The option year and buyouts in MLB; Student-athletes want part of TV revenue; lockout comparison
October 25, 2011
Option year and buyouts in MLB
It's that time of year in Major Leage Baseball when front offices have to make decisions on bringing back players or deciding to let them go. The Philadelphia Phillies announced that they will not pick up a $16 million option for starting pitcher Roy Oswalt, instead they will pay Oswalt $2 million to buyout his contract. Relief pitcher Brad Lidge was treated similarly, as the Phillies declined to pick up the option on his contract that would have been worth $12.5 million in 2012.
The Hardball Times has a nice post from 2007 explaining the value of having an option year and the buyout clause as it applies to one year deals.
College athletes petition NCAA for reform
Student athletes from Arizona, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Purdue and UCLA have petitoned the NCAA asking that they get a piece of the ever increasing revenue from TV rights that college football and basketball generate. More than 300 athletes from football and men's basketball teams are asking that the NCAA set aside money in a so called "educational lock-box" for players that may need the money to cover educational costs if they exhaust their eligibility before they graduate. Additionally, if any money is left, the petition asks that players who graduate be allowed to receive any money still remaining.
Comparing the NBA lockout to other league work stoppages
USA Today has a piece comparing the ongoing NBA lockout to other work stoppages in pro sports over the last several years.
Comments