2008 Woodie Awards
Former Sox GM Talks Money
Sheila Halloran
Issue date: 4/10/03 Section: Lead Stories
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Duquette, who has been in the baseball profession for over 20 years and served as General Manager of the Boston Red Sox for eight years, is widely recognized for his ability to lead competitive sports organizations and has been twice honored as Executive of the Year.
The lecture, hosted by the Assumption College Graduate School, was organized by Adrian O. Dumas, Director of Graduate Enrollment Management and Services; Cheryl Amantea, Assistant Professor of Business; Trustee Michael P. Tsotsis; Thomas E. Ryan, Vice President for Institutional Advancement.
Anthony Froio, Duquette's Attorney at Law and a partner in the Boston office of the national law firm Robins, Miller, Kaplan, and Ciresi, also helped organize the lecture. Froio introduced Duquette at the event. Duquette credited athletes' large salaries to multiple aspects: high levels of athletic ability, fans driving revenue, and the economics of supply and demand.
According to Duquette, the athletes who are paid the highest salaries are truly gifted athletes. To start, their skill levels are significantly above the general population and once they go through training, their skill levels increase even more.
"Salaries increase with skill and fewer people have such skill," said Duquette. "Skill has entertainment value, which draws the large crowds."
Duquette also credited the high salaries to the incredible fan base that sports teams have.
"There has always been that long-standing love affair between fans and the market," he said. "As a layman, it is hard to justify it, but as a general manager overseeing an enterprise, I can see how the fan base can drive up revenues."
As for supply and demand, Duquette explained that since fewer people possess such unique, unparalleled athletic ability, they are in strong demand. Professor Cheryl Amantea, who is also an off-field sports agent for major and minor league baseball players, agreed with Duquette's justifications for the high salaries.
"Athletes with high levels of prowess are in short supply and thus garner higher salaries," she said. "Plus, they drive revenue. A great athlete causes people to buy tickets to the games and companies to buy stadium ads."