My trip to Ethiopia. My aunt worked on the board of directors for a non-profit called Aerie Africa. The orphanage was called CCCE (Children’s Cross Connection Ethiopia). The kids ranged from 2 years old -college aged. Most of the children were in the orphanage because their parents were HIV Positive.
Trip to Germany
Rome
Prague
My international experience is fairly expansive. I have an aunt and uncle that live in Munich, Germany. I have traveled to Europe to visit them on two separate occasions. I also had the chance to take a trip to Ethiopia to work at an orphanage in the town of Soddo. This was an incredible experience for me. Throughout my European travels, I visited Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, and the Czech Republic. My favorite city in Europe was Munich. It is a large city, yet it maintains somewhat of a small town feel. The people were great and of course, the beer was great too. I loved my time in Europe and I hope to return within the next couple of years.
My name is Shaun Higgins. I am currently a senior majoring in Sport Management with a minor in International Business. I am originally from the Pittsburgh area and I graduated high school at a school NW of the city called Central Valley. I have a 24-year old sister named Meghan who currently lives in Boston, as she is going to graduate school at Tufts University. This past summer, I was the Ballpark Operations Intern for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Because of this experience, I am planning on moving to Brandenton, Florida in the Spring to work at the Pirates’ Spring Training facility. I enjoy reading. My favorite book is The Great Gatsby. I am a huge fan of all Pittsburgh sports teams.
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-05-big-bucks-mlb-megastars-team.html
“With sports teams you don’t hear it talked about very often: ‘Should we get a bunch of OK players or get one or two really good players?'”
This is a question that is most likely very hotly debated in nearly every front office in baseball. Distribution of money is a dilemma that most teams face. How do you decide whether you want a balanced team with no great players, or a team with a couple all-stars and also some below average players. This article presented a very interesting stance on the issue. Teams that spend their money on a couple of great players tend to make a solid profit for the season, but do not seem to win as many games. On the contrary, teams that balance out their payrolls see more wins, but less of a profit. This is where greed comes into the equation. First and foremost, the game of baseball is a business. Owners want to make money. So if the most effective way to make money is to pay for a sub-par team that features a couple superstars, then why not just do that? Some owners I believe or at least I hope would say that their number one priority is winning. In the long run, winning equals money in nearly all circumstances.
The business of baseball seems to lack integrity and morals in a lot of instances. Sport in general is a cut-throat world, where only the strongest and most brutal survive. This carries over to the front office of baseball teams, where owners and general managers may decide at some point that turning a profit is more important that fielding a winning team. And to be honest, signing two superstar players and paying them outrageous amounts of money will seem to the fans that they are doing there best to bring wins to the team. Regardless of these statistics, the owner and GM both win. They make their profit and make it seem to the fans like the are willing to spend whatever it takes to be a title contender. It seems that according to this article, less is more. Spend a little less on individuals and everyone benefits. It’s an interesting concept to consider.
In my last post, I discussed the issue of spending in MLB. Small Market teams arent able to spend the money to pay for superstars because of their low payrolls. This leads to teams not being able to compete due to their lack of money. This article however showed me a slightly different perspective on the issue. Major League Baseball uses revenue sharing in order to help these low market teams remain competitive. Teams such as the Red Sox, Yankees, and Mets provide smaller teams like the Pirates and Royals with a nice bit of money. The problem that the league is currently facing is the fact that the Pirates and Royals are still managing to turn a profit whenever they arent contributing to the revenue sharing.
As a fan of the Pirates and a fan in general of the league, it is frustrating to know that the management of these two teams are more worried about making a profit than fielding a winning team. This is unfair not only to the fans and the city but also to the league in general. Other teams are willing to spend the money it takes to field a great team which in turn earns them a profit and then there are teams that are just taking their money and keeping it for profit. Many problems exist with the current payroll/revenue sharing that MLB uses. Hopefully this will be corrected in the future.
What would be a better way to handle this?
Should MLB try to imitate other successful leagues such as the NFL?
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/329632-mlb-has-a-revenue-problem-money-isnt-being-spent
From chapter 6-3: Does Baseball Need a Salary Cap?
by Neil deMause
“Perhaps no two words in baseball generate as much controversy and emotion as “salary cap.” Depending on whom you ask, a salary cap would either save the game, destroy the players’ union, provide hope for small-market fans, pervert the free market, or create a tangle of red tape that would turn every trade deadline into a battle of wits among dueling “capologists.”
For nearly all of the modern-era of baseball, the idea of a salary cap has been hotly debated. Small market teams are in favor, whereas large markets argue that it will ruin the game. The idea of a salary cap would have many effects on the game itself, but effects that I believe would be mostly positive. Teams such as the New York Yankees are able to spend approximately $212 million on player salaries, yet teams such as my Pittsburgh Pirates can spend right around $45 million. How it this fair? The Pirates have now suffered through nineteen straight losing seasons. As an 18-year old, who was born and raised in Pittsburgh, it is sad to say that I have never witnessed a winning season. Each year as teams like the Yankees and Red Sox fight for the rights to sign the best free agents, the Pirates are forced to settle for washed up veterans or untested young players. This formula has failed them year after year. Now I understand that low budget teams have had some very successful seasons in the past, but it isnt sustainable. Within 3-4 years, the teams with the money are basically buying your team right from you. MLB is the only league that allows there to be such a lack of balance. The only question that I truly can ask is why. Why can this be permitted? Owners of these low-budget teams are forced to spend so much money out of pocket if they want to sign a superstar. So why dont they? Because if they do, they are looking at taking a huge loss. I dont know how many more losing seasons I can take. I think it is time for something to change.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=betweenthenumbers/salarycap/060405
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