WHY BOO DREW?<br>
By CHARLES JAY <br>
August 11, 1999<br>
<br>
So the Philadelphia Phillies fans are mad at J.D.
Drew. <br>
<br>
Why?<br>
<br>
Because he and his agent, upon the Phillies' selection
of Drew as the top pick in last year's amateur draft,
decided to treat the game of baseball the same way 30
owners and 750 players are treating it these days.<br>
<br>
Like a business.<br>
<br>
And in a business, you try to get the greatest reward
for the least amount of risk. In this case, the "least
risk" meant that Drew wanted to be paid what he
thought he could get away with commanding without
playing a professional baseball game. I see it every
year with NFL draft choices, NBA draft choices. <br>
<br>
And you know what? J.D. Drew got away with it. <br>
<br>
Is that what Phillies fans are so pissed about? Never
mind that the $6.7 million signing bonus he turned
down in 1998 seemed more than adequate; more than
generous. he got EIGHT MILLION from the Cardinals the
next year. That's BUSINESS. <br>
<br>
Instead the Philadelphia fans turned it into something
personal, probably because there always seems to have
to be something or someone for them to get personal
about. Hey, remember, this was the same city where the
problem of drunken, rowdy fans was so bad at Veterans
Stadium that a municipal court was actually installed
underneath the stands. And fans at the Vet once again
showed their unique brand of class on Tuesday night,
as they hurled batteries and other debris at Drew to
such a degree that there existed the real possibility
of a forfeit. <br>
<br>
What, in essence, did Drew do? He got an offer from a
major league team, stood his ground, sat out a year,
risking damage to his market value, and in the end
wound up selling his services for a figure much more
favorable to him.<br>
<br>
In short, he beat the system.<br>
<br>
He wasn't shunning the Phillies' franchise. He wasn't
thumbing his nose at the city of Philadelphia or its
fans. He was simply exercising his right to negotiate,
a process which is by its very nature adversarial. He
was playing within the rules established by the
system, and he beat it.<br>
<br>
Major league baseball players have been doing that for
years, ever since Marvin Miller opened their eyes to
the possibilities that were available to them. And at
every turn, they have taken advantage of the
opportunity to advance another step. Is this
fundamentally any different? I mean, I don't think I
have seen anyone yet turn in the face of the big bucks
and eschew an offer on the basis that they hadn't
proven enough. Hell, you could probably get thrown out
of the union for doing something like that.<br>
<br>
Yeah, I know the argument - the guy hadn't proven
anything on a professional level, blah, blah, blah.
That doesn't seem to discourage top picks in football
and basketball from making demands that would put them
at the top of the pay scale with their prospective
teams. The times, they are a-changing, and in this era
when real prospects are getting to the majors quicker,
for this posture to gravitate to baseball is only the
natural, inevitable course of events.<br>
<br>
Of course, a lot of the animosity, assuming any of it
is really justified, should probably be directed
toward his agent, Scott Boras, an operator who has
nothing less than a nasty reputation among baseball
executives. Realistically, one can see a negotiating
problem with a prospect a mile away when he's
represented by Boras, which is why most executives
would tell you off the record that they consciously
avoid his clients. <br>
<br>
Apparently, this didn't matter much to the Phillies,
who figured they could sign Drew anyway. If the
Phillies couldn't see the "caveat emptor" sign staring
them in the face, how was to blame?<br>

It's like that old story - a man se<br>es a snake cut,
bleeding, and lying on a river bank. He picks up the
snake, mends its wounds, and carries it to safety.
When they get to the other side of the river, the
snake bits viciously in the man's arm. The man
screams, "Why did you do that? I just saved your
life?" The snake replies, "You knew I was a snake when
you picked me up, didn't you?" And the man had learned
a lesson.<br>
<br>
When you deal with Scott Boras, expect the expected.<br>
<br>
So the Phillies fans felt compelled to boo, hiss,
throw things, and generally make life uncomfortable
for Boras' client both at bat and in the Veteran
Stadium outfield Tuesday night. They tried their best
to scare, intimidate, and unnerve.<br>
<br>
And how did J.D. Drew answer such antagonism?<br>
<br>
With a single. And a triple. And a walk. And an RBI.
And two runs scored. Drew did so well he might bring
two designated Phillies hecklers with him wherever he
goes from this point on.<br>
<br>
It's not personal, Sonny. It's just BUSINESS.<br>
<br>
<br>
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<br>