It was one of the lowest points in baseball history
a time of anger confusion and disgrace. In spring training of 1995 major league players were on strike
so teams were built with replacement players
a collection of minor leaguers
former major leaguers and anyone else who could play at all.
ESPN The Magazine's Tim Kurkjian wrote the above words in an August issue in 2002, retrospectively summing up one of the toughest years in history to be a baseball fan. Major League Baseball's reputation as America's game was tarnished and would arguably fail to recover its luster until the Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa home run race of 1998.
So was MLB's decision to go with replacement players a proper choice?
A strike is a stain on any sport
but a league can't fractionalize itself by using replacement players for the sake of the fans
sophomore and baseball enthusiast Kyle Bickford said. It makes the game impure.
To this day, players who crossed the proverbial picket line are not recognized by the union -players who were only paid an average of $115,000 and took the field to try to keep baseball alive.
Now, 10 years later, the National Hockey League is entertaining the idea of using replacements after losing an entire season to a dispute between club owners and the NHL Player's Association.
After rumors started circulating about the NHL opening its 2005-06 season with replacements, many critics claimed such action would be the end of hockey. With nowhere near the popularity of MLB in the United States, would fans tune in to watch the Coolest Game on Earth with replacements playing?
Deep down I hope they don't use replacement players
Ohio club hockey coach, Dan Morris said. I think the (NHL) players will just have to make some concessions or they will end up losing a lot.
Some argue that it would not be the end of the world for hockey.
I would still watch it because every team would have an 'empty slate' of talent
sophomore hockey fan Tim Baker said. It wouldn't be as interesting
but it is still hockey.
In 1980, Team USA -composed of a bunch of rag-tag college kids -upset a seemingly untouchable Russian squad in the Winter Olympics at Lake Placid. The win is still celebrated today. No-name kids became heroes. Could hockey fans find a new Wayne Gretzky in a replacement?
Obviously, the NHL is a business. Big-name players sell jerseys and fill seats in arenas, something owners and league officials alike are interested in. It is not surprising that talk of using replacements was quickly squelched.
In fact, league officials say they will lose another season rather than play with replacements.
However, if the lockout does continue and threatens the 2005-06 season, will owners and league officials eventually bend and use replacement players instead of facing another cancelled hockey season?
The best solution for the NHL is to end the lockout before such a decision is even necessary, before the situation gets so out of hand that using replacements becomes a plausible suggestion.
