Meche has a contract for $12 million on 2011. In baseball, as with basketball, whether you are injured, are suspended, if you underperform, or miss time for any reason you are guaranteed your salary - only in rare cases of non-sports related injuries or gross misconduct can the team get out of paying it. But Meche realized that he would get the salary though he will miss the entire season from injury. Meche said:
“When I signed my contract, my main goal was to earn it,” Meche said this week by phone from Lafayette, La. “Once I started to realize I wasn’t earning my money, I felt bad. I was making a crazy amount of money for not even pitching. Honestly, I didn’t feel like I deserved it. I didn’t want to have those feelings again.”
His actions are extremely rare and to be commended. It takes a big man to give away that much money out of a sense of honor and what is right.
Well-Met Mr. Meche.
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