The league and the players’ association have some business to settle. The work stoppage seems endless in MLB and no agreement seems to be close to being reached.
One of the things that Scott Boras, a well-known baseball agent, wants to fix is tanking in baseball. For those who are not very familiar with the term, tanking is the art of deliberately losing in order to fish advantageously.
In the NFL and MLB, finishing last in the league automatically gives the team the first pick in the draft. In the NHL, however, a last-place team has the best chance of picking first, yes, but that’s not automatic.
Essentially, Boras wants this: a kind of lottery. He believes that the willful losing method scares away fans.
Boras: ‘Non-competitive cancer’ driving fans away https://t.co/EZ8Ek5Pig0 pic.twitter.com/uKuGl7Ku5O
— theScore MLB (@theScoreMLB) February 14, 2022
And he’s 100% right. Honestly, what Orioles fan wanted to watch a game of their favorite team last year? Even me, as a fan of the Montreal Canadiens, I wouldn’t spend a penny to go see them this season.
I think when you introduce this cancer (tanking), this non-competitive cancer, into sport…the fan doesn’t go to the stadium with the intention of seeing their team win every day. – Scott Boras
He went on to say that this pattern gives fans the idea that losing is okay. Professionally, no, losing is not acceptable… ever!
Since the 2011 draft, the strategy of losing teams has changed and that strategy no longer includes winning games. That’s what Scott Boras is basically denouncing and I know a lot of people – including me – who agree with him.
