MLB response to tanking: more playoff teams?

[Redskins Rick]

3 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

What I read was one year and yea, not 100 pounds of quality weight.

I dont pay for the washington post, this is all that google will preview:

Quote

Feb 20, 2019 - Zion Williamson says he gained 100 pounds in two years, and he's only slightly exaggerating

Just because its not "quality" mean, you can play the PED card.

Having a ton of money and access to whatever he wants to eat or drink, has to be taken into consideration.

 

[DrungoHazewood]

38 minutes ago, Philip said:

Well if attendance is going down in general, because of things that have nothing to do with baseball, then it’s logical to assume that bad decisions by the organization will increase the speed of the decline. If Manfred makes better decisions, which he has yet to show the ability to do, the decline in attendance might be slower than it is. It just makes sense that if the play on the field is being negatively impacted by  commissioner decisions, and that is true, then they are bad decisions. 

 Specifically, he has basically said it is OK to cheat. When Pete Rose asked for reinstatement on the grounds that, “hey they did it as an entire organization and nothing happened to them.“ He was exactly right. I do not think he should be reinstated, but I do think that all the guys who got away with it should be severely penalized.

I'm kind of curious. What better decisions should Manfred have made?  I guess two are suspending all the Sox and Astros for months or years, and explicitly changing multiple on-field rules to encourage contact and baserunning.  I don't know that you'd get overwhelming support for either of those things.

What else?

[Can_of_corn]

3 minutes ago, Redskins Rick said:

I dont pay for the washington post, this is all that google will preview:

Just because its not "quality" mean, you can play the PED card.

Having a ton of money and access to whatever he wants to eat or drink, has to be taken into consideration.

 

I don't know much about his family, he had a ton of money in HS?

Must be nice.

All concede the point on two years but I still find it exceedingly farfetched. 

Of course I think a ton of folks in all sports are cheating.

[SteveA]

28 minutes ago, Enjoy Terror said:

If you want to know why baseball is losing fans it's because the MLB doesn't market its best players (at all/effectively) and the sport doesn't appeal to young people who cord cut and have no access to the game. Baseball is behind on moving into the future.

Yep.

This is a guess but I'll bet there are 10+ NBA players, and 10+ NFL players, who more Americans (sports fans or not) would recognize if you put them on a screen and asked them to identify them, than Mike Trout.

[DrungoHazewood]

13 minutes ago, Enjoy Terror said:

I don't disagree with that, but we're talking about player marketing. Historical precedent of well marketed baseball players exists, and therefore, this isn't relevant.

What did baseball or individual teams do better or differently with Cal Ripken or Mickey Mantle or George Brett than they are with Mike Trout and Mookie Betts? When I was growing up I knew Cal and Brett because I was a big baseball fan, I don't think it was because of targeted MLB marketing efforts.

[Number5]

2 hours ago, atomic said:

I don't ever watch ESPN.

This begs several questions:

1.  If you don't ever watch, why do you care what's on?

2.  If you don't ever watch, why do you bother to gather statistics about what ESPN is broadcasting and formulate an opinion about it?

3.  If you don't ever watch, why would you think ESPN cares about your opinion?

4.  If you don't ever watch, what makes you think any of us care about your opinion?

[SteveA]

3 minutes ago, DrungoHazewood said:

What did baseball or individual teams do better or differently with Cal Ripken or Mickey Mantle or George Brett than they are with Mike Trout and Mookie Betts? When I was growing up I knew Cal and Brett because I was a big baseball fan, I don't think it was because of targeted MLB marketing efforts.

And yet I'll bet more average Americans, non-fans / casual fans / big fans, recognized Cal or Bonds or Brett or Clemens than would recognize Trout or Betts or Yelich now.   Maybe baseball has become a niche that is ignored by more of the mainstream, like hockey or boxing.   The NFL and NBA are not a niche, people who aren't even sports fans know dozens of players in those leagues, they are part of pop culture / social media culture / youth culture in a way that baseball and hockey players are not.   Clearly there was a time when baseball players WERE a big part of pop culture.  Would the Simpsons even bother to do the baseball episode they did 25 years ago with Strawberry and all those other players, today?   (Of course maybe the Simpsons aren't relevant to pop culture the way they were 25 years ago).

Somehow baseball has dropped from the level of NFL/NBA, which are a big part of pop culture and youth culture, to a niche sport like hockey where the hard core fans know and love the players but casual non-sports fans don't.

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, atomic said:

 

 

When I was in college, I had a friend who asked me to give her a ride to our college baseball team's game as her boyfriend was on the team.  We stayed an inning and a half as it was totally boring and we even knew some of the players on the team.  20 fans in the stands and not much going on.   We saw her boyfriend bat once and then hit the road.  

Now going to the same college basketball game was exciting.  

I once announced a baseball game between Duke and UNC on the campus radio station.    I’m sure there were at least five people listening, if you include me, my co-announcer, and the sound engineer back at the station.   

It’s really tough to fill the time between pitches when you know absolutely no trivia about the players or the teams, and can’t talk about what Joe Manager or Joe Outfielder said yesterday.    To make matters worse, it was an extremely lopsided game.   When the score got to UNC 19, Duke 3, I opined, “we’ll, four grand slams and we’re right back in this one!”

The only other thing I remember is that Larry Doby, Jr. was Duke’s best player.   
 

[ExileAngelos]

Playing 162 games with nearly half of your league making the playoffs is laughable overkill.  You are completely defeating the point of a long regular season.  I can't fathom how anyone thinks this is a good idea.  

Another thing that is frustrating is how SO MANY PEOPLE don't understand the concept of the one game wild card.  Teams who make the wild card are LUCKY to have the chance to advance to the regular post season.  They didn't win their division.  It is as much of a play in game as it is a post season game.  It keeps more teams alive in the post season chase as a bonus.

[HowAboutThat]

7 minutes ago, DrungoHazewood said:

I'm kind of curious. What better decisions should Manfred have made?  I guess two are suspending all the Sox and Astros for months or years, and explicitly changing multiple on-field rules to encourage contact and baserunning.  I don't know that you'd get overwhelming support for either of those things.

What else?

No 2WC, no “three batter minimum” no “banning shifts” no replay, no juiced balls, no pitch clock.

those are all gimmicks that don’t help the game.

regarding the cheating scandal, when you do nothing, almost anything would be better, but the players should be severely penalized, the teams should be severely penalized, Hinch Cora and Beltran should be banned for life.

Hinch’s explanation was so inadequate as to be embarrassing, but the Red Sox statement, and Cora’s, completely ignored the entire situation. 

[Redskins Rick]

17 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

I don't know much about his family, he had a ton of money in HS?

Must be nice.

All concede the point on two years but I still find it exceedingly farfetched. 

Of course I think a ton of folks in all sports are cheating.

So he came from family with money, that doesnt mean he was rolling in it, I suspect, it meant, he didnt have to worry about paying bills, like most college kids do.

But, with 20 million guaranteed and that doesnt count the 75 million, shoe deal.

Its clear, he has more available funds now, then he did in HS.

 

[Can_of_corn]

 

Just now, Redskins Rick said:

So he came from family with money, that doesnt mean he was rolling in it, I suspect, it meant, he didnt have to worry about paying bills, like most college kids do.

But, with 20 million guaranteed and that doesnt count the 75 million, shoe deal.

Its clear, he has more available funds now, then he did in HS.

 

Huh?

I said I didn't know what his family situation was.  You are the one that said he had a "ton of money" in high school, not me.

[Can_of_corn]

6 minutes ago, ExileAngelos said:

Playing 162 games with nearly half of your league making the playoffs is laughable overkill.  You are completely defeating the point of a long regular season.  I can't fathom how anyone thinks this is a good idea.  

Another thing that is frustrating is how SO MANY PEOPLE don't understand the concept of the one game wild card.  Teams who make the wild card are LUCKY to have the chance to advance to the regular post season.  They didn't win their division.  It is as much of a play in game as it is a post season game.  It keeps more teams alive in the post season chase as a bonus.

They are concentrating on the part in which their team has a better chance at making the playoffs.

[Redskins Rick]

1 minute ago, Can_of_corn said:

 

Huh?

I said I didn't know what his family situation was.  You are the one that said he had a "ton of money" in high school, not me.

My apologies, for mis comprehending what you wrote.

I have no clue as to his family money status.

 

[ExileAngelos]

3 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

They are concentrating on the part in which their team has a better chance at making the playoffs.

It is awful.  The sport will lose a lot of appeal for me.  Also just realized the trade deadline will be a non event now.  Everyone is in contention!  Lol what a joke.