| They Said It |
|---|
|
Quotes Friday after the baseball player's union set an Aug. 30 strike date if they can't reach agreement on a new labor agreement with the owners:
|
"The baseball owners and the baseball players must understand that if there is a stoppage, a work stoppage, a lot of fans are going to be furious, and I'm one of them."
-- President Bush, a former owner of the Texas Rangers. |
"Sooner or later, history has to be broken. You've got to be hopeful. If you're resigned to nothing getting done, we might as well set a strike date for tomorrow. Hopefully, cooler heads will prevail and we'll get something done."
-- Atlanta Braves pitcher Tom Glavine. |
"Who cares? I haven't been a fan since 1981, the first time they showed me they didn't need me. But my son is 11 years old and he has a chance to see a Hall of Famer, which might be important to him someday."
-- Rudy Cook, who made the three-hour trip from Cocoa Beach, Fla., to see San Francisco's Barry Bonds play the Marlins. |
"If you look at all the professional
leagues, they've all faced striking in the past, and they've all folded.
We've always gone through with it. We're not bragging by any means, but
you have to be willing to go all the way to get what you deserve."
-- Minnesota player representative Denny Hocking. |
"The nation's mayors join millions of baseball fans in hoping that a baseball strike can be averted. A prolonged baseball strike would have severe economic consequences -- not only for baseball owners and players, but also for thousands of people and small businesses in our cities."
-- Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, in a statement released by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. |
"(Sept. 11 has) obviously been a very sticky subject. That's a date that will be very dear to us as a country. Baseball as an American pastime has been a healing aid for that tragedy, but hopefully, we'll be playing. The owners are in the same predicament as well. If we can't get something done, it's not totally our fault."
-- Anaheim player representative Scott Schoeneweis, discussing the possibility of being on strike Sept. 11. |
"Being here in New York, we especially feel a part of September 11th. It's tough."
-- New York Mets catcher Vance Wilson. |
"I find it disturbing that people are trying to throw that guilt in the mix. September 11th is so personal."
-- Mets catcher Mike Piazza. |
"Don't ask for one thing and want another. ... I think there are some (owners) out there who would like to see (a strike)."
-- Atlanta Braves pitcher Mike Remlinger. |
"It's difficult, because it always seems like the players are the ones being greedy, and we're not. My family, my uncles and cousins, they don't understand -- 'I make $30,000 a year. You make $30,000 a day.' But we just want to keep the union strong. It's difficult to explain unless you're in our situation."
-- Florida catcher Charles Johnson. |
"The difference in the language is irrelevant to fans. But, unfortunately, that's where we're at."
--Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Curt Schilling. |
"I hope we don't strike. I know people think it's our fault. They keep blaming us."
-- Detroit Tigers pitcher Jose Lima. |
"The strike date does make it real. It's sad. You just hope it doesn't come down to that date. It's not 1994 again, where both sides were sticking their chests out. The players realize this is not something we want. I just hope the owners feel that way, too, but I'm not so sure they do. I don't know what agenda (commissioner Bud) Selig has. We won't know that until Aug. 30."
-- Houston Astros Jeff Bagwell. |
"The guys for the most part have remained relatively optimistic that a deal can be done. And I think by and large that most of them feel this is not as significant a statement today as some try to make it. Whether it be industry or specifically baseball, nothing has ever gotten done without some deadline reached or at least set."
-- Todd Zeile of the Colorado Rockies. |
"Obviously, I have to sit right on top of the fence. I have a job to do. I don't think the way I managed last night is any different than the way I'd manage in 10 days."
-- Los Angeles Dodgers manager Jim Tracy. |
"I've always said I'd be willing to renegotiate my contract and lessen it to a degree if it could fix the game of baseball. The money, I can deal without. Baseball, I can't."
-- Texas Rangers shortstop Alex Rodriguez, the game's highest-paid player. |
"Clearly, the luxury tax is a major obstacle that has to be resolved before we're going to get an agreement. I think an agreement can be reached."
-- union head Donald Fehr. |
"If you take a step back, it seems to me there's been considerable progress made. It seems to me we have one more hurdle to overcome."
-- Chicago Cubs chief executive officer Andy MacPhail. |
"It's ridiculous. Most of the players make over a million dollars a year. School teachers make it on 30 grand. What do they have to complain about?"
-- Brian Orndorff, a 24-year-old locksmith attending a Baltimore Orioles game. |
"If they don't come back, I think they've lost a lot of fans. I really do. In '94, I think they took a big hit. And when (Sammy) Sosa and (Mark) McGwire came back and started the home run thing, the fans started to come back. But I think it's going to take a whole lot more than a home run derby for the fans to come back the next time."
-- Dawnn Cancino, who was buying tickets at Anaheim's Edison Field. |
"My main concern is the fans. You don't want to alienate them. Without them there's no game."
-- Florida's Derrek Lee. |
"I was a fan and 7 years old when they struck in 1981. I thought the world was going to end. The Phillies were my favorite team and they couldn't defend their title. But I'm part of the union. We've got to stick together."
-- Florida third baseman Mike Lowell. |
"We still have to be optimistic. The important date isn't Aug. 30. The important dates are the ones in between."
-- San Francisco shortstop Rich Aurilia. |
"No one is going to suffer more than Cincinnati with the new ballpark. The Reds will be crushed."
-- Reds fan John Cunningham, looking beyond the left-field wall at the new ballpark scheduled to open next season. |
"At least they're talking. In years past, when our industry has gone through these pains, it hasn't always been that way. If there was talking, it was calling each other names. I haven't heard that this time, so that's a positive."
-- Orioles manager Mike Hargrove. |
"I knew it was coming. But it makes the whole season seem like a waste, like why did we bother following it all year long. If I could talk to the players, I would just ask, 'Why?'
-- Chris Chelson, a 15-year-old Mets fan. |
"It's a stupid thing, but I will come back no matter what."
-- baseball fan Antonio Valcarcel of Miami. |
| |
