde and
Cardiff, Solskjaer has been hammered in the press and social media world for
not coming close to the level of top coaches such as Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool),
Pep Guardiola (Manchester City) and Thomas Tuchel (Chelsea). Boone has
frequently been outmanaged by Alex Cora, manager of the Boston Red Sox.
Solskjaer and Boone have pleasant and calm demeanors. Solskjaer is avuncular
and is comfortable with the press, speaking English as it if were his first
language while Boone is passive but sometimes struggles with his communication
as if English were his second language.
Moving Forward
Over the last few years there has been a tendency to hire relatively young and inexperienced coaches to manage teams. Chelsea hired its
former star player Frank Lampard to manage the team, despite no previous
managerial experience. He was fired earlier this year. In baseball, the
Philadelphia Phillies hired a former player, Gabe Kapler, who had very little
experience. He was fired after one year, although to be fair, he led the San
Francisco Giants to the playoffs this year. Will there be a change in
hiring practices: opting for the hard-nosed, sometimes abrasive leadership
styles over the friendly, laid back and passive style that Solskjaer and Boone
display? Already there are rumors that the Italian coach Antonio Conte is being
considered as a replacement for Solskjaer. Conte is driven, intense and pushes
his players hard, but is a master tactician. The Yankees decided to resign
Boone to a three-year contract not longer after he was outmanaged by Alex Cora
in the wild card. Cora, by the way, has publicly stated his support for Boone
to remain as Yankees manager. Clearly, he enjoys outwitting Boone on the
baseball diamond. Eventually, the Yankees will go back to having a driven and
intense manager such as Billy Martin, who became infamous in 1978 for yelling at his player Reggie
Jackson in the dugout at Boston. But for now, the team prefers to have a
milquetoast running the team. If only we could get someone similar to this guy
(below) to manage the Yankees!
Life Imitates Art
In his 1928 book Man Who Knew Coolidge, Sinclair Lewis
imbues one of his characters with a wild imagination. In sharing the novel he
would like to someday write, the character describes the plot where an American
marries a princess in Wales and convinces her to leave the royal family and return
with him to the US. It is almost as if he predicted the decision by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to leave England and live in the US. This has nothing to do with Manchester United or the Yankees; I just like seeing how sometimes historical/fantastical ideas come true.
The Yankees and Manchester United have grand histories and
traditions. But they also have bitter rivals which make those trophies shine
with such a bright sheen. Nowadays, the tables have turned and the hated rivals
are at the top of their game and the Yankees and Manchester United must adapt
and improve. While the Yankees have consigned themselves and their fans to
three more years of stultified baseball, Manchester United have yet to make a
decision, keeping their fans on edge as to what direction the team will go
in.
"History is an endless conversation," observed the
literary critic Ken Burke years ago. Right now that conversation is one-sided
and Liverpool and the Red Sox are talking the loudest.
Tommy Henrich, the right fielder for the New York Yankees from ( 1937-1942, 1946-1950), earned the nickname of "Old Reliable" for his timely hits. I was born well after he played, but I remember my father always telling me stories of "Old Reliable." I loved the nickname...as it embodies loyalty and dependability. No one these days has that nickname, but after seeing the play of Danny Graham, the striker for Swansea City, I think we now have someone worthy of that moniker.
A good striker has the innate ability to change the complexion of a game simply by stepping on to the field and in the space of a few days, Graham has done this twice for Swansea: first, scoring the game tying goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time (second half) against Aston Villa on January 1st; then he scored the game tying goal with three minutes to go in the game against Arsenal on January 6. Incredible!
Swansea City is a fun club to watch play and I think somewhere up there Tommy Henrich is saluting Danny Graham, a worthy successor to the title of "Old Reliable."
Recently, Lady Gaga made the headlines for talking her way into the New York Yankees clubhouse. She had also caused a scene at the stadium of the New York Mets. Following news that the Yankees might ban her from the clubhouse, former comedian and current occupant of New York City, felt compelled to offer his opinion on Lady Gaga. He cited her as being inappropriate and that she should find a better use for her talent. This is very ironic considering that not only has Seinfeld not told a good joke since 1991 (it was written for him by a screenwriter), but he recently produced a tactless and tasteless television show called "The Marriage Ref" in which celebrity panelists judge marriages and give "advice" on how struggling couples can improve their relationships. This is reality television at its worst. Seinfeld has to resort to being a voyeur to get people to consider him relevant. Truth be told, Lady Gaga is much more popular than Mr. Seinfeld. You can say she is an exhibitionist, which she will agree with. So, what we have here is the exhibitionist vs. the voyeur. One is open about her attitude and approach to life, while the other one hides and tries to highlight the worst in other people. Hmmm...I wonder who is the one who needs to find a better use of their talent? Going back to Lady Gaga, she can't be that bad, she is a fan of the Yankees!!
