For those who didn't know, it's the 22 year anniversary of the film Bull Durham. The movie is a fan favorite for a variety of reasons: Kevin Costner kicks ass in it, baseball is an awesome sport and there are a plethora of memorable quotes. Everyone has a go-to of the latter, but one in particular has stuck in my mind-when Crash Davis labels Nuke LaLoosh as a "million dollar arm, but a 10 cent head." What a great, revealing concept.
And back in 1990, a million dollars went a long way. Heck, Roger Clemens made the most among any single pitcher, earning a then-astronomical $2.6 million a season. By comparison (and a stupid one at that), Jim Johnson, a current reliever on the Baltimore Orioles, makes the same salary present-day as Clemens made back in 1990. But while most people's knee-jerk reaction is to blame U.S. Dollar inflation for this extreme change, the U.S. Dollar has only increased in value by 74.2 percent in the past 22 years. This means that purely based on monetary inflation, a pitcher of Clemens caliber in 2012 would only make about $4.5 million. So unless you think Nick Blackburn is the re-incarnation of "The Rocket," then there has to be something else going on here.... click here to read the rest of this article.
The Beanball is a blog devoted to unearthing all-things baseball. For more "bench-clearing baseball analysis," follow @TheBeanball.