» Chat wrap
May 9th, 2007

Chat wrap

Yesterday I had an hour-long, lunch-time chat on Boston.com, the subject of which was my Sunday Globe Magazine article on sports injuries and the pressures athletes face to play when injured. I know some of you are cursing the fact that you forgot to check it out at the time. Don’t worry: the transcript is now available online.

I agree with your general point regarding a poor system of incentives rife with conflicts of interests for medical staffs to pro teams, but am concerned when you say this:

I don’t know the article specifically, but I do know of players — usually in football — who are told of the (oftentimes terrifying) risks of returning to the field and the players deciding they want to suit up. That, in my opinion, shouldn’t be allowed to happen.

This strikes me as a relatively simplistic and paternalistic analysis. We can all certainly agree that it is tragic when a player suffers a career-ending, life-altering, or worst of all, fatal injury, especially when they were warned in advance. At the same time, the serious risk that these athletes face is one of the chief reasons that they are so well compensated. The market for professional athletes salaries reflects the danger of the job. A football player who chooses to continue to play in spite of the risk is nothing more than a grown man making a a calculated decision. The wisdom of that decision is certainly up for debate, but your conclusion that such a scenario “shouldn’t be allowed to happen” is unjustified. Who are you to interpose your own beliefs and life-priorities in deciding for the player what is best for him?

Comment by TheVoiceofReason — May 9, 2007 @ 11:46 am
So Seth… is it time to finish your sentence about Torre’s handling of the bullpen?

Comment by chris — May 9, 2007 @ 4:00 pm

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