Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

[Sportsforever]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

I was looking over the schedules and with interleague play going on all year I figured there would be more games against the other league, but that isn't the case. It seems teams are playing 20-21 interleague games, which isn't much different than what they were playing...it's just not broken into two 'periods'.

I didn't realize that they would still be playing so few games...shouldn't be a big deal.

[snepp]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

*snip*

I didn't realize that they would still be playing so few games...shouldn't be a big deal.

Yeah, that's been a pretty common misconception about the new alignment.

[dodgerblue]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

I think realignment makes the interleague schedule more fair. For the most part, teams from the same division will be playing the same interleague schedule except for the "rivalry" matchup.

I'd like to see them dump the DH altogether, although we know that's not going to happen.

Also I like the extra WC but would like a best of 3 instead of just one.

Also, tighten up the drug testing and continue getting the game cleaned up. If we go back to the types of performances from the 60's 70's and early 80's so be it. The game was great!

[Ed26]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

i like the way baseball is headed. If i were commissioner here are some of the changes that i would do:

1- Shrink the baseball season back to 154.

2- i'll keep the 5 wild cards team, but the Wild card would be a series of 3 games, all played on the #4 team turf.

3- I would add a fifth ump. He would be on the booth checking for the replays, when is used.

4- expansion of replays. Everything is repayable except stikes and balls. Each team would have 2 replays call up until the 8th inn. In the 9inn every questionable call should be replayed, again except for strikes and balls.

5- I really like the NL rule set of the P hitting, but i know a lot of ppl don't like it. So i would add DH in the NL.

6- i would start the season around March 20 and end it around Sept 15. Wild Card games start on the 16. NLDS/ALDS starts Sept 19.

7- The last 12 games are played in 12 days, no breaks. This way the Wild card teams would play 15 games without break before heading to the ALDS/NLDS and have somewhat of a disadvantage in the ALDS/NLDS.

[Money99]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

I'm kind of a new fan to MLB.
I loved baseball when I was a kid, but then when I hit teenage years I kind of lost my love for the game (had more to do with my experience playing little league).

But over the past few years, my love for MLB has come back in full force.
The only reason I bored everyone with that little tidbit is that I'm giving my opinion based more on a 'new' fan than a long-time fan.

Saying that, I love all the new changes.
I hope that one day the NL will incorporate the DH as well.
But one thing I would really love is if they went back to 2 conferences per league.
(Actually, I wish they did this for all sports, especially the NHL).

[Perfect Zero]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

4- expansion of replays. Everything is repayable except stikes and balls. Each team would have 2 replays call up until the 8th inn. In the 9inn every questionable call should be replayed, again except for strikes and balls.

I know this deviates from the topic, but why are you advocating for this model? Wouldn't it be better if they got the calls right all of the time?

[Majingir]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

I don't like how certain AL-NL matchups happen every year, seems abit unfair at times. Unfair to the team in the AL(or NL) who doesn't get to face that specific team in interleague play(if that team might be a bad one), and unfair to the team in the AL(or NL) who isn't that great,but always gets matched up against a great team in other league.


Mets-Yankees for example. It's a matchup that happens every single year(one in each ballpark), yet since 1997, Yankees have only lost the series 2 times(meaning in 16 seasons,14 of them the Yankees haven't lost the series. 14/16 of those seasons they played 6 games against each other). Seems abit unfair to all those other AL teams out there who only get to face the Mets 1 series every few years(and it's not even guarantee it'll be a home series), and unfair to Mets who are forced to face the Yankees(and not win the series) basically every single year.

[Ed26]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

I know this deviates from the topic, but why are you advocating for this model? Wouldn't it be better if they got the calls right all of the time?

yeah, i know that getting every call right is better, but how many bad calls occur during a game? not many excluding balls and strike. if you don't have a limit managers will abuse the system, making the game way longer.

I know that getting every call right is the best option, but it wont happen until we have the technology that allow us to determine if the call was right in less than 15 sec.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

yeah, i know that getting every call right is better, but how many bad calls occur during a game? not many excluding balls and strike. if you don't have a limit managers will abuse the system, making the game way longer.

I know that getting every call right is the best option, but it wont happen until we have the technology that allow us to determine if the call was right in less than 15 sec.

Okay I kinda see where you are going with this. A model I would advocate would be to not let the managers have a say at all and let a fifth umpire have a direct line with the crew chief. It would also get rid of having everybody go into the dugout.

[jamie1981]

The only thing I still have a problem with is the unbalanced payrolls. I know there is a little more parity now than there was before but can teams like the Royals and Pirates ever truly compete? With that being said, I've gotten back into baseball after years of indifference.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

The only thing I still have a problem with is the unbalanced payrolls. I know there is a little more parity now than there was before but can teams like the Royals and Pirates ever truly compete? With that being said, I've gotten back into baseball after years of indifference.

It hasn't helped the Browns, Raiders, and Lions of Pro Football.

[jamie1981]

It hasn't helped the Browns, Raiders, and Lions of Pro Football.

Good point but they are just, for whatever reason, terrible NFL franchises

[Majingir]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

It hasn't helped the Browns, Raiders, and Lions of Pro Football.

Some teams are just poorly managed and can't recover from it.

Blue Jays could be eye opening team for sure. If they are successful, maybe people really do have to start considering how much of an impact payrolls do have on a teams ability to have success. Cause Jays were around an average payroll team for past 10-15 years, and have been around an average MLB team for that same amount of time, then suddenly the 1 season they increase in payroll, they suddenly became great.

If they don't do as great, then that'll go to show how good management is more important over big payrolls.

But in sports, at times it seems like it's hard to have both. Some teams might have good management/players, but eventually those players start wanting huge contracts and go elsewhere. But then teams they do get those big contract players, don't do as good as you'd expect.

Though to be fair, look at a team like Yankees. They're one of highest payrolls in MLB for at least past decade, and look at how that payroll has translated into good teams. It just sucks though when the ONLY reason a good player leaves a city is cause of money. Whether it's cause the player wants more than the team wants to give them, or the team WANTS to give the player what they want, but just can't afford it. And then the same cities(not just teams,CITIES) get those big players.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

Good point but they are just, for whatever reason, terrible NFL franchises

The same could be said about the Royals and Pirates. That's not to say that there isn't any improvement (in fact, I think the Pirates are positioning themselves to be a dangerous team), but they haven't made wise decisions in the past.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: Are you happy with the direction of baseball?

Good point but they are just, for whatever reason, terrible NFL franchises

That's the point, that it's not necessarily about money/unbalanced payrolls so much as it is awful management.