Here's the deal, baseball stinks. I know, I know, Tim and J will argue with me, they have gone to most of the parks and enjoy the game...even regular season. But, I have a different perspective. I love football and basketball (not NBA basketball. I don't really think it's basketball anymore). I really enjoy watching the golf majors on TV. I grew up going to the Indy 500 and still go, so I enjoy IRL racing. After that, comes baseball...but I do enjoy the playoffs.
I asked my brother for his opinion on the Mitchell Report a few weeks back and he gave me one of the best answers I've heard. The gist is this:
-Baseball season is too long already...it takes away highlights from sports that I care about...
-We already have to hear about baseball during non-baseball months because of Winter Meetings, trades and rumors of trades...This report only makes more publicity for a game that I wish would go away.
I don't wish baseball would go away, but I do wish the season was shorter. I also recognize that I'm part of the problem since I'm still talking about it. I'll do my best to stop, but I want to give Bonds, Clemens et al all of the rope they need to hang themselves. They are truly buffoons.
So why does baseball suck?
In its purest form, it doesn't. It's a great game to watch with someone you really enjoy being around. It moves slowly, but that's what makes it such a great game to watch with a loved one. Some of my fondest memories of my life are at the baseball park with my Grandpa, Dad and brothers
That said, the games take too long (especially with TV in the equation) and the season is waaaaaaay too long . But that's not why the sport stinks.
The game that I grew up playing got greedy and lost a bunch of fans in the process...So instead of trying to earn the fans' respect and viewership, it got lazy and allowed itself to be bastardized in the name of ratings and popularity. I will say that I don't see HGH or steroids as an unfair or competitive advantage simply because such a high percentage of the athletes used these drugs. But, the guys that some kids grow up trying to emulate are truly an embarrassment and are nothing that I want my son to emulate. They're liars and cheaters and just a half step from being animals or machines...because they are most certainly no longer human after they've altered themselves to the degree that many have.
That's why baseball sucks.
9 comments:
As much as I love baseball, I've agreed for many years that it's got LOTS of problem.
From the way the finances are handled (yes, Tim, I've always agreed with you that it could be better -- my argument is against the simpleton conclusion so many people make that spending = winning) to pretty much every decision limp-wristed Bud Selig has made... baseball is being screwed into the ground, even as its popularity soars. Will it continue to soar in the wake of the Mitchell Report? Sadly, it probably will.
I've heard it said more than once that the media cares more about the steroid epidemic than the fans do. Fans want to be entertained, so the conventional wisdom goes. I would tend to sort of agree and I agree that we can explain to our kids what they should and shouldn't do.... but I do think those "traditionalists" among us kind of wish the playing field was level.
You want to take weight-gainers and supplements and vitamins, etc? Sure, go ahead. Just don't cross the line. And could baseball do a better job of DEFINING the line? They sure as hell could.
Spend a few million, baseball... spend a few million of the billions that baseball produces, and hire the best experts out there to come up with a constantly-updated clear list of what is banned and what isn't. Provide each team with a certified expert who isn't on Roger Clemens' payroll to keep the players abreast of what they can and can't do. Remember Andro in 1998? McGwire was taking something that was LEGAL. Then it became illegal and he stopped. But he still took shit for it. In fairness, should he have? No, he shouldn't, because it was something any of us could have bought at GNC on our way to the gym. To call ALL supplements into question is simply bogus. Pro athletes put their bodies through more than we can ever imagine, so they shouldn't have to fear that something they're taking might one day end up illegal.
And yes, I think there are a number of them who didn't realize what they were doing was considered a performance-enhancer... because baseball doesn't make things clear! MLB is just as much to blame for being vague and turing the other way through all of this. They could have easily put a stop to everything years ago and Hank Aaron would still be the HR champ and things wouldn't have gotten as out of control as they did.
Or maybe Bonds still would have done it and Clemens would have 320 legit wins instead of 350+ with an unknown number of questionable ones. Who knows? We'll never know.
As I said, I fully admit baseball's got a bunch of problems and you nailed several of them... being TV's bitch (especially Fox's), starting playoff games way too late, etc., etc.
As for offseason coverage, I would argue that the NFL gets WAY too much offseason coverage, too, with endless draft coverage in April and NFL Tonight on ESPN interfering with my baseball highlights in the summertime. But to each his own.
I've rambled enough here. This shoulda been its own post.
Difference is (with football) the season is 17 weeks, 16 games, long...they always leave me wanting more (much like Tim).
That's a fair point, but analysis of the effing DRAFT is dreadful.
Though I realize how much you love Berman.
What does this have to do with sideboobs? Nothin, that's what!
I would have to refer to the Baseball Almanac, but I believe the current 162 game schedule has been around a looooooong time. They didn't have a problem extending the playoffs, but shortening the regular season may be very painful to them. Bud doesn't have it in him.
Including playoffs, baseball is only a month longer then the NFL season. So it isn't THAT long relative to other sports. At least there is no Mel kiper of the baseball world getting paid to make conistantly wrong predictions of the draft.
Besides, isn't the NBA season longer with their horribly long playoff system?
Basically I've always interpreted your argument as this :
"Baseball sucks and no one else should be able to enjoy it because I don't like it."
j money -
I think the NFL draft's first 2 rounds have been shortened this year (less time for each team to pick).
e -
NBA season & playoffs are entirely too long. Need to at least bring back the old tiered playoff system. 7 game first round playoff kinda wears you out.
Now as far as the original sport posted about, I don't have much problem with the length of the season. I DO have a problem with no salary cap and a bunch of roid-heads playing the game.
Tim,
When did I say you shouldn't be able to enjoy it? Never.
Enjoy your piece of crap, slow-moving, cheater-infested, fat left-hander-loving, drawn-out game all you want...I just don't.
Mel Kiper is an idiot, as are most ESPN heads...I don't care about the sport, most are tools (except for Berman, he's great at whatever it is he does). I love college football, but can't stand most of the personalities in studio. Heck, my favorite ESPN in-studio personality got canned from Baseball Tonight for (allegedly) sexually harassing a co-worker. ESPN can suck it.
All draft coverage, just like watching the recruiting ticker is overkill. So much of it is guess work and so few of the players, regardless of sport, can make a difference unless they're in the right place at the right time. The LeBrons and Kyle Williams of the world only come along every-so-often.
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