Are games too long? Why are they long?

[rsox]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

Tell the umpire to call STRIKES as it's written in the rulebook.

This.

The umpires do have a lot to do with the length of games because of the varying strike zones. Case in point: wednesday nights Diamondbacks/Dodgers game, game lasted 4:57 minutes nearly 5 hours. Game went 11 innings, there were 16 runs scored and 33 hits between the two teams. There were 433 pitches thrown, only 267 thrown for strikes. Dodger pitchers threw 101 more balls than strikes in the game.

Baseball does pandor too much to tv (see the playoffs) and could stand to reduce the time between innings but making the umpires call a uniform strike zone rather than each umpire's interpretation of the strike zone would go along way to speeding up the game.

[ThaDocta]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

This blogger does not make one valid point in his post. Next time you go to a game live, let me know in between innings where they wait for the cameras to be ready. I'll save you the trouble, they don't. At least not at any games I've been to. This might be different in the playoffs, but I doubt it. The length of commercials has no bearing on when baseball is played, unlike in the NFL where they have a guy with big orange gloves on STANDING ON THE FIELD that tells the officials when they can start. The difference when you're there between the NFL and MLB is glaring. TV timeous in NFL interrupt the flow of the game. TV timeouts in baseball happen when guys are warming up on the field. Big freaking deal.

The issue with games taking too long can be attributed to a number of different things that add up over a game. Umps having small strike zones, batters stepping out, catchers having little pow wows with the pitcher, mound visits, the list goes on. Add that to the fact that there are FAR more pitching changes in today's game than in the arbitrary year of 1980 that random blog guy came up with, and voila, you get longer games. Bottom line is that the umpires don't move the game along as much as they could, and until they start enforcing the penalties that exist in the rules, it's going to stay the same. And honestly, I don't think the games are too long as it is, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The last thing we need is umpires to have another thing to randomly apply as they each personally see fit.

I think we've both been to plenty of games, and I guess it's a flaw of human perception that we see the same thing but reach a different conclusion. It looks to me like a lot of hanging around waiting for the inning to start. Do you actually believe there's no extra ball tossing while waiting for the commercial break?? There's extra time for sure, and they love it because it means $$$$$.

But I like a long game, so I don't mind the length.

[snepp]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

Because I'm bored...

Middle of the 1st inning, Twins and Royals on FSN North.

The time between the last pitch before the break and the first pitch after the break was 2:20, of which 1:20 was for commercials.


End of the first inning, about 2:10 between pitches, 1:35 for commercials.

[kehlis]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

Regarding your actual point, it makes no sense for the simple reason that no one is complaining about wanting to see more baseball. The complaint is that "games take too long". Meaning that if they start at 7:05 they go on to finish at 11:05. The complainers desire to start at 7:05 and finish sooner.

I still don't think you understand my point. I realize that the complaint is that games take too long. My argument has nothing to say towards the contrary...

There are two ways to have a game finish sooner: (1) make players play faster, or (2) reduce the number of commercials

I agree, but again, my point is that the commercials are based on the game, not the other way around. There are a lot of variables that determine the pace of any given game. The time in between innings isn't one of them.

The point of this thread is that I never hear anyone talking about commercials as part of the problem. It's always about batters stepping out, etc. In reality, the greed of MLB has sold more time to commercials and games are longer as a result.

There is a reason for that. As I mentioned previously, there are things that you can try and control, and things you can't. The time in between innings when we are watching commercials is static. It will not change, the things you hear mentioned are things that people think can be controlled.

There are things that are variable and things that aren't. Time in between innings cannot be changed, trying to control the game speed in between pitches can be.

For the record, I have no problem at all with the pace of games and actually enjoy it. I just don't agree at all that commercials are the reason.

[CMH]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

This is just a tired story. Every season we get this article from some new writer because someone complained about the length of a particular game early in the season.

I don't really get it. It's as if these writers only watch Red Sox vs. Yankees games and then think that the other 28 teams have long games too. Do they even look at the data? I bet no. They just see a series go a total of 12 hours long and assume that every series lasts that long.

Every basketball game I watch goes three hours. Every football game the same. Yet, it's baseball that gets the brunt of the argument about game length.

The amazing thing about this is the football watchers that say baseball is slow and boring and nothing ever happens. Those same people don't realize that nothing ever happens during a football game except for the 5 seconds during a play. But, this is why I don't really argue much when it comes to baseball. Most people that hate baseball want someone to make contact. They don't understand that hitting the ball into play is like the wide receiver that makes a catch a runs 5 yards up field before being taken down. Instead, they consider each pitch a waste of time as if each pitch isn't the game being played.

Baseball is just never understood.

[JBH3]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

This thread=fail. I personally love the length of a game. Going to a game is an escape, the longer the escape, the better.

[sb24]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

It looks to me like a lot of hanging around waiting for the inning to start. Do you actually believe there's no extra ball tossing while waiting for the commercial break?? There's extra time for sure, and they love it because it means $$$$$.

But I like a long game, so I don't mind the length.

Did/do you play baseball? I ask because the pros warm up faster than any other level. While playing AAU and high school ball we did all this throwing around you speak of and I can assure you it had nothing to do with TV. This is a part of baseball. Its not something they started to do for commercials its something that has always been done to my knowledge. Its just a great time to throw in commercials.

Extra ball tossing waiting to come back from a commercial? No I do not believe it.

[ehh]

Re: Are games too long? Why are they long?

You raise a really interesting point. In baseball, there is never a commercial break in the middle of play, which is AWESOME!! If it's a 20 minute half-inning, it's 20 minutes of uninterrupted baseball. But in the NFL (WWE), they have TV timeouts in the middle of a drive.

Until it's the late innings of Yanks/Sox and there are 47 pitching changes mid-inning.