Were you born at age 60? Bat flips? C'mon

Yes most people do like to see excitement and celebration in sports.

I'd settle for more balls in play. That would seem exciting.

It’s indisputable that they played 60 games but it is what it is. Is that an empty expression? Perhaps but it’s still a season given the circumstances.

The larger point is passing an opinion off as fact. Being obsessed with ratings and how different the season is, who cares? They played 60 games sure but the 2 best teams are battling out in the WS.

Some of you die on the strangest hills. Roll with the punches.

"It is what it is" is a perfectly fine expression.
I'm not passing an opinion off as fact. Basketball "felt" illegitimate. I still watched. Baseball feels more legit than basketball. But still, not a real season. And I'm watching and rolling with the punches.

IMO...People who watch NBA will watch it. People who don't and probably haven't watched for a while will continue to complain while not watching. And the occasional watcher probably thinks this season isn't valid.

Yes but probably wouldn't change the declining fan base

Nothing will

So baseball say, pre 1990 wasnt exciting ?

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

Bat flips aren’t about “excitement”. It’s about showing the other guy up. I don’t understand the desire to see bat flips or why they would generate additional interest in the game.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

The political effect is way overstated and many times cord cutting and streaming is responsible for the ratings dip.

Bat flips and posing have been around since way before 1990

No they aren't in most cases

You think Jose Bautusta was thinking "fuck this specific pitcher" or "I just won a playoff series for my team"when he did his famous one? Obviously the latter

I'm not telling anyone to like it but many people do love to see excitement passion in every sport.

I don't care. Baseball will be on TV and at the park and I will be watching.

Same

I'm guessing overall network tv ratings are down.

Those points were directed more to the porpoise fella

So not "some of you". One in particular. That's fine. I get it. Us old fuckers all look alike.

but he, and several others, reiterate my point.

I don't pose opinion as fact. Some of the facts are: the season was 60 games; in game rules were altered/instituted only for 2020; the number of playoff teams was expanded for 2020; roster allowances were expanded for 2020; fewer people have watched the world series. These are all objective.

I analyze these facts and arrive at my opinion. You don't agree. That's fine but in your desire for facts, you provide none that support your position. You have a desire to see sports. So do I. I'm just not deluding myself into a belief that any of this is equal to any other season.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

How exactly is it "way overstated"? Turning the entire playoffs into a BLM lovefest alienates half of the country. There is no sure way to measure anything, but to simply brush it off is making excuses for a terrible business decision.

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Why are only 14 percent of black CPS 11th-graders proficient in English?

Last thing I’ll say because I really don’t care this much, and you probably don’t either.

I agree with all the objective fact. It’s your conclusion and labeling of “illegitimate” where we diverge.

Your last sentence in your most recent post identified the season as not being “equal.” That’s fine. But I don’t think whoever wins the WS will have claimed an “inferior” title. The season was different in many ways, but the champion will still have a legitimate title because they had to successfully match thru the playoffs and will have beat the best team in the opposing league.

If the Rays were to have beaten the a team with a sub .500 record, who only made the playoffs because of the expanded format and/or a larger percentage of the league had their seasons decimated by COVID cases, then I’d agree with you.

But alas, here’s hoping the Rays win so the Cubs still have an edge over the Dodgers

Because its most often presented as the main reason and completely devoid of context (Cord cutting, steaming, etc)

Also it doesn't alienate half the country. Half the country might not like BLM and social justice but a large portion of that group still watches and ignores/doesnt even notice by letters on a mound or a guy taking a knee

Not everyone goes around looking to be upset.

I’m not so sure about this anymore. I would have agreed with you a few years ago.

My current stance is that the social themes/protesting in sports have absolutely alienated a large segment of viewers. I don’t pretend to know the percentage.

I’m in the long run, I think Basketball will be fine, despite the alienation but it’s absolutely going to have immediate consequences to the negative. But Silver and Co really had no other choice but to play it that way imo.

Baseball is in a trickier spot, since their main demographic—older white males—is probably the group that was most likely to resist the BLM support.

Baseball needs a new commissioner badly. And for a variety of reasons.

Indeed.

NHL playoffs this year was the most legit.

Baseball won't die but it'll become something in the middle of a niche sport like golf/tennis and the NHL. It'll be a solid #3 or #4 sport going forward.

I liked Bill Burr's rant about baseball earlier this year - he had it correct :

you can start at 1:15 to cut to the chase but entire rant is great

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv4JqqZ0DFU

All fan bases are declining in everything that was big in the 70s. Now I watch Serie A on Sunday afternoon as opposed to the 4pm NFL game because I found a team to root for and I get the international feed as part of my $12/month ESPN+/Disney/Hulu package and can time shift it and skip halftime and pregame.

As far as baseball goes, they have to make changes to get away from full "three true outcomes" baseball. At a intellectual level, a perfectly placed shift is a thing of beauty when somebody hits a line drive at 110 mph exit velocity right at the 3B playing in short right field. But I'd rather see the fences moved back, the grass cut shorter, and an emphasis on relying more on balls in play, consistently hitting doubles with a higher BA, and hitting to all fields. I just think that is a more enjoyable game that is also more difficult to consistently play in an expansion era (and 32 teams is coming).

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"When people want their version of the truth, they go find it, no matter how baseless their beliefs." -- Ken Rosenthal

The strikeout, walk, homerun era has made the game unwatchable to all but those who care the most about the game. Just like jacking up 3s every possession is starting to do to basketball.

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First 2 games were fun to watch. I'll be in the rest of the way.

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@audioidkid

I’m all for any changes that would make the game better.

I think moving the fences back could potentially tack on an extra 15 minutes to the average game which would move us in the opposite direction of where we’re trying to go.

Raise the mound? I don’t know. But something needs to change.

I think a rule where you have to have 2 infielders on either side of second base, effectively banning the shift, would be helpful for the more balls in play issue

Interesting. I kinda lost interest post Jordan but from an outside perspective I'd think the 3point era would be more fan friendly


I still believe the actual game play has little to do with any if this. Cord cutting and a generational change in media consumption/ attention span is the main driver.

Analytics has really hurt the game too.

You need a new dictionary to understand these analytics ppl. And if you’re not into analytics they berate you.