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Andre Thornton chat by: Bullz-Eye.com Bull Session	Pg 1 of 2

Recently, Bullz-Eye.com had the opportunity to talk with former Cleveland Indians outfielder Andre Thornton during the Bull Session, our weekly sports talk radio show on AM 1220 WKNR in Cleveland. Below is a transcript from that interview: Bullz-Eye: How do you feel when you see all the money that's currently being thrown around baseball? And, while obviously nobody's worth $252 million, in baseball terms, is Alex Rodriguez the player you'd give that kind of money to? Andre Thornton: Evidently [Texas owner] Mr. Hicks thought so. But Alex certainly is one of the top players, if not the top player, right now in the game of baseball, and he's that marquee player. He's a five-tool player, as they say, and he can do it all. He's fun to watch and he's been consistent over the years he's been playing and he's got a lot more years to go. So I really think he's the kind of player, if they're going to give that kind of money away, who deserves it. At his age right now, I think he has 10 more years. B-E: In general, that kind of money has to be staggering to you as someone who retired after the 1987 season. Thornton: When I look at what's happening, you also need to look at our society. The prices of everything have gone up quite a bit. And you also have to remember these are 600 or 700 of the best players in the entire world, and if you take the top 700 of any profession…. Take the top 700 CEOs in the country and look at what they're making, or the top 700 actors in the world and see what they're making. When you're talking about the top of their profession, they're always going to be so separated from everybody else that it's going to be hard for us to identify with them. B-E: Do you think today's game is not as fan-friendly as when you played? Thornton: That's hard to say. I think every era goes through that same debate. If you study the history of the game, a lot of the things we're seeing today happened even back many, many years ago. It's quite interesting to see the correlation. But I think every era is going to always have those controversial questions and debates about what's happening. But the only way you can really tell is, are people still coming out to see the games? Is it still exciting? It's still a very nice price for a family to go out and see a ballgame…especially this year with [the Indians'] 100-year celebration. It's going to be a fun year and I'm looking forward to it. B-E: Maybe sometimes the negatives in baseball stand out more so today because the media is so much more involved today. It's like they know what you ate for breakfast this morning, when in the past the media stayed out of players' personal lives. Do you agree? Thornton: We've been very fortunate [in Cleveland]. Our organization has been a great organization in many ways, especially when you look at the type of talent that's come through here. Certainly, the players have, I think, handled themselves very well over the years, and even now when you look at our ball club, there are some quality individuals. B-E: As a former Indian, how exciting is it to see the new ballpark and to see the team doing so well? Thornton: It's very exciting. It's something we always dreamed that would happen. It didn't happen during our time of playing, but when I watch the games now, I enjoy them. I like the atmosphere, I like to see the ballpark filled up, and most of all I like to see what's happening to our city. Cleveland has just blossomed in so many ways and it's good to see that, considering when I came here in 1977 things were not as good as they are today. And I think all of us who have become Clevelanders, whether being born here or implants, we really like what's happening.

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