The Washington Post had an article recently about a woman whose job with the US Army is in jeopardy because she has played host family to minor league baseball players. If this is not the most ridiculous thing the government has ever decided, I don't know what is.
First off, the players would all be in the United States legally. So why did you give them the appropriate paperwork to come play baseball in the US if they're a threat to national security?
Second off, it's not like players have tons of free time to be snooping around their host parents' homes. They have a handful of days off during the summer. Otherwise they're at the ballpark, or on the road.
Third off, these are minor league baseball players. When they start in minor league baseball they have likely never been away from home and had to take care of themselves. They're still learning to do laundry, so putting together complex political plans is a bit above them. If a minor league baseball player were ever to actually pose a threat to national security I think it would be reminiscent of the movie Wargames... they just stumble into something stupidly, and then can't get themselves out of it.
Some of the genius moves I saw from players the year I was with the team:
- The player who wore a heavy sweater his first day in town, because it's Washington and going to be cold. (The team was in Eastern Washington, high dessert territory. It was probably already 70 degrees out when he left the hotel.)
- The player who thought it would be fun to go to the ballpark one night and run the bases wearing nothing but a sock. The very public ballpark that was situated alongside a highway.
- The player who rented a car for the summer from a local, got into some sort of accident that dinged the heck out of the car, and just dropped it off at the rental place after hours, not considering the fact that he might have to pay for the damages.
- The player who used his salary to stock up on porn to take back to the Dominican Republic. But apparently overloaded his bag past the weight limit. He was too embarassed at the airport to open the bag in front of the team mom, but eventually ended up being forced to do so because he didn't have the funds to pay for the additional weight.
I would trust these guys with national secrets before I'd trust them with a teenage daughter.
Starting out players make around $1,000 a month, only during the months they are playing baseball, plus a per diem for road games. Paying for rent, transportation, food, etc., while knowing these paychecks won't be coming once the season is over is tough work. That's one of the reasons these kids go to host familys. It also gives them a chance to learn to live on their own to some degree, while still having parental figures there keeping an eye on them. For the international players, it gives them a chance to learn American culture.
Host families also come into play in areas like Minor League Hockey. Where kids are still high school aged, and live with families and go to school while simultaneously playing for the local hockey team. Do they need to be booted out to live on their own at the age of 16?
Or perhaps we need to spend our time actually going after folks who pose a legitimate threat to national security. Makes me want to become a host family for a local sports team.
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