A-Rod Gets Anthraxed (Not Literally)

Yesterday, commenter manx pointed us to something labeled a "Yankees preview" written by, of all people, thrash metal guitarist and "Anthrax mainstay" Scott Ian and published by, of all publications, Rolling Stone. 

Anthrax mainstay Scott Ian doesn't really preview the season so much as declare his refusal to follow the team in 2015 and beyond. His main problem is the presence of A-Rod, although the absence of A-Rod wasn't enough to make him watch any of last year's games. A-Rod cheated in 2009, so if the Yankees were worthy of Anthrax mainstay Scott Ian they would give back their World Series rings. And A-Rod would refund the money he made. Which would make the Steinbrenners finally rich enough to lower ticket prices.

And while Anthrax mainstay Scott Ian is on the subject, the Yankees are "stuck with [A-Rod's] salary. And the fans are stuck with insane ticket prices because no one is going to take him off our hands."

Anthrax mainstay Scott Ian, hear me. Ticket prices are indeed insane. And they would remain so even if the whole team were making Delin Betances money. Because Steinbrenners don't sit up nights totaling expenses, adding a reasonable profit percentage, and dividing the whole thing by the projected number of customers. Neither do concert promoters. No one does. Businesses pay what they have to, and charge what they can. Just like people.

Anthrax mainstay Scott Ian's line of thinking gets my goat, because it's so often used against low-wage workers. It goes: if McDonald's paid their people enough to eat at McDonald's, a Big Mac would cost $17.00.

No, it wouldn't, because A) it wouldn't, and B) no remotely competent human being would trade 17 beautiful dollars for one nauseating Big Mac.

Over the next couple of years, it'll be fun to track what people are willing to pay to watch the Sabathia/Teixeira/Beltran Yankees. My own "Yankees preview" says, it won't be what the Steinbrenners expect.