Krause: We have to let our sports personalities make their own decisions

It?s time for some sports fans to stop living in this fantasy world that says that all athletes — all celebrities, even — must always take their sensibilities into account before making career moves.We need to face some important realities. One of them is their world is not our world. And the other reality is that a job is a job, even if it involves a high visibility index.Sunday, David Ortiz was on Channel 4, and broadcaster Steve Burton asked him about his contract. Well, unless you?re a complete dullard, you know asking David Ortiz about his contract is like waving a red flag in front of a bull. He?s going to answer, and to his credit, he answered honestly. For that he?s being treated as if he dumped a toxic carcinogen into the water.Fans — and the media people who get them all stoked up — need to calm down and face a few realities. Ortiz carried the Red Sox in the post-season. He hit .688 and tore up some of the best pitching the game had to offer. If he?d been forced to walk across the Charles River last October, I wouldn?t have bet against him.Now he wants some love from the Red Sox, and in Ortiz?s world, love means money. David Ortiz is a professional athlete, and today, professional athletes play for whatever the market will pay for their talents.A guy who hits .688 in the World Series would not appear to be washed up at the age of 38, so if the Red Sox don?t want to pay him, he owes it to himself to see if there?s someone who will. The Sox have their responsibilities to manage their money wisely, but it?s Ortiz?s career. This shouldn?t be difficult to understand.Would extending Ortiz be a gamble? Sure. He could drop off the planet this summer. But he could also do exactly what he did last year. So not extending him could be a gamble too.Ortiz didn?t threaten to violate his contract … didn?t say a word about holding out. It?s doubtful he wants Jacoby Ellsbury/Robinson Cano money or contract length, but merely something that?ll keep him here for whatever career he has left.The Red Sox, I?m sure, would be very happy to keep this on the back burner as long as possible. Ortiz is not obligated to do the same, and he?d be crazy if he did.We are equally naïve about Jerry Remy. I could understand (and I joined in) the outrage that allowed Ray Lewis to just, you know, get on with his life after pleading guilty to obstructing justice in a double homicide. The vitriol some people have directed toward Remy I do not understand.In fact, the whole spectrum of judgment against Remy seems mean-spirited, flawed, and close to piling on.The pain in Remy?s eyes as he discussed the Jennifer Martel murder the other day was plainly evident. It?s easy to see that he?s still devastated, and that he really wrestled with returning to the booth.He deserves to find out for himself whether he can.Remy is not the first person who has had to travel a lot on his job, and it?s not a given that fathers who are away much of the time see their sons get charged with a brutal homicide. So the connection people seem to be making here is just flimsy.But Remy has a visible job … and one that, on the surface, might seem incongruous to the gravity of Martel?s murder and his son?s alleged guilt. But that?s something his and the victim?s families should decide. If they?re all right with it, we have no business judging.It could be that by May, Remy may decide that the issues weighing on his and Martel?s families? hearts and minds are too overwhelming to be yucking it up with Don Orsillo on TV. In fact, I suspect that might ultimately be the case.But if it is, can we please let it be Jerry Remy?s decision?