The "World" Series

“I say, why do we have Japanese interpreters and we don’t have a Spanish one. I always say that. Why do they have that privilege and we don’t? Don’t take this wrong, but they take advantage of us. We bring a Japanese player and they are very good and they bring all these privileges to them. We bring a Dominican kid … go to the minor leagues, good luck. Good luck. And it’s always going to be like that. It’s never going to change. But that’s the way it is.”

.. (on PEDs)"It's somebody behind the scene making money out of those kids and telling them to take something they're not supposed to. If you tell me, you take this ... you're going to be Vladimir Guerrero, you're going to be Miguel Cabrera, you're going to be this guy ... I'll do it. Because I have seven brothers that sleep in the same room. I have to take care of my mother, my dad. ... Out of this I'm going to make money to make them better. I'm the only one to teach the Latinos about not to use. I'm the only one and Major League Baseball doesn't (care). All they care about - how many times I argue with the umpires, what I say to the media. But I'm the only one in baseball to come up to the Latino kids and say not to use this and I don't get any credit for that."

Ozzie Guillen is known to be a highly entertaining crazy person. You could fill a book with all of the quotes he has spewed throughout the his career. He is a volatile manager, who while being crazy, usually brings up good discussion. Because of his lack of a filter though, his rants are littered with profanity and sometimes the point is missed. His rant this time approaches some new, undiscussed topics and interesting scenarios.

It is not surprising that Japanese players are treated better by teams than the Latin players. The Japanese are already proven professionals by the time they sign with an American team, and normally sign for large contracts. The emphasis on the amount of money they are receiving means teams will ensure that investment is taken care of as to bring back plenty of return. Wouldn't you take better care of a Rolls Royce than a Hyundai, until that Hyundai develops into a Rolls?

Latin players on the other hand are usually signed as unproven, raw talent at a young age. It is a vicious cycle for the Dominican Winter Baseball League and Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. Until they gain the legitimacy of the US and Japanese professional leagues, players will continue to jump ship, literally if they're coming from Cuba, and play in the MLB. They will never gain the legitimacy unless players stay.

The lure of the American dollar is what attracts most Latin players to the MLB. The countries they are leaving aren't the most wealthy, and their talents can provide their families a much better life than others. Without proper education as to why enhancing is wrong, Guillen is certainly correct as to why players enhance. The more home runs you hit, the more money you make. If enhancing will make you more money, wouldn't you? These players did not grow up in America, why should they care about the "sacred" record book of MLB?

The reason Japanese players have never been speculated to have enhanced is not just education, it is their culture. Bringing shame to a family is not something people want to be doing in most Asian cultures. Being caught enhancing would certainly bring shame to a player, and his family, so I don't think Japanese players would risk that. Latin players on the other hand won't experience that much shame, as their families would be grateful their player did everything possible to bring them out of poverty.

Speaking of shame, it is shameful that MLB does not provide translators to Latin players. If they aren't even offering, they should start. I would think many players would accept a translator, if only just for press conferences or interviews so that they could sound more intelligent and understand the questions better. The schools MLB provides in Latin America teach players English, but many players are still difficult to understand and some in the league never learned.

My solution for this is to have MLB fund the Latin leagues. Bring those leagues to the level of MLB and Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. I think then it would be cool to have a "real" World Series. It would be a dream to see the New York Yankees play the Yomiuri Giants for the title of champion of the world.

Unfortunately, that's all it will be, a dream. It is in MLB's best interest, financially, to keep those Latin leagues from thriving. The best talent in the world needs to come to the best league in the world. That is why the Japanese players come - for the challenge. To create similar leagues, with money to pay players similar to what they're making here, would diminish the MLB.

So Ozzie seems correct in his statements this time. The MLB should do something to have players treated more fairly. Bring in Spanish translators, educate Latinos more on why not to enhance. Pretty simple and inexpensive solutions. Until Bud Selig resigns though, simple solutions are never the way. Maybe now that a Latin voice has spoke out, something will be done. Just maybe.