If that's how Baertschi actually feels, then what's sad is that the lower number actually signified the team recognized him as a regular on the team. Only the call ups got the high numbers. If a number is enough to throw him off his game, then man that's some weak mental fortitude.
I do agree though that Burke's rule with low numbers is kind of silly. It's just a number. Let the players take whichever one they want, it shouldn't affect team performance. I know the reasoning by Burke is probably to symbolize everyone is on the same level, and no one is "above" the team with high numbers, but still think that reasoning is kind of dumb.
|