Major League Baseball

Stanton gives good answer to 'embarrassing' question about his wealth

Published Nov. 20, 2014 12:50 a.m. ET

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Giancarlo Stanton signed the richest contract by an American athlete in history on Wednesday, $325 million for 13 years. Maybe because it was with the Miami Marlins and not the New York Yankees, people got a little nutty about it.

At least one reporter at the press conference did, asking Stanton if the fact that he'll be making about $69,000 a day for the next 13 years is "embarrassing" to him.

Stanton did a double take.

"Embarrassing to me? Uh, nah, not exactly," he said. "I know I have a lot of expectations to live up to, which I need to do and am willing to do.

"See, now this isn't like a lottery ticket and 'peace out,' all right now? People are thinking it like that. Now, you win the lottery, you quit your job and you go live wherever you want to live and you call it a day. Now, this is the start of new work and a new job, for this city. It's a huge responsibility, and one I'm willing to take."

What in the world is Stanton supposed to be embarrassed about —€” "was he supposed to rip baseball? capitalism?" CBS' Jon Heyman wrote.

Embarrassed? Maybe if Stanton stole the money from the Marlins. But he didn't. Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria gave it to him.

Why didn't the guy ask Loria if he's embarrassed to own a team worth $520 million? That's more than Stanton's making.

"The game is rich. The owners —€” this one, in particular —€” are rich," Yahoo's Tim Brown wrote. "And the man asked Giancarlo Stanton, someone who actually hits the home runs and catches the gappers, if this weren't all so embarrassing. To, you know, Giancarlo Stanton. Personally."

"Embarrassing? Really?" Brown added. "Bless Stanton, he's willing to believe. He's willing to pick up the pieces of a disaster that wasn't of his own making, and glue them all back together, and stand out in front of whatever comes of it. Not for free, of course. For a good living. At the end of the day, however, it's just money."

And it could be even more money when it's all said and done. Stanton has an opt-out clause that gives him leverage for an even bigger deal.

"Everyone wants to talk about the record-breaking deal. I want to have records on the field and do things on the field," Stanton said Wednesday. "That's what this is about."

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