More Proof the "Me" Plan Does Not Work—From Baseball!

We were awed by the drama and excitement of the final day of baseball's regular season: three remarkably dramatic wins that determined playoff teams and, in two of them, historic events that truly defied all logic and probability.

Today, the day after, we read quotes from players reacting to the games. And we were struck—once again, unfortunately—by the self-centered attitudes of these athletes. But upon further review, we realized those selfish thoughts may not be unrelated to losing.

Three Boston players offered shockingly selfish reactions to their loss and, moreover, their team's amazing September collapse. Two were mentioned in Boston Globe sportswriter Dan Shaughnessy's piece today.

Carl Crawford had a chance to prolong last night's game but missed a sliding catch on the game-ending hit; he evaluated the play this way: “If I should have caught it, I could have caught it." 

Huh? 

Putting aside the fact that this may not in fact be English—it certainly isn't coherent thought—Crawford doesn't come close to taking responsibility. Not really my fault, is what he's essentially saying in a disturbingly bizarre way.

Adrian Gonzalez took the "higher" route to irresponsibility: "“God has a plan,’’ he said. “And it wasn’t God’s plan for us to be in the playoffs.’’ Shaughnessy's one- word reaction to this: "Wow." We can't say it any better.

The Globe also reported that 45-year-old pitcher Tim Wakefield, when asked if he would play again next year, said he wanted to come back to break the record for most wins in team history. He said nothing—not one word—about helping the team win.

Hmm. Three key players saying nothing about their roles and responsibilities as teammates . . . and then their team goes out and loses in an epic way. Coincidence? We think not.

Perhaps the most shocking lack of character was shown yesterday by the Mets' Jose Reyes, who asked out of a game in the very first inning so he had a better chance of winning the batting title. Reyes' act is indefensible; his level of arrogance and disrespect, to teammates and fans alike, tells you everything you need to know about him. (The Mets season was marked by rampant losing and organizational disarray.)

When your team includes players who are more focused on individual priorities, your team chemistry suffers. By definition, you're playing as less of a team. 

We won't suggest reasons for the "Me First" approach because there may be societal, economic and personal forces in play here. We will suggest, however, that when you put on a uniform (or join a company of any kind) you might want to think big picture first. Why? It's simple: If the team wins you win. How that could be considered anything but a positive outcome, for the group and for the individuals, escapes us. 

Our Positively Writing view is, always, that you get what you give. So we always strive to do the respectful thing, the selfless thing, and we persevere with positive expectations. Always. And when we witness events that are so unexpected, as we did in these baseball games last night, we feel more justified than ever in our approach.

Baseball as a life lesson? Why not? The universe once again is showing us that by giving we'll all be getting what we want—happiness. 

Simple and satisfying, isn't it?