Why the Mookie Betts trade is making so many baseball fans angry
The only people who seem happy about the Boston Red Sox trading Mookie Betts are fans of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who now employ Betts, and New York Yankees fans because, well, you can figure that one out. But the trade has Red Sox ownership facing a backlash.
Betts, a charismatic five-tool outfielder, is considered one of the best players in the world. Naturally, that makes him an expensive ballplayer. He's only a year away from free agency and will command a significant amount on the open market, perhaps one of the largest contracts ever. The Red Sox didn't want to lose him for nothing, so they made a trade, netting a solid return from the Dodgers in the process.
Still, Boston is one of the wealthiest franchises in baseball, and their decision to trade their homegrown, 27-year-old former MVP to avoid paying the luxury tax is not sitting well with a lot of baseball fans, who they think should have just paid the man what he deserves. In other words, they think Boston ownership was being greedy.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Ringer's Michael Baumann argues it'd be understandable if Betts played for a small-market team that simply couldn't afford to keep him around, but the Red Sox don't fall into that category. Per Baumann, the Red Sox — who he deems a "de facto public institution" — rid themselves of a "once-in-a-generation player" all to save money that, in the grand scheme of Boston's operation, amounts to relatively little, adding to the narrative that MLB owners prioritize profit over everything else.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Antony Gormley's Time Horizon – a 'judgmental army' of 100 cast-iron men
The Week Recommends Sculptures are 'everymen questioning the privilege of their surroundings' at the Norfolk stately home
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
'King's horses take free rein through London'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Is pop music now too reliant on gossip?
Talking Point Taylor Swift's new album has prompted a flurry of speculation over who she is referring to in her songs
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA title
Speed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring record
speed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history
Speed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championship
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World Cup
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exit
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titles
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published