From Poor Heroes to Rich Bums In most professional sports today, players earn millions of dollars Fans swing from adoring to angry and back again. Americans' love affair with sports has turned into a love-hate relationship. In the past athletes didn't earn very much money, but we idolized them. Today, athletes get high salaries, but often we're not happy with how they play Who has changed, the athletes or the fans? The answer is both. Dollar signs and shifting expectations lie at the root of these changes. The Money Game In 1976, the average salary for a professional baseball player was $51.500. That average zoomed to more than $2.9 million in 2006! Professional athletes are earning more money than ever before. Docs hat mean that professional sports are better? Fans say, No way. Many sports fans say that team owners and players are ruining the simple pleasure of sports, owners run teams as businesses. They look only at the bottom line as they buy and scl players and make deals with TV networks. Players are accused of having no loyalty They grasp the biggest offer as soon as they become free agents, which are means they not bound to a team by contract. when it comes to inferior performances, some fans blame new contracts. In thc past, mosu players' contracts ran for one year. If a player wanted to be sure that his contract would be renewed, he hustled all season to prove his worth. Today, though, contracts fix salaries for years at a time. Why should a player go all out game after game if he is assured of big money for years? Great Expectations Do fans expect too much of players? Some say If they're raking in all that cash, they should be working harder and winning more games. Think Unfortunately, in most sports there has to be both a winner and a loscr What are some facts about salaries in professional sports?