captioning performed by vitac a couple of questions, wondering if fans were represented during negotiations either in internal union meetings or collective bargaining. one person said it cost the average american of four $300 or more to go to a baseball game. is this a direct result of the players huge salaries? >> there's a few questions smuggled in there. we didn't have any fans on the negotiating committee calls, unless you count the players themselves fans.

the players, all of the players that are sitting up here as well as b.j. were negotiating committee members themselves when they were active. players are constantly thinking about the fans and public acceptance of the game. that shows itself in our negotiation over things like the schedule, over things like the postseason, over the drug testing program, throughout our negotiations. in terms of potential link between particular prices and player salaries, i know there are a couple of very distinguished economists in the room here today but ticket prices are set based on supply and demand for that product. the owners set their prices as high as they can based on the demand for those tickets. they really don't have anything to do with how much money players get paid. >> do you know the players union would ever agree to get rid of the designated hitter and restore the game to the way it

was meant to be played. >> i don't know if there are names on that one, that could have come from my wife, who is a national league fan who has been known to walk around the house saying "dump the dh." neither the owners or players came looking to change the designated hitter. even though we changed the alignment of the leagues and postseason play. i don't think anyone would design an industry where, you know, one set -- one league had one set of rules and the other has another but i think that compromise, if will you, is here to stay for a long time. >> safety in sports has become a big issue at both the professional and amateur levels. what is the mlb-pa doing to address this issue in baseball? >> health and safety was as much a part of our negotiations as it's ever been. in addition to what we did in the -- in our joint drug program and to address substance abuse

and substance use by players, we negotiated over safer battle helmet, we negotiated recently new protocols for treating, diagnosing concussions and for return to play. we negotiated over safer bats. there was a tremendous amount of negotiation over health and safety this time, bargaining. i think that's a reflection that i said before. what bargaining can do when you stop trying to knock the stuffing out of one another, it allows people to really put their heads together and try to solve problems in a way you can't do when it's a death match. >> why can players only be required to take a blood test for human growth hormone for reasonable cause? if they don't have anything to hide, why not conduct random tests like any other sport? >> again, there's a few questions smuggled in there. i'll work from the back. i think the drug testing and blood testing that we agreed to stands up with that in any other sport, including the olympic

sports. in terms of what we agreed to as well, it's not only that players can be tested for reasonable cause, that's true. all players were tested for blood during spring training of 2012. i dare to say that we had more blood collections in spring training of 2012 than any sport has had in any single year alone, just with our spring training testing. we also have, though, random testing for all players starting this off season. every player in baseball is subject to testing for blood once the season is over. >> what is the difference between not smoking on the ball field and not using smokeless tobacco? in other words, why should players be allowed to chew tobacco in front of the cameras and the kids? >> there's a few differences. one is you can't play baseball while you're smoking and there are secondary -- interferes with work and there are secondary health risks associated with

smoking. the position of the union on smokeless tobacco, though, is pretty clear. we have long advised our players of the serious health risks of the product, we have long provided resources for our players to try to cease using. the discussion that we had in bargaining this time showed that the players understand that they can have an impact on the use of this product by younger people and through education and through other efforts we're going to do our best to try to be role models there. >> how can small market teams like the pirates ever hope to win without a salary cap? >> if i wanted to give a wise answer i could say the same way that small market teams like the twins and the marlins and the rockies and others have. major league baseball has shown that we can have extraordinary competitive balance without a salary cap.

competitive balance in the game since the collective bargaining agreement reached in 1996 really has been unprecedented. through revenue sharing, through our reserve system, which alos clubs to hold on to reserve rights for players for the first six years of their career and through other measures, including the competitive balance tax, we think and i think as well, the representatives of the owners think that we're at a place where each team has a fair opportunity to win the world series. >> how can you encourage small market teams to spend revenue sharing money on payroll instead of pocketing it? >> that's a subject that we focused as much on in bargaining over the last 20 years as almost any other. we do it through a few different ways. we have an enforcement mechanism in our contract. clubs are required to spend revenue sharing proceeds to put

a more competitive team on the field. if they don't, there's an ash trag process we can go through. we've used that effectively to in the past monitor that position. we've beefed that up in this last round of bargaining. we try to create incentives in our revenue sharing program so each team has the maximum incentive to put a competitive team on the field. some of the most creative bargaining we've done -- i see chuck o'connor, who was involved in the initial bargaining over our revenue sharing agreement, some of the most creative bargaining we've done is in revenue sharing, in fashioning a system where everybody team has incentive to win. >> the head table has a role in leadership what role do they play others don't?

>> there's a lot of people in this country who think they know a lot about baseball and then there's guys that play the game. guys that play the game know what it means to play the game. they know what it means on the field, they know the stresses that being a professional baseball player bring, they know the joy being a professional baseball player brings. it's always been our view that to effectively represent baseball players, you have to have the input of those players. we get the input of current players all the time but it's incredibly useful, it's essential really, to have the deep group of former players that we have on staff. we have people, without giving away ages, we have people on our staff, even on this stage, whose playing careers span virtually the entire history of the players' association. and part of our success is having that resource to tap any time that i need to send an e-mail or make a phone call.

>> with 20/20 hindsight, how do you think the trusting in the mlb should have been handled? >> i don't have 20/20 hindsight. done fehr said it would be have have been better if everybody associated with the game lived a little more quickly. without getting into too much history, the bargaining history of baseball suggests it would have been very difficult -- the bargaining history of baseball explains we got to random drug testing about as quickly as we could. like with everything else in baseball, there was a very contentious drug testing history. in the mid 80s, we had a joint drug program and the owners terminated it. drugs that were involved were cocaine and drugs of abuse. who know what is the world have been like if we had a joint drug program continuously operating

up through the 80s. we had very contentious legal fights about drug testing. the owners did a make a proposal in 1994 but i think it's fair it was not seriously pushed by the owners at that point. i'm the same place as don. in retrospect, you can understand what they did. >> from a players association perspective, is there any concern about how young baseball players are being treated and developed in high schools and college that you care to address? >> well, sure. we want the best athletes play baseball and we want all young people who are playing the game and are playing athletics to do so safely. we are very much involved, the union is, and this is another area of great cooperation with

management in trying to provide resources, equipment, for more players to play the gym, particularly in urban areas in this country and other places around the world where resources don't exist through the baseball tomorrow fund, something jointly trusteed by management and union officials. we've provided millions of dollars to try to get more players on the field and give more kids a chance to play baseball and soft ball. >> with so many kid playing soccer, what are you doing them to encourage them to play baseball instead? [ laughter ] >> sitting over here i have the head the soccer players union, general counsel, one of my dearest friends who would be very upset with me if he thought i was discouraging people from playing soccer. there's a lot of people in this country and a lot of people in

this world and a lot of great games. i don't think we need to discourage any young kid to play any sports. there's more girls playing soft ball than ever before. as long as everybody's active, there's plenty to go around. >> what will be the impact of the tv deal for the nats being renegotiated now since orioles leader peter has the deal in his back yard -- >> chuck, you want to take this one? local tv revenue is a crucial part of our game and a crucial part of our industry. the local broadcasting rights go through the roof. that only makes sense. baseball is 162 new reality shows a year. very cheap to produce,

tremendous content, part of what -- and baseball fits the new media very, very carefully -- very, very closely. i'm not going to try to predict how the negotiation involvingle nationals, the orioles are going to play out. it lab very important negotiation for both franchises. >> players have benefited financially from the rise in regional sports networks and payments to the teams. do you see a potential bubble here bursting eventually? >> as i said in the last question, i'm not a media consultant. i understand that all ratings for national event, not just athletics, are facing a challenge. when it comes to baseball locally, the power of gable baseball as programming in local markets is extremely high. it's a tremendous amount of

content, whether it's for satellite television, internet and the other way baseball is transmitted. i give people in central baseball credit for recognizing different technology and founding different ways to bring the game to people in their local markets and for people who want the follow a game, even though they may live here in washington -- >> this may be the hardest question asked. it requires me to know what a smartphone app is. i'm not the most technologically savvy person. as a kid who grew up collecting baseball cards and swapping

baseball card as late as college, including some people in this room, i think can you marry the technology with the joy of card collecting. and i think our licensees are joint licensees with major league baseball in this area in order for card to continue to be vital are going to have to figure out a way to use new technology in that area. >> will mlb-pa ever endorse cards beside tops? >> we have long had agreements with other card companies. tops has not been nor now is the eggs exclusive baseball card licensee of the baseball card esocials. while tops has been making card for the longest period of time, we've had licenses with other companies and we still do. >> what is the union's position on hall of fame induction for

players who use steroids? >> i can't speak necessarily for the union on that one. when you ask the union's position, i'd have to talk with the current members of the union. but i'll give you my position, i'm not afraid to do that. the hall of fame is for the best baseball players that have ever played. pete rose belongs in the hall of fame, he has more hits than anybody else. he belongs in the hall of fame. the best baseball players should be in the hall of fame. it's a museum. if you want to have some notation on their plaque that indicates that they were either adjudged to have used performance-enhancing drugs or accused to have been, so be it. there are people in the hall of fame who have been adjudged to be involved in collusion to --

they belong in the hall of fame as well. they should all be in. >> do you think that the drug scandal has jaded young fans and made them more suspicious of players' achievements? >> maybe but i think young fans or young people are just more jaded than they used to be period. and maybe that's a good thing. athletes and celebrities are covered in a way now that they weren't covered certainly when i was a kid. and it would be impossible i think, whoever your hero is, to see them as the larger-than-life figure that we might have seen when we were kid. i'll tell you this, baseball is as popular as it's ever been. that's shown by attendance. that's shown by ratings, that's shown by the people following the game. it's extremely popular among today's youth. even if they're jaded, should

the union have a role in selecting bud selig's successor? >> absolutely not. one of the i think positive things that i've seen in baseball since 1988 is a recognition by everybody that the commissioner of baseball is the top representative of the owners. there was a time when the commissioner was viewed as being a representative of the fans, a representative of the game or the institution and i'm not saying that bud selig and people in the commissioner's office don't think about the game and institution and fans just like players do but as i said in my main remark, directing is an add ser -- adversarial process.

we'll wait with interest in 20, 30 years ago when bud actually steps down but weep should have no role in finding his successor. >> should financially strapped cities be subsidizing stadiums for millionaire owners. >> i have to decide whether to answer that one as the head of the baseball players association or as a citizen in the th country. i'll answer as the head of the baseball players association. anybody in any industry wants to get as much support from the municipal authorities as they can. i think it's a subject of some -- it can be the subject of some economic debate in particular city, whether subsidizing sports arena or entertainment facilities as the best use of public funds but in many places, baltimore being one for sure, it was critically important to reviving the city there. baseball is an important institution. we welcome thes is stance of any

municipality wlg to provide it. >> what impact with the sale of the dodgers have on lawsuit considering these are two of the largest markets? >> a large impact. the dodgers and mets are flagship franchises for the sport. and whether you're a mets fan or a dodgers fan or not, you want to see those kind of franchises thrive. the dodgers' sale and moving to -- and having the group that's involved there, a group that not only has the finance wherewithal but clearly has the excitement for the game and acceptance in that community is great for dodger fans and great for everybody in baseball. i'm not just saying that th because my wife is a mets fan but it's great for everybody that the mets and wilpon can

focus on having the best team. >> there's been a lot of talk about paying ncaa athlete. do you think student athletes should be paid or unionized? >> that's a little bit different for baseball players than it is for -- those questions usually come up with respect to football and basketball players. baseball players in college really a little bit different because when a baseball player goes to college, he must remain -- he can't come out and play professionally for three years. baseball players i think are much closer to the model of a scholar athlete that many people would like to see. baseball players don't jent rate the kind of revenue in college that football and basketball players do. i think there are reforms that can be made in college baseball that could own benefit the owners.

along with the commissioner's office, we're working to try to make it more of a reality. i think there is a serious debate that can be had with respect to football and basketball players given the revenues produced. i don't think those concerns apply to college baseball players. >> what do you advise players in terms of their use of social media such as twitter? >> i do know what twitter is. >> we advise players on the one hand -- part of why baseball is as popular as it is is that fans have a personal connection with baseball players that may be different than their connection with any other athletes. they live with baseball players on their favorite teams everysongle day from the beginning of spring training until that team season is eefr. social media allows fans to

connect with those players in a very intimate way. nationals fans think every single guy on the nationals 25-man roster is a celebrity. doesn't have to be ryan zimmermann or stephen strasburg. it's great for you to use social media if you're comfortable doing it to establish those connections. on the other hand, you got to think before you do it. i'm not saying we hadn't had any difficulties, but our players have used that media responsibly. >> what advice can you give young players who hope to become professional baseball players? >> learn to low left-handed. [ laughter ] >> another possibility and b.j. can help me out on this one is learn to catch and hit left-handed. those are two things that can

keep new the game for a long time. i think that i go back to day when kid played sport because it was fun to play sport, not necessarily thinking when you were 8 years old that you were going to get a college scholarship or that you were going to get a chance to play professionally. what i would advise any kid is to play sports, be active, play as many sports as you enjoy rather than just focusing on one particular game and playing that year round. if you have the talent and the competitive drive to use your athletic skills to get an education, that's great, do that. if you happen to be one of the minute percentage to make a living professionally, can you try it. you can't be thinking about that when you're a young kid. >> i throw left-handed. so i was wondering when will baseball have its first woman player, umpire or general

manager? >> general manager could happen really at any point in time. there are several baseball executives right now working for clubs, working for the commissioner's office who are eminently qualified to be general manager. that's just a matter of time and opportunity. that's there. umpires i know less about the possibilities of a woman becoming an umpire at the major league level. i generally consider -- i don't mean to stereotype but women generally as being smarter than men so why thaid actuey'd actua to be an umpire is another question. its very, very difficult and thankless job. but we're ready for a female general manager and there are a number great candidates out there right now. >> will there ever be a true world series? which a top mlb team play as top

foreign team? >> i'm not sure we'll get to where a north american champion play as team in japan. we thought about that. there's a lot of challenges there. but the world baseball classic, the tournament i described, really gets to that. the world baseball classic has the best players in the world, many playing in major league baseball but the cuban national team, japanese, korean players that play professionally there competing against one another in a very high level competition. the wbc is already a great tournament. this is the first time we're going to play it in 2012 and '13 with qualifying ruinounds. i think it has the potential to be that kind of true world series fans have looking for. >> will mlb ever utilize instant replay to assist umpires? >> as many of you know, we

already do use instant replay to some extent on what we call boundary calls for home run, if a ball is over a fence or if it's been interfered with by a fan or if it's fair or foul in a home run. in you're collective bargaining with the owners, we did expand it to all fair and foul calls and what are called trap place, whether a player caught the ball or it hit the ground. that was subject to further bargaining. it hasn't been concluded. instant replay is a subject that the owners have an obligation to bargain. when that gets concluded, you may see -- >> do disable consider themselves part of the 1% or part of the 99%? >> if given that choice, most

babe players would say the 99%. there's a lot of challenges to this job. the best part about this job is working for the players. the reason for that is that the players recognize just how fortunate they are too get to make a living and to make an unbelievable living playing the game of baseball. they're incredibly humble guys, they are regular guys. they don't take for granted at all what they have. they give back to the community. part of this is what makes them such great union members but i think while the economics of many of them would place them in the 1%, their outlook toward life is such these are regular guys. >> who do you think were the best baseball players of all time and why? >> steve rogers, bobby bonilla,

b.j. surhoff. >> i'm not going to name any names. everybody could say the best baseball players were those that were playing when they were 8 or 9 years old. i can say with confidence the best players playing the game are right now the quality of the training, the skill, the fitness have gotten to the point where -- and the fact that we're more inclusive than we've ever been, if you go back to the history of the game before african-american player were playing, before international players were playing. i'm not going to name any names. the quality of the game today is as high as it's ever been. >> if you were trapped on a desert island, which two mlb owners would you most prefer to be with? [ laughter ] . >> let me think.