ResProj Paper Ideas

"When most of us think of baseball, we head back to the fields of our youths, and the inexplicable joy we got form playing baseball. We learned about teamwork and sportsmanship. Baseball was just a game."              

- I could base it off of the opinions of the fans and I could ask “why do fans love the game of baseball and how are they affected by the occurrences that arise?” For my thesis to this question I could give reasons for why baseball fans go to games.What thrill arises from attending a baseball game. I could also give my opinion from a personal experience of being a baseball fan myself.

"A famous main example of people in it just for the money was the Black Sox Scandal, where eight players met up with a gambler who paid them all to throw the World Series. They gave up the biggest game of their lives for money, but not every coach or player has the same intentions.

- I could base it off of the opinions of the player and I could ask “what is more important to them the money or playing the game of baseball?" For the thesis I could give examples of each side; the players who are involved in the money, and examples of players who love the game. I could pick a side that I feel is right and then give my opinion.


After reading these quotes from my 2Syn paper what do you think about these topic ideas? Do you understand what I am getting at? Which one sounds best to use for the 3ResProj? Why?

Integrating Sources

Example 1

They were all banned from baseball for life, whether they have record of participating or not. Fred McMullin received $5,000 to participate in the scandal and grounded to the Reds second baseman to end the game, but as a witness he claims “He never participated in the scandal and he didn’t do anything wrong”(10). This confession is a clear indication of the lying and gambling taking place in baseball.

Example 2

In the book Moneyball by Michael Lewis more specifically chapter nine "The Trading Desk", Billy Bean, the general manager of the Oakland A's, uses innovative techniques of appraising talent and selecting baseball players based off of statistics. His team is one of the lowest payed teams in baseball and he admits "There are rich teams, and there are poor teams, then there's 50 feet of crap, and then there's us"(12). He focuses on a modernized, analytical, and saber metric approach to assembling a competitive baseball team, despite the team's disadvantaged revenue situation.

Work Cited

Everstine, Eric W. 1919 Black Sox Scandal. N.p., 1998. Web. 19 Sept. 2011.

  <http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/Departments/hpolscrv/blacksox.htm>

Lewis, Michael. Moneyball: the Art of Winning an Unfair Game. New York: W.W. Norton, 2003. Print.

Mayer, Frank. "Alleged Baseball Scandal." Mayer Brown and Platte Oct. (1988): 1-29. Print.

First paragraph of my 2Syn paper

In the end what is more important money or the game? When most of us think of baseball, we head back to the fields of our youths, and the inexplicable joy we got from playing baseball. We learned about teamwork and sportsmanship. Baseball was just a game. This philosophy gives the game a childlike sense of simplicity, and it’s the purest and most innocent of the philosophies. The only thing that matters is that enjoyment is derived from the experience, which happens because it is a game. Baseball is also a business, and because it is such a profitable business, it’s no surprise that there are people in it for just the money. Money plays a key role in baseball, which cause scandals and gambling to occur. One main example of people in it just for the money is the Black Sox Scandal, where eight players met up with a gambler who paid them all to throw the World Series. They gave up the biggest game of their lives for money. But not every coach or player has the same intentions. In the book “Moneyball” by Michael Lewis more specifically chapter nine “The Trading Desk”, Billy Bean, the general manager of the Oakland A's, uses innovative techniques of appraising talent and selecting baseball players based off of statistics. He focuses on a modernized, analytical, and saber metric approach to assembling a competitive baseball team, despite Oakland's disadvantaged revenue situation. The Oakland A’s have one of the lowest salaries in baseball but ended up creating an amazing team. He focuses mainly on the game and the true talent in baseball even with the remuneration disability. The Black Sox’s were associated with the idea of money over the game and the Oakland A’s were focused on the team and baseball talent to win the game and disregarded the importance of money.

After reading this first paragraph what do you think my paper is about?

What is a synthesis?

Some main key things in a synthesis are they need to correctly report the information from both documents, such as providing some kind of summary or analysis. It needs to be organized so the reader knows exactly where each topic is individually and when it overlaps. Finally it needs to have a main idea that compares the two documents and connects them in some way. When writing a synthesis paper your introduction should be brief. It should contain a one-sentence statement that sums up the focus of your synthesis, and a brief summary of both articles being synthesized. The first sentence can be a question that shows the comparison between the two documents. The body paragraph should be organized by theme, point, similarity, or aspect of the topic.  You should begin each paragraph with a sentence that informs the reader of the topic. Make sure you show some similarities and differences between the documents. When you write the conclusion make sure you remind the readers about the topics and sum up in different words what you already said previously in your paper.

            My synthesis paper will start with a question or an opening statement. The question I will start my paper with is “In the end what is more important; money or the game?” The main idea that I am connecting the two papers with is the importance of money in baseball. My introduction will contain that question and then have a brief summary of the new document and a few sentences summing up the old document so the reader understands what’s going on. My first body paragraph will first contain the idea of how the White Sox’s threw the series, how they gave up the game for money, and how important the idea of money was to them. My second body paragraph will contain how Beane the coach of the A’s doesn’t worry about money, how he makes his team off of statistics and true baseball talent, and how he builds this successful team with a limit budget. My final body paragraph will compare how this concept of money or the game has changed from the 1920’s to present day. I will end the paper with a conclusion wrapping everything up. 

Jamieson, Sandra. "Resources for Writers: Synthesis Writing." User Homepages @Drew University. 1999.    
            Web. 06 Oct. 2011. <http://users.drew.edu/~sjamieso/Synthesis.htm>.