THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball

Friday, February 25, 2011

Make-a-wish: the one day contract

Great idea:

During the last homestand of the Giants’ 2008 season, J.T. Snow signed a one-day contract with the club to officially retire as a Giant. He was listed as the starting first basemen in the line-up while taking infield in a Giants uniform one last time. He then tipped his cap and shook hands as he walked off the field, being replaced at first base before the game started. But do you know the funny thing about that appearance? According to Rule 10.20 of the Official Baseball Rules, this counts as a game played in Snow’s stats!?! That’s right, Snow has this statistical line for the 2008 season:

2008 40 SFG NL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

This got me to thinking. How much would someone pay to see their name immortalized in the records of the Game? Picture your smiling face on a Baseball-Reference page! Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show on steroids!

Well, why not? MLB is always looking for new revenue streams, here’s a golden opportunity. Player for a day! Not just throwing out a ceremonial first pitch, but actually getting credit for playing in a major league game! Forget the Star Registry, this time it counts!

People shell out five or ten grand for season tickets. You would think they could find 81 fans willing to pay $5,000 for a Snow job. The fee would entitle them to be treated with all the respect that J.T. Snow received when he did his farewell stunt. You get a uniform, get to hang with the players a bit before the game, even take the field during warm-ups for a couple tosses. You then get to stand with the team during the national anthem. After jogging out to your position you tip your cap and shake hands as you trot off the field.

In the NHL, it occasionally happens that one of the two goalies is out, they can’t get a backup from the minor leagues in time, so they have to sign someone to a one-day contract.

The NHL Columbus Blue Jackets also signed a terminal patient for one day:

Yesterday afternoon, Howson, along with Salmons’ favorite players, Manny Malhotra and Jason Chimera, surprised the terminally ill teenager with a visit to his family’s Grove City home. They extended an unprecedented offer to the former hockey player: a one-day contract complete with a $3 signing bonus.
...
A mock news release announcing the contract also was given to the family. In the release, defenseman Marc Methot granted Salmons permission to wear his No. 3 jersey. “I typically wouldn’t give up my number, but it is a small price to add a player like Ryan to our team,” Methot said.
...
He also would like to go over the fine print in his contract. “I read it over,” he said, chuckling. “And I don’t see anything about a base salary for the 2008-09 season.”

And then his funeral:

After the funeral, a reception was held in Nationwide Arena. The ice surface was covered and surrounded by about 40 tables. In the middle of it all was an ice sculpture of a Blue Jackets sweater ... No. 3, with Salmons on the back.

The display board that wraps around the bowl was covered with “#3 Ryan Salmons”, while a collection of pictures looped on the main scoreboard.

But, hey, let’s not mess with the “integrity” of the game.  Let’s make sure that MLB is as pure and as cold-hearted as possible.  And yes, cue the slippery slope arguments.  Except this is a slope going upward, not downward.