The Mercenary Mentality

So there you have it. Canada 8, USA 6. And it wasn’t even that close. Adam Loewen a Baltimore farmhand shut down the U.S’ baseball mercenaries lasting 3 2/3 innings while centerfielder Adam Stern went 3 for 4 with 4 rbi.

So what gives with the U.S. team? Well, it’s only one game right. We all know that on any given day in a head to head match up any team can win. But in international tournament play there are less opportunities to recover making every game important.

When it comes to international competition in team sports the U.S. often disappoints. Our approach in fielding teams often lends itself to the ‘Dream Team’ model where we simply look around our top leagues picking our favorite names. When one guy drops out, another ‘star’ fills his place. The result is usually a collection of talented players and giant egos.

Now I’m not saying that the U.S. team doesn’t get along with eachother. On the contrary, they are all smiling a lot and enjoying themselves as if they are in display like icons. A few examples to illustrate my point stuck out in the game versus Canada.

In the fifth Stern hit a line drive to left which ricocheted off the base of the fence. While in pursuit of the ball the U.S. left fielder Matt Holliday pulled up lame with what seemed to be a twisted ankle or knee. The result was an inside the park homerun and an embarrassment to the U.S. squad.

A few pitches later while in pursuit of a lazy pop foul along the left field stands the game announcer urged Holliday “don’t even try it” referring to the risk that Holliday run in attempting to catch the ball on the run so close to the fence. While Holliday wasn’t heeding Sutcliffe’s advice, he did pull up and let the ball drop.

A few pitches later another foul pop down the line brought Holliday, third baseman Chipper Jones, and shortstop Derek Jeter together in pursuit of the ball. All of them pulled up as they realized an attempt to catch the ball would have meant sacrificing their bodies. The ball dropped and Jones and Jeter gave each other a little pat on the back and shared a smile as if to say, “whew, we almost got dirty there eh buddy”. So they sauntered back to their positions and proceeding to lose.

Everybody keeps saying that these players view their participation in the WBC and the opportunity to represent their country as the ‘Most important thing they have ever done in their careers’. I’ve seen Jeter crawl into the stands and steal pop fouls away from souvineer seekers many a time in mid season games that get lost in the massive shuffle of a 162 game season. If USA across his chest is so important why isn’t he risking anything? Compare this to Leslie Anderson of Cuba yesterday that got hit on the hand by a pitch and later collided with his own first baseman on a diving play in pursuit of a foul ball. He seems to be playing a lot harder than any of the U.S. players, and he could make more working at McDonalds in the U.S. than he does playing baseball for Cuba.

I get the impression that playing for good ol’ USA is something these guys view as a token for all of their accomplishments throughout their careers, not as a chance to show the world why they are the best. I hope this is the case, if not I’m afraid we simply aren’t as good as we thought.