Put me down on the side of Tony La Russa on this one. Athletes can’t have it both ways, trying to play through injuries and then expecting some kind of pass for trying to play hurt after the fact. I’m not taking anything away from Scott Rolen’s toughness by saying what he did was stupid. Rolen’s a great guy, no question about it, and his work ethic is something that’s made him the great player he’s been, but his situation isn’t as much of an exception as you’d think.
In fact, one of the biggest problems in baseball right now is that medical staffs are losing some measure of control over players. It’s more than just the player’s right to a second opinion leading to the rise of super-surgeons; that’s a positive development. Instead, it’s the lack of knowledge and control that an athletic trainer needs. Instead of telling the trainer, athletes are telling their agent and personal trainer (and there’s a HUGE difference between a personal physical trainer and a certified athletic trainer.) Sure, it’s their right, but as more and more players take up this kind of arrangement, once reserved for only the superstars, it’s made things tougher on teams.
One example of how this might play out is the early-season Yankees. While they ended up firing their new strength and conditioning coach after one too many hamstring injuries, it was perhaps not using his program that cost him more than the program itself as many had thought. A program is only as good as the buy-in and simply put, no one did. Reports at the time indicate that most of the Yankees were much more likely to be on their own program — Andy Pettitte has long had his own personal trainer while the Boras and Tellum clients often use agent-provided services.
Even Peter Gammons has been railing against this type of arrangement lately. Scott Boras Corporation has often been jokingly referred to as the 31st team. In many ways, it’s no joke. How this plays out over the next couple years will end up as one of the most important stories in baseball, one with repercussions that approach those of the McNally decision.
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