One hundred and thirty nine years ago, America's national pastime was born with the forming of the first professional baseball league. The players were ordinary, middle aged men, who were doctors, lawyers and authors. There was no such thing as baseball players whose life was only that. They all had families, wives and kids that came before baseball. In recent years, the players as well as the coaches and fans have lost sight of why the league was originally founded, to have fun playing baseball and maybe earn some money while doing it.

Today all the players care about is money. In 1869, the annual payroll for the entire Cincinnati Red Stockings was $9,300 not per player, but per team. In 1996 the average professional baseball player made $1,119,981. The players don't have other jobs, most don't have a college education, unless they played college baseball. Of course some inflation is to be expected, but the players are going a bit too far. In 1995 the players went on strike because they felt they were not getting enough money!

Also, what ever happened to team spirit? In high school, supporting your team is essential. Even in college a student is there long enough to feel a connection, but once you hit the major leagues team spirit is almost non-existent. The players aren't from the towns they play in, and the coaches throw them around so much they don't have a chance to make the connection to the pulse of the city. They are traded like slaves, if they want to play they have to go where they're sent.

I think some serious changes need to come to major league baseball. First of all, the players' salaries need to go down. This would lower the prices to ticket holders and make the game accessible to more people. Second, the coaches need to realize what they have in their own town. Players should only be allowed to play in their native city. Last, the players themselves need to make some changes. As it is now, most of the players do not have anything to fall back on. They don't have good jobs or educations. The players need to realize that family comes first, and that a college education is very important.

I don't find professional baseball as it is, very appealing. It's just a bunch of millionaires trying to break each others' records. It's not about the traditional game of baseball, it's not about the fans who watch. It's about making a whole bunch of money and trying to look good.

The sport has seriously decayed, and until it is back to its original quality, I find no interest in supporting professional baseball.