Marvin Miller Died Today

[Brian Van Horn]

My condolences to the Miller family.

As for Miller's legacy to the game I look it as follows. The player is drafted and has an agent. He receives a signing bonus and a contract. Undrafted free agents may or may not have an agent. The player struggles to adapt to the minor leagues and his development as a player. This is not an easy lifestyle either in the minors or majors (not speaking from experience, but from countless stories). He makes it to the majors and has, I believe, six years where the club controls his rights (this is where the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team I root for, make a good bit of money). Then there is free agency. The player can opt to stay with his team or pursue other offers. He also has a union.

Although I can sympathize with the player for his minor league career and the first six years of his major league career, I can not feel any affinity for a person, whether he be a sports figure or an entertainment figure, who can have an agent and a union.