MovieChat Forums > The Rookie (2002) Discussion > Something I didn't quite get......(spoil...

Something I didn't quite get......(spoilers)

posted 17 years ago by minnguy64
11 replies | jump to latest

In the movie, Jim Morris and his family were struggling to get by when he was in the minor leagues and that was a constant worry for him. He almost gave up because he needed the money and "there was a good job waiting for him" teaching in Dallas-Ft. Worth. That job presumably would start in late August/early September.

OK, here is my problem with all that. He had just finished the high school
baseball season so he was at the end of the school year on summer break. He was playing baseball in the minor leagues in June/July. He wouldn't have been teaching at that time anyways. If anything, I would think that his baseball earnings of 600.00 a month would be more than he was making while on vacation and they would welcome the extra income.

So why was he so worried about making ends meet and giving up baseball when if he were at home he wouldn't be making anything anyways?

Am I missing something???

[–] Nps6724 17 years ago

When he tells the Durham manager he is quitting, he mentions he's been in the minors for 3 months and he gets called up in September. I'm guessing he probably worked another job in the offseason and pretty much any job would pay better than $600 a month.

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Kiko13 16 years ago

Erik - minor league money is not better than a HS teacher. Do the math. $600/month is only $7200/year. Teachers don't get paid a lot, but it's definitely a lot higher than $7200/year. And based on the DVD bonus materials, Jim Morris was in fact making only $600/month playing minor league ball, they didn't make it a low number just to make it sound low.

Also, yes, someone with a true shot at the majors could get huge money, but Jim Morris didn't think he was even going to be called up that year and he was already 35 years old so that was far from a "true shot." If he didn't take the Fort Worth job he was out of a job after the minor league season was over. According to www.baseball-reference.com Jim Morris made $200,000 in 2000. Although that's far more than a teacher would make, it's not like he had a shot at millions given his age and ability so he had to decide whether he could actually make it or not.

[–] dichotomymom 16 years ago

Teachers still get paid through the summer (they are on a contract for a specified amount of time even if they get rift).

[–] JoJoB19 16 years ago

I don't know where you live, but I am a teacher and I don't get paid in the summer. My first paycheck is Sept 15th and my last is the last day of school in June. For the summer, you have to have been very good at budgeting your money or you take a second job. I tutored, bartended, and was a dealer in the casinos to make ends meet and I didn't have a family then. I have never heard of a district that pays in the summer.

A man with children would probably find it very hard to get by on only $600/month.

[–] milliga9 16 years ago

It really depends on where you teach...

In Michigan most districts allow teachers to choose how many paychecks their salary is divided into. You can get paid 21 times (sept - june), 26 times (year round) or even 21 times with a lump sum "summer" pay (the extra five pays you would have gotten with the 26 pay option)

Now this doesn't mean you make more money, it just means that you get less per paycheck, but don't have to worry about budgeting for the summer.

If a teacher doesn't get paid during the summer, even working a minimum wage job during the summer break would bring in more than $600 a month!

Just my two cents : )

[–] emncaity 16 years ago

In Texas, you can (or at least previously could) take your paycheck over 10 months or 12 months. And in the summer, many teachers who want to do so can find work teaching summer school. But mostly, what makes the situation posed by the OP not so implausible is that teachers have to be contracted for the following school year, and most are wrapped up by April or May. If he was waiting into the summer at all before signing a contract with a DFW school--and if the minor league season was going to run anywhere past about the second week in August--there indeed would be a conflict.

[–] thatgirlkate 16 years ago

I'm sure the school in DFW who recruited him was aware of the unique circumstances and if they wanted him badly enough, they could have been holding the job for him, but probably pressing him to make a decision. The high school came after him when his team had winning season, so it was probably a big "baseball" high school where baseball coaches make double what regular classroom teachers make. Also, being a coach, he may have been offerred a signing bonus, and may have negotiated a way to get that asap. If he took the job, he would need to be ready to work in early August and I'm guessing minor league could overlap it.

[–] wgarlock 15 years ago

Salaries for contracted 10 month employees (secretaries and teachers) in our district are divided by 26, the number of pays for the year (bi-weekly), which means they can get a paycheck every two weeks through out the year. These 10 month employees have the option of receiving a "lump sum" paycheck the first pay of the fiscal year - some people opt for that, while others do not.

Teachers don't get paid enough, regardless of where they live, for what they do.

[–] SataiDelen 8 years ago

Teachers don't get paid enough? Depends on where you live. An article came out several years ago in a local paper about an old driver's ed teacher at my old high school. The only subject he taught throughout his career was driver's ed (while many other teachers taught at least two subjects) and he made $115,000 per year. That's more than most corporate employees. So I don't believe the BS about teachers not making enough money. Yes, some of them most definitely do.

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[–] jejozi 15 years ago

Not all teachers get paid through the summer. Some systems pay 12 months, some just during the school year. You may still get $45,000.00, just in different ways. My wife worked at a private school in Minnesota and the teachers had the choice.

This will be the high point of my day; it's all downhill from here.