An issue arose in the 1971 season involving Alex Johnson, an outfielder with the California Angels, who became defiant and uncooperative on the field and extremely withdrawn off the field. When the club imposed a disciplinary suspension without pay, a grievance was filed by the union, stating that Johnson was obviously suffering from emotional distress and should be treated in the same manner as one who has a physical injury or illness--that is, be placed on the disabled list. The importance of the case, decided in favor of Johnson, was that players and management came to realize it was not a catastrophe. In 1974 another case was perceived by some as an attack on the viability of the game and the business--the dispute between Jim Hunter, one of the brightest and best-paid pitching stars, and Charles O. Finley, the owner, president, and general manager of the Oakland Athletics. This case taught that contract language means what it says. The 1974 decision in the Messersmith case had the effect of ending baseball's reserve system as it was commonly understood. It caused a change in the way teams are assembled, maintained, and improved and resulted in providing winters of activity and publicity for the sport. Its effect on player salaries since 1976 is conservatively estimated at more than a billion dollars.