America's National Game (MLB 2015)

[Flynnie]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Cesar Rodriguez wrote: St Louisans tastes in professional team sports seem more or less aligned with those of the cohort of American posters on this forum. Of the dozen or so Americans who seem to post regularly I would suggest that only one or two have anything more than a passing interest in basketball, certainly more would readily identify as baseball fans. Indeed, in the three and a bit years that I have posted here the baseball thread has always had more views/posts by orders of magnitude than its basketball equivalent*.

Moreover Boston is home to the most decorated NBA club in history and much like St Louis it's not known as a bastion of racial harmony. I don't find any compelling reason to be persuaded that interest in a given sport is indicative of racial prejudice.

* Case in point the 2013/14 basketball thread ran 4 pages long, the 2014 MLB 30.

St. Lou's the largest US market besides Seattle (and Riverside, which I just count as Greater LA) without an NBA team. The metro area is also 18 percent black, a demographic that we can safely say, since nobody's intentions will be misconstrued, is inclined to enjoy NBA basketball. Tampa, which is the 2nd largest market (non-Seattle again), is only 10% black (and Tampa also has the Magic within an hour's drive) It's also arguably the strongest hockey market in the US where five feet of snow doesn't fall every winter.

It's a little weird. Remember too, this conversation happened because two white comedians from StL threw that out there in an eyebrow-raising way.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Flynnie wrote:

St Louisans tastes in professional team sports seem more or less aligned with those of the cohort of American posters on this forum. Of the dozen or so Americans who seem to post regularly I would suggest that only one or two have anything more than a passing interest in basketball, certainly more would readily identify as baseball fans. Indeed, in the three and a bit years that I have posted here the baseball thread has always had more views/posts by orders of magnitude than its basketball equivalent*.

Moreover Boston is home to the most decorated NBA club in history and much like St Louis it's not known as a bastion of racial harmony. I don't find any compelling reason to be persuaded that interest in a given sport is indicative of racial prejudice.

* Case in point the 2013/14 basketball thread ran 4 pages long, the 2014 MLB 30.

St. Lou's the largest US market besides Seattle (and Riverside, which I just count as Greater LA) without an NBA team. The metro area is also 18 percent black, a demographic that we can safely say, since nobody's intentions will be misconstrued, is inclined to enjoy NBA basketball. Tampa, which is the 2nd largest market (non-Seattle again), is only 10% black (and Tampa also has the Magic within an hour's drive) It's also arguably the strongest hockey market in the US where five feet of snow doesn't fall every winter.

It's a little weird. Remember too, this conversation happened because two white comedians from StL threw that out there in an eyebrow-raising way.

Yeah there might be something in that but I dunno, most of the marquee college football and basketball programs are located in the states of the confederacy. Good old Donald Sterling was an owner in the NBA no less and his bigotry was apparently tolerated in league circles for far too long.

In all this I would think declining black involvement in baseball would be the biggest bone of contention. Whether they have abandoned the game or they feel the game has abandoned them I really feel like MLB has to rectify the fact that the sport has died a death in the black community over the past 20 years or so.

[Flynnie]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

The problem with black baseball is the problem with poor people baseball. Travel teamization is killing American sports.

Most blacks playing in the majors or top prospects (like Byron Buxton) are middle-class, but that's true for most whites and most Latinos too. How many big leaguers come from the inner city now? Not many.

You don't have a lot of bird dog scouts now sitting in high school games in Brooklyn or Queens taking tabs on the left fielder at George Washington HS anymore. They just all sit on their ass at travel tournaments.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Travel ball, urgh. I've been out to a few of these travel tournaments and they are frightful affairs. You have ill mannered parents and obnoxious little brats running around with $300 De Marini bats and as for the coaches, they are almost always tobacco-chewing-Oakley-wearing shitheads.

Travel ball is absolutely the worst advertisement for the sport of baseball.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

In that vein the absolute worst thing about youth sports nowadays is that they have been commandeered by adults. Organized by adults, controlled by adults and operating on the agenda of adults.

My buddy said the other day said that we (as in our generation) were the last of the mohicans. The last generation of kids to make our own entertainment, play games by ourselves and not be suffocated by the perennial supervision of our parents. I think its healthy for kids to be allowed to be kids.

[Cal Alamein]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

No argument here.

A real pleasure for me is to look outside my classroom during lunch and watch the ragtag sporting events outside. There are kids shooting hoops, girls whacking a volleyball over a net, endless games of touch football, and many others. Kids of all skill-levels are involved and as they only have around a half-hour, every second is precious. Totally flies in the face of hyper-organized, adult controlled competitions.

Can't really remember ever seeing kids throwing a baseball or softball to each other. The two high schools in my district are amongst the best in the state in both sports.

[tee rex]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Ernie Banks was one of about half a dozen baseball names I know, mainly thanks to Bill Bryson and "The Lost Continent" - and Bryson's dad. I think I liked him. RIP.

[Flynnie]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Speaking of Bryson, I was mildly surprised at how much baseball is in Summer of '27. I knew it was always going to be in there, since the cover features Ruth, but a good 60/70 pages of the book is just about the Bambino.

It is funny to see Bryson, using asterisks, explain really basic stuff, then go in depth about Waite Hoyt's ERA.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Just saw this on yahoo, Jackie Robinson West stripped of US little league crown.

Who the hell deliberately gerrymanders boundaries to stack a team in freakin' little league? What next, tee ballers taking PED's? Sigh.

[Flynnie]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

That's little league compared to what Taiwan did for decades, which was forge birth certificates so 15 year olds could dominate American kids.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

What other folks were doing or have done is hardly the point though.

The point here (and the common denominator) is grown ups corrupting youth sports with their win at all costs attitudes. The kids should actually be allowed to keep the titles they have vacated, its the adults that should be punished, my preference would be for them to be horsewhipped in public.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Hooray! There will now be a clock in baseball.

This is one of the innovations that I suggested a few months back on the "sporting myths" thread thus:

Cesar Rodriguez wrote: They should move the bases closer together to encourage stealing, bring in a pitch clock and stop those conversations between the pitcher and catcher that drag on and provide no entertainment.

Great to know the new commish is an avid reader of OTF.

[Renart]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

It's Monte Irvin's 96th birthday today. He began his career in the Negro Leagues (with the Newark Eagles) in 1938!

[ursus arctos]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)



Irvin was an absolute beast in the Negro Leagues, and while he was an all star in the majors, never really replicated his earlier form. If MLB had integrated in the 30s, and he hadn't lost time to WWII, it is completely possible that we would think of Irvin as being comparable to Willie Mays.

[Gerontophile]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Nothing about fatboyslim for the Yankees?

I am going to be mostly silent about this year, but if, finally, the Nationals win, with their 4 Number 1 starters (Strasburg is 3rd? Are you fucking kidding me???) then I know nothing about baseball.

And I know nothing about baseball.

Seattle for the AL, Nats for the NL, and then a toss-up.

Of course, there is always the possibility of San Francisco... again.

[Renart]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

I would love for the Giants to make a run of it again, but I'm doubtful. Matt Cain will be back, thankfully, and there are highly dubious reports of Lincecum being back to his old self at spring training, but . . . it's an odd year.

[ursus arctos]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

It's an odd numbered year, so they don't have a chance.

The American League looks to be rather wide open, as evidenced by team like the Indians and Mariners getting quite a bit of buzz.

[Incandenza]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Didn't see it mentioned, so RIP Minnie Minoso.

[ursus arctos]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

One of the most important Cuban players of all time and a man with a very real Hall of Fame case.

There's something poetic about Ernie Banks and Minnie Minoso passing so close together, as each exemplified the best traditions of their historic franchises.

Chicago, and baseball, is poorer.

RIP

[Renart]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Listening to the KNBR stream of the Giants opening spring training game against the A's. (We're losing.) Jon Miller keeps talking about the Giants winning the World Series last year, so it really wasn't a dream.

I truly love baseball on the radio. It's cold now, but spring and summer are on the way.

[delicatemoth]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Piss off, stupid Mets

Looks like I need a new team to sporadically cheer on from thousands of miles away (it's not just that, the Mets are a pretty dislikeable organisation in general). But who? Has to be NL, and not the Nationals. Or Atlanta. Or the Cards or Dodgers. Who plays in blue and is shit?

[Renart]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Padres? Brewers?

The Cubs, often, but they're supposed to be pretty good this year.

[delicatemoth]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

Problem with a west coast team would be that actually watching them would wreck my sleep even more than usual. Brewers is possible, though. I quite like beer. As for the Cubs, think I'd feel a bit crap if I jumped on their bandwagon and then they won everything.

I'm actually sort of tempted by the Marlins and their fish scoreboard. But Florida sounds like a hellhole.

[Incandenza]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

I was going to say that the Astros kind of wear blue, and are really shit, but then I remembered that they're in the AL now. So wrong.

[ursus arctos]

America's National Game (MLB 2015)

The Marlins also have a truly odious owner and may actually be quite decent this year (the East is a hot mess).