MLB Thread 109: Happy Opening Day!

[shadowforce420]

I'm loving this season so far. My dad has trouble getting around now and spends alot of time in bed(long story) but he loves the Mets and has been happier than I've seen him in a long time.

[HMARK Center]

Apr 22, 2015 20:40:09 GMT -5 Seth Drakin of Monster Crap said:

Apr 22, 2015 20:38:27 GMT -5 andrew8798 said:

They facing the same problems WWE is having not getting the younger fan

I don't think they are having problems getting the younger fan. What they are having problems with is getting the African American fan.

It's both, really. Again, not only is viewership 80% white (a number that HAS to be challenged by the rising number of Latinos in this country, many of whom come from baseball-mad countries of origin), but it's average age is over 50, higher than any of the other major sports. The only other somewhat big televised game that skews older is golf.

I'm sure MLB will try to tinker with rules again at some point to address this (games have to go faster! Add a DH to the NL (I'm so done if that happens)! etc.), but they won't get the point until they start promoting themselves as a national and not a regional brand, or until they change what's becoming a stodgy atmosphere around the game.

I think the two key problems here are how expensive it is to get noticed in baseball in the United States as a kid, and the refusal to really appeal nationally to a wider audience. On the first point, in an era of travel teams and specialization, kids need the money, time, and resources to be dedicated to baseball 365 days a year these days; just watch a MLB game, and you tell me how many players you see who came from an underprivileged background; it's becoming the sport of the upper-middle class, outside of poor kids in countries like the Dominican. On the second, Olbermann reported on a poll awhile back that asked kids their favorite athletes. Mike Trout was the top baseball player...and he ranked UNDER #100. He ranked below John Cena.

This is a league that has Trout, McCutcheon, Harper, Harvey, Kershaw, Bumgarner, and a whole generation of players doing amazing things that have never been seen before: why aren't more of them household names? Why is MLB content to be regionally successful, even as ratings for the World Series and All Star Game continue to plummet, signaling a fall in national interest? It's prioritizing short term profit over the actual health of the game.

[ThereIsNoAbsurdistOnlyZuul]

Apr 23, 2015 6:42:08 GMT -5 HMARK Center said:

Apr 22, 2015 20:40:09 GMT -5 Seth Drakin of Monster Crap said:

I don't think they are having problems getting the younger fan. What they are having problems with is getting the African American fan.

It's both, really. Again, not only is viewership 80% white (a number that HAS to be challenged by the rising number of Latinos in this country, many of whom come from baseball-mad countries of origin), but it's average age is over 50, higher than any of the other major sports. The only other somewhat big televised game that skews older is golf.

I'm sure MLB will try to tinker with rules again at some point to address this (games have to go faster! Add a DH to the NL (I'm so done if that happens)! etc.), but they won't get the point until they start promoting themselves as a national and not a regional brand, or until they change what's becoming a stodgy atmosphere around the game.

I think the two key problems here are how expensive it is to get noticed in baseball in the United States as a kid, and the refusal to really appeal nationally to a wider audience. On the first point, in an era of travel teams and specialization, kids need the money, time, and resources to be dedicated to baseball 365 days a year these days; just watch a MLB game, and you tell me how many players you see who came from an underprivileged background; it's becoming the sport of the upper-middle class, outside of poor kids in countries like the Dominican. On the second, Olbermann reported on a poll awhile back that asked kids their favorite athletes. Mike Trout was the top baseball player...and he ranked UNDER #100. He ranked below John Cena.

This is a league that has Trout, McCutcheon, Harper, Harvey, Kershaw, Bumgarner, and a whole generation of players doing amazing things that have never been seen before: why aren't more of them household names? Why is MLB content to be regionally successful, even as ratings for the World Series and All Star Game continue to plummet, signaling a fall in national interest? It's prioritizing short term profit over the actual health of the game.

You can dislike Olbermann's politics, but his analysis of MLB and NHL's mishandling by their league is pretty much spot on.

[Sparkybob]

Apr 23, 2015 6:42:08 GMT -5 HMARK Center said:

Apr 22, 2015 20:40:09 GMT -5 Seth Drakin of Monster Crap said:

I don't think they are having problems getting the younger fan. What they are having problems with is getting the African American fan.

It's both, really. Again, not only is viewership 80% white (a number that HAS to be challenged by the rising number of Latinos in this country, many of whom come from baseball-mad countries of origin), but it's average age is over 50, higher than any of the other major sports. The only other somewhat big televised game that skews older is golf.

I'm sure MLB will try to tinker with rules again at some point to address this (games have to go faster! Add a DH to the NL (I'm so done if that happens)! etc.), but they won't get the point until they start promoting themselves as a national and not a regional brand, or until they change what's becoming a stodgy atmosphere around the game.

I think the two key problems here are how expensive it is to get noticed in baseball in the United States as a kid, and the refusal to really appeal nationally to a wider audience. On the first point, in an era of travel teams and specialization, kids need the money, time, and resources to be dedicated to baseball 365 days a year these days; just watch a MLB game, and you tell me how many players you see who came from an underprivileged background; it's becoming the sport of the upper-middle class, outside of poor kids in countries like the Dominican. On the second, Olbermann reported on a poll awhile back that asked kids their favorite athletes. Mike Trout was the top baseball player...and he ranked UNDER #100. He ranked below John Cena.

This is a league that has Trout, McCutcheon, Harper, Harvey, Kershaw, Bumgarner, and a whole generation of players doing amazing things that have never been seen before: why aren't more of them household names? Why is MLB content to be regionally successful, even as ratings for the World Series and All Star Game continue to plummet, signaling a fall in national interest? It's prioritizing short term profit over the actual health of the game.

To be fair I don't agree with you saying that travel circuits are a big reason why people don't stick to baseball when in basketball you basically have to play AAU ball to get noticed and the NBA has no issue with accessibility.

There are plenty of stories of guys going to lower level colleges and become useful big leaguers.

I think my issue with the well done Chris Rock video is he glossed over all the efforts baseball has tried to raise urban youth participation. Just because it's not working as well as MLB wants doesn't mean they haven't invested a lot to get fixed. The video makes it seem baseball is ignoring the issue. I also think with the tone of his video he makes it seem that baseball is a white boys clubs when there are plenty of Hispanic and superstars in the league making the league relatively diverse.

I do agree with your point about how marketing in baseball sucks. If Jose Fernandez had the nba marketing power he'll be a superstar name everybody will know. And given Jose's story and natural charisma, it doesn't take a genius to make him a household name.

I feel baseball has tried to be the anti NBA in the sense of promoting teams over individuals which a lot of baseball fans do appreciate, but the national media dont.

[Giul T.]

Joe Nathan out for season with injury. Tigers will have to rely on Soria

[Drillbit Taylor]

I think another thing MLB needs to do, or more so the TV networks, is stop the stuff where 1 series is all you get the entire weekend. Its hard to get a national name for a McCutchen who is on a good team when his teams is never on tv. But a Weekend, like take this one

Friday-MLB Netork= Mets at Yankees
Staturday- FS1= Indains at Tigers, Mets at Yankees MLB=Dodgers at Padres
Sunday- ESPN= Mets at Yankees

Yes, the Mets are good right now but the Yankees have the same record as the Astros at this moment. Yet the Astros got 1 national game and thats it for the year(as of now). Its hard to grow these names of players who are lighting up when all they are exposed to outside of thier own team(or if they live in an area without a regional coverage all they are exposed to) is the same teams. Not saying this is a major problem of MLB, but it is one that should be addressed to give more exposure to the greats on every team and not just the chosen ones.

[The Captain]

That's a similar problem that the NHL has: they tend to focus on only the Favored Markets at the expense of everyone else for national coverage. With the MLB, that's New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, St. Louis, and the one or two other red hot teams. With the NHL, it's the Bettman Seven.

[fw91]

Anyone see this? (Language Warning)

[Deleted]

That's eleven.

Time to get the Yankees.

[HMARK Center]

Apr 23, 2015 9:02:11 GMT -5 Sparkybob said:

Apr 23, 2015 6:42:08 GMT -5 HMARK Center said:

It's both, really. Again, not only is viewership 80% white (a number that HAS to be challenged by the rising number of Latinos in this country, many of whom come from baseball-mad countries of origin), but it's average age is over 50, higher than any of the other major sports. The only other somewhat big televised game that skews older is golf.

I'm sure MLB will try to tinker with rules again at some point to address this (games have to go faster! Add a DH to the NL (I'm so done if that happens)! etc.), but they won't get the point until they start promoting themselves as a national and not a regional brand, or until they change what's becoming a stodgy atmosphere around the game.

I think the two key problems here are how expensive it is to get noticed in baseball in the United States as a kid, and the refusal to really appeal nationally to a wider audience. On the first point, in an era of travel teams and specialization, kids need the money, time, and resources to be dedicated to baseball 365 days a year these days; just watch a MLB game, and you tell me how many players you see who came from an underprivileged background; it's becoming the sport of the upper-middle class, outside of poor kids in countries like the Dominican. On the second, Olbermann reported on a poll awhile back that asked kids their favorite athletes. Mike Trout was the top baseball player...and he ranked UNDER #100. He ranked below John Cena.

This is a league that has Trout, McCutcheon, Harper, Harvey, Kershaw, Bumgarner, and a whole generation of players doing amazing things that have never been seen before: why aren't more of them household names? Why is MLB content to be regionally successful, even as ratings for the World Series and All Star Game continue to plummet, signaling a fall in national interest? It's prioritizing short term profit over the actual health of the game.

To be fair I don't agree with you saying that travel circuits are a big reason why people don't stick to baseball when in basketball you basically have to play AAU ball to get noticed and the NBA has no issue with accessibility.

There are plenty of stories of guys going to lower level colleges and become useful big leaguers.

I think my issue with the well done Chris Rock video is he glossed over all the efforts baseball has tried to raise urban youth participation. Just because it's not working as well as MLB wants doesn't mean they haven't invested a lot to get fixed. The video makes it seem baseball is ignoring the issue. I also think with the tone of his video he makes it seem that baseball is a white boys clubs when there are plenty of Hispanic and superstars in the league making the league relatively diverse.

I do agree with your point about how marketing in baseball sucks. If Jose Fernandez had the nba marketing power he'll be a superstar name everybody will know. And given Jose's story and natural charisma, it doesn't take a genius to make him a household name.

I feel baseball has tried to be the anti NBA in the sense of promoting teams over individuals which a lot of baseball fans do appreciate, but the national media dont.

The difference with basketball is the NCAA eligibility rule: it's possible to be a high-end high school player without necessarily being AAU, get a scholarship to a solid college program, and get noticed that way. MLB is a different beast.

I also don't think Rock would want to undersell things like the RBI program: more that the overall presentation of the game (to his eyes, at least) feels stodgy and stuck in the past, too often calling upon an era black fans might not want to remember very much. It's not that MLB hasn't done any outreach; more that their ideas simply aren't what's needed to alter courses right now.

But yeah, good Lord, Jose Fernandez and his story are remarkable, the guy should be a megastar by the time he comes back this year and reestablishes himself...but he won't be. It should be possible for MLB to spotlight stars without shortchanging the "it's a team sport" aspect of things, but again, all the things done to take emotion and expression out of the game hurts that, as well. Hell, I'd argue all four major sports leagues need a kick in the ass these days; each makes a ton of cash, but does so most often while pursuing short term gains that may lead to long term problems for their games.

NOW! On the bright side!

ELEVEN IN A ROW! 10-0 homestand for the first time in team history! NL East standings looking like something out of a video game!

There's only one thing to say!

[andrew8798]

Thanks to the NBA/NHL playoffs Haven't seen much baseball. Saw that the Astros are some how in first place

[Jedi-El of Tomorrow]

Man, the first time Yordano Ventura steps into the box during an interleague game he's going to get drilled.

[RKTaker]

ventura is an idiot i don't know what his problem is with people it's like he wants to be unstoppable and as soon as someone has a hit off of him or hits the ball at him he has a temper tantrum like grow up already

[Crusty Ruffles]

Apr 23, 2015 21:58:04 GMT -5 Jedi-El of Tomorrow said:

Man, the first time Yordano Ventura steps into the box during an interleague game he's going to get drilled.

For those that missed it:

screengrabber.deadspin.com/yordano-ventura-sparks-royals-white-sox-brawl-1699873170/+bubbaprog

There were apparently words exchanged between innings prior to this. Ventura fields a quick one hopper from Adam Eaton and appears to yell "f*** you" to Eaton as he runs down the line. Looks like Cain pointed to Samardzija and said "I want you motherf***er", then Shark came charging. Not sure how wise that was to do to a 6'6" former football player with a temper, but hey...

[sfvega]

Samardzija is an actual man. These Royals.....Cain didn't want him when he went over there. And then someone taking a swing as he's being pulled down. And then Cain comes up sporting the Butthead. What a joke. Ventura is such a bitch. And when he sported OT last World Series, he made a lot of goodwill with Cards fans. We all thought he was a good guy. Yeah, not so much.

[Rolent Tex]

I'm liking how the Cards are looking so far this season. I was a little worried about how they'd come out of the gates but 1st in the NL Central, won 7 out of last 8 and the homers are coming early this year. That and we're actually being aggressive stealing bases for once. I like it.

[Zone Was Wrong]

Apr 23, 2015 22:46:26 GMT -5 Rolent Tex said:

I'm liking how the Cards are looking so far this season. I was a little worried about how they'd come out of the gates but 1st in the NL Central, won 7 out of last 8 and the homers are coming early this year. That and we're actually being aggressive stealing bases for once. I like it.

Yeah just hoping the rotation can stay healthy and Adams can one day learn how to hit left handed pitching.

[Steveweiser]

The Royals did the spirited babyface job in the World Series, so now they're going to try being the nWo.

[Demented]

Apr 24, 2015 1:56:39 GMT -5 Steveweiser said:

The Royals did the spirited babyface job in the World Series, so now they're going to try being the nWo.

Not a big baseball fan, but this did pop up on my twitter timeline.

[Deleted]

Apr 23, 2015 22:09:40 GMT -5 Crusty Ruffles said:

Apr 23, 2015 21:58:04 GMT -5 Jedi-El of Tomorrow said:

Man, the first time Yordano Ventura steps into the box during an interleague game he's going to get drilled.

For those that missed it:

screengrabber.deadspin.com/yordano-ventura-sparks-royals-white-sox-brawl-1699873170/+bubbaprog

There were apparently words exchanged between innings prior to this. Ventura fields a quick one hopper from Adam Eaton and appears to yell "f*** you" to Eaton as he runs down the line. Looks like Cain pointed to Samardzija and said "I want you motherf***er", then Shark came charging. Not sure how wise that was to do to a 6'6" former football player with a temper, but hey...

Eaton said they had words earlier when Yordano quick-pitched him, so Adam took his sweet time getting ready in the box. Ventura took that as showing him up, got mad...scuffle ensues. Adam had no harsh words towards the team or Ventura personally.

But Lorenzo Cain, I don't know what his problem is. The entire Royals team could be in front of me; the last two people I would wanna piss off are Jeff Samardzija and Tyler Flowers in practically full catching gear. (Thankfully for Cain, Tyler was playing peacemaker.) Losing Cain could have cost the Royals the game, as it was 2-2 and Dyson had to actually bat. He can run, he can field, but hitting isn't part of his game...until the 13th, base hit and a run scored on a double to come away with the 3-2 win in 13. Take away the brawling and the game was really good.

Now, Saturday, Volquez (the guy that took that wild swing towards the back of Samardzija's head) starts against John Danks. That's gonna be interesting.