Ever since the 1990s, Major League Baseball has been confronted with a question that it has yet to answer: "How does the league make baseball more interesting?" Often critics of baseball exclaim that the sport is too slow and the games are too long. Yet, this isn't baseball's problem at all. The structure of games is what separates baseball from other sports. There is no clock, no time outs, and all teams are guaranteed at least 27 plate appearances in a game (less but still equal in the case of weather shortened games). So, if games are not to blame, then what is? The answer is simple: the size of the league and the length of the season.
Currently there are 30 MLB teams, 14 in the American League and 16 in the National League. Yet, very few of them have the buying power of the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers, Cubs, Phillies, and Angels. As a result, the league ends up with teams like Kansas City: a place where young prospects get developed, start to succeed, and then pursue larger paychecks in larger markets. This system has made some MLB clubs the equivalent of a AAA team. However, the reason that this happens in not because of the buying power of teams such as "the evil Yankees." It is the result of a league that is too large with not enough big league talent.
One way to ensure that more teams have more talent is not through a salary cap approach. Instead, the league must eliminate six teams (one from each division) and move an NL Central team into the AL West (this would achieve a balance among leagues). Through contraction, more talent would be available to middle and small market baseball teams. Even if these teams don't have the Yankee buying power, the talent pool of prospects would be at such a higher level that these teams could still compete. At the same time, fans would have a higher level of motivation to watch baseball if they know that players such as Kyle Hochevar (7-13, 6.55 ERA in 2009) are not pitching. With this being said, one still can't ignore the fact that teams will have bad seasons.
Baseball's largest flaw is the length of its season. If my favorite NFL team is poor, I only have to endure that fact for 16 games. If my favorite baseball team is dreadful, I have to try and ignore it for 162 games. Six months of .400 or worse baseball may increase antidepressant sales, but it sure doesn't increase ticket sales. This is why baseball needs to decrease their schedule from 162 to 140 games. Not only will this prevent 22 more meaningless games from being played, but it should also prevent the World Series from being played in November. The league can't remain viable if their fall classic continues to inch closer to Christmas. The longer the season goes, the less interested fans become.
-B.W. Mumford
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Brian makes several good points. Some of what ails MLB goes back to t.v. revenue. Jerry Reinsdorf, Chi Sox owner, once said that he did not just buy the team, he bought the market. Which in their case, and the case of many other large-market teams, includes the local t.v. revenues. Compare what FSN pays the Twins to other teams. It hardly compares. The nature of MLB, like the NHL, though curiously not like the NBA, defies a national t.v. audience.
ReplyDeleteMLB has had a 162 game season since 1961 (154 before that. The playoffs have gotten longer with the switch from four to eight teams. For sure, election day or Halloween should not coincide with the last game of the World Series.
But good luck contracting teams. With so many state and local governments having invested taxpayer dollars into sports facilities, to then say, "buh bye" to their team would cause quite an uproar.
My thoughts only!
While I agree the talent has diluted with the addition of four new teams in my lifetime, it is difficult for me to endorse eliminating six teams. I remember the fear I felt when the Twins were offered up for contraction just eight or nine years ago and don't want to put another small/mid-market fan-base through that agony.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, I'm not sure which teams I would choose to eliminate. So many teams have such strong history. In fact, the past four expansion teams, (Marlins, Rockies, Diamondbacks and Rays) have all played in the World Series during this past decade and supplanted themselves into baseball's legacy. The Marlins have won two championships and the Diamondbacks won one of the most memorable World Series of my lifetime.
I also cannot endorse cutting the baseball schedule down to 140 games. The epic nature of the long baseball season is part of it's charm. It forces the baseball fan to become patient and thoughtful and aptly counterbalances immediacy and intensity of the NFL season.
We gage accomplishments through measuring statistics from year to year and follow our favorite players through the slumps and streaks of the arduous marathon season. Maybe the payoff is rarely there at the end of the year, but at least we have a dependable diversion in daily boxscores and nightly telecasts.
I agree with Mike that the playoffs go too late into the fall. Please cut down on all the off days and give the games their rightful rhythm.