Is it more important to WIN or HOW YOU PLAY THE GAME?

Question

If the answer is win at any cost, than why do so many fans have a problem with the use of steroids, you can't have it both ways.

Byron P. Which is more important?

Hockey God. If everything is about winning and not how you play the game, than steroids can be part of the game plan, is this what you are saying?

Ghouly05. Would you rather see your team win it all using steroids or lose without them?

Gene H. You have captured the essence of my question, good job.

Excellent points Brettj

Answer 1

1.) How you play the game -- Look at all the talk about cheating. People talk about 'bush league play' and a player's private life, hating the "bad" and admiring the "good".
2.) Winning -- The same people turn right around and trash the "good" if they don't win, even once. But when all is said and done, people like Ernie Banks, Kirby Puckett, and others who played well and admirably retain the admiration.
3.) Politics -- Besides all the gossip mongers (what did A-Rod's wife's T-shirt say?) and the writers, a player, most unfortunately, has to dance pleasingly for the writers, perhaps the most effeminate and gossipy of the groups deciding anything about the game. This is a hard reality. A lot of what we the fans get as to a player's personality and life is filtered through these self-centered self-appointed baseball priests.

Answer 2

Why can't it be about both? Some players play the game with dignity and win and others cheat and lose. I think it's more important to play the game the right way. If you carry that kind of mentality to win at all cost, you are playing the game for the wrong reason. As kids we all started and stuck with our sport of choice (mine's baseball) because of the love of the game and how we felt when we played it. Winning comes with the sport just as well as losing. I don't care how good you are or how much you cheat, you are going to suffer a lose along the way. Excellent question though. I also feel by setting the example to play the game the right way and you are a team leader, then that will influence your teammates to play the game the right way.Wish I had more time to go into more details on my opinion, but I have to go out of town. Love the question(s) Frizzer and keep them coming

Answer 3

I will definitely side on the "it's how you play the game"
Here are my reasons.

I have both Pros for how you play the game and cons for winning which will demonstrate my thinking.

Cons against "winning"
First of all, for baseball, typically if you don't win the World Series, you don't say, "well, we won the NL pennant", so that sets up the expectation if you are not first, you are a loser.
So, in baseball, the losers out number the winners 29:1.

With that in mind, if you feel that you "need" to support a winner, simply redefine what winning is for your personal beliefs.

I will take my hometown team (the Toronto Blue Jays).
Again, they aren't winning the World Series this year, so are they losers?

Well, why do I like baseball? Did I start to follow baseball and enjoy it so the Blue Jays could win? No, I follow it to be entertained.

So, I win, if they are entertaining, something all teams could be winners at.
Two, if I (and others as a group) were to exert pressure on the Blue Jays to win, they may think the solution for this is signing a lot of high end players. This may sound like a good idea, but the ripple effect is not.
They take on that much more payroll,
their ticket prices go up,
the money they charge advertisers go up,
the money they charge for TV/Radio rights go up,
the money those stations charge to their clients goes up
the clients then raise the price of their product for the cost of the additional advertising goes up.
what I buy, that supports MLB now costs more.

So, for the Blue Jays to sign more players means my Pizza goes from $12 to $14. Ahh, no thank you.

Last point: kids.
I have a child. Losing and winning are both experiences that will help her grow. If winning at all costs related to something like school, then if winning was all-important, why don't we encourage our children to cheat on tests?
Why aren't we doing their projects for them so they can get that A.

Because life isn't like that. Or at least it shouldn't be.

Pros about playing the right way.
If people learn to play the right way, study the right way, success, in varying degrees will come their way.
That path to success is more important than the success itself.

One success doesn't lead to another, but the learning how to succeed certainly does.

Win or lose, as long as I am entertained, it's ok.

If you have to cheat to win, then you should stand up and say, "winning this is so important to me, I am going to bend the rules to my liking in order to win" and say it proud.

Answer 4

Everything is about winning


EDIT: This doesn't mean steroids are ok, you still play by the rules. But when it comes down to it, winning is what seperates the men from the boys. Little boys like to run around don't care; real men like and need to win. It's all about competition and getting that W.

"We best be talkin' bout that W we just put up on Lambeau Field"

Answer 5

If you are a professional, winning is the most important, although lots of fans do care about how you play the game.

If you are an amateur or just playing around with your friends, I think how you play is more important than if you are a professional, but I think you should still be playing to win. After all, the purpose of most athletic endeavors, professional, amateur, or otherwise, is still to see who or which team is the best.

Answer 6

It's how you play the game! Usually, if you focus on that, winning will take care of itself. Play hard, even if your losing 10-0, or winning 10-0.

Answer 7

There is so many great players how have not been defined by winning the ultimate. Like Dan Marino probably the greatest QB of our time but he never won a Superbowl. If you ask him, he'd probably tell you that how you play your game is more important.
I say it's winning.

Answer 8

You should always play by the rules so it can be fair competition, If you have to cheat then you are admitting to being inferior to the other players, but it is also important to win or we wouldn't keep score.

Answer 9

Neither is as important as, "You need to look good doing it."

How you play is the least important factor.

In order:
1) Look good doing it
2) Win at any cost - cheat, steal, lie, whatever it takes
3) There is no number 3.