MLB Off-Topic

[Majingir]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

It's easy to forget how loaded that 94 Expos team was.

Pedro
Larry Walker
Cliff Floyd
Rondell White
Moises Alou
Marquis Grissom
Ken Hill
John Wetteland
Jeff Shaw

...insane talent.

Had the 94 season played out, I think the Expos would still be here today, or at the very least, not moved after 2004. WS for Expos would've meant so much more money for the franchise, lots more dedicated fan support, and maybe they might have been able to keep their 94 team together.

I don't think a lot of people realize what a huge baseball town Montreal is.
I think MLB would do extremely well. Especially if they had a new park to play in.

Not just a new ballpark, but if they have proper ownership, they could be real good too. TV in general has changed so much too in Canada. If Expos were brought back, they'd have 2 big networks fighting over broadcasting their games, both of which having multiple channels to broadcast games on(compared to Expos old days,where each network only even had 1 channel).

Since Rogers owns the Jays,Bell might consider owning the Expos,and putting them on TSN to rival Rogers/Jays. Not to mention they also own their own radio station,so you instantly have TV/Radio deals lined up right away.

If someone wanted to make a serious proposal,they really could,and it probably would gain lots of traction. A deal in which you have TV/Radio partner already,along with plans for a new stadium, and proven fan interest, would lead to one promising proposal.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

In that book, Keri is an unapologetic homer.
To say he was a diehard fan would be an understatement. As a young kid, he'd spend his allowance on Expos tickets.
He and his buddies even cried after hard losses or when players were traded off.

One of the funnier stories was after Rick Monday knocked the Expos out of the playoffs in '81, he went to a Montreal restaurant during the 1982 season.
A waitress told him they didn't want any fights and asked him to leave.
Monday replied "I'm not going to start any fights?!", at which point the waitress pointed to a table of very angry looking patrons and said "You might not, but those guys will if you don't leave".

I don't think a lot of people realize what a huge baseball town Montreal is.
I think MLB would do extremely well. Especially if they had a new park to play in.

That anecdote was in the special last night.

Really good special last night. Seemed like more of a "celebration" than an "explanation" of why things went south.

[Speedy]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

Your last point Matrix was my thought and why I thought it was midly disappointing. I was hoping to hear more of a documentary about the turnings in Montreal versus how eccentric the town and baseball was to the rest of MLB.

I'm not so certain though that they can hold a long standing and profitable franchise, still. Drawing a near 100K in exhibition games is one thing but can Montreal truly expect those fans to be regulars and baseball not seen as a novelty? Their economy has been in decline for a decade, even when considering it's the 2nd largest city in Canada.

Bring an expansion team would be a deathtrap...however, I think Montreal is a better place than Tampa as that's the only reason I would ever consider placing a franchise there. The good thing about Montreal was that when the team won, their fans showed up...the same cannot be said about Tampa.

That's my thoughts and maybe I'm completely off though.

[Majingir]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

But even if they're a bad team,being in a division with jays,red sox and yankees could at least give an extra boost in attendance. Any other city, i think just sox and yankees might be the for sure big draws, but montreal,you add the jays factor which could be a bonus since the boost goes both ways.

Unless there's some other location which would have Os as a for sure big draw regardless if the team is good or bad, Montreal might be best attendance choice as far as AL East goes.

Only other option i could see is moving Tigers back to al east, and rays relocate to some central location. Though dont know where would be good,or able to draw big numbers vs sox,indians,royals and/or twins.

[Money99]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

Your last point Matrix was my thought and why I thought it was midly disappointing. I was hoping to hear more of a documentary about the turnings in Montreal versus how eccentric the town and baseball was to the rest of MLB.

I'm not so certain though that they can hold a long standing and profitable franchise, still. Drawing a near 100K in exhibition games is one thing but can Montreal truly expect those fans to be regulars and baseball not seen as a novelty? Their economy has been in decline for a decade, even when considering it's the 2nd largest city in Canada.

Bring an expansion team would be a deathtrap...however, I think Montreal is a better place than Tampa as that's the only reason I would ever consider placing a franchise there. The good thing about Montreal was that when the team won, their fans showed up...the same cannot be said about Tampa.

That's my thoughts and maybe I'm completely off though.

I'm no expert, but in the book I mentioned by Johan Keri makes reference to the attendance and how great it was even in seasons where things went south or the team was rebuilding.
And all of this took place in a terrible park that had a very poor location.

Your last points are valid as well as the city certainly embraced the team when they were doing well. Not sure what's going on in Tampa, but it appears the fanbase is very weak.

Even with a weak CDN dollar, I truly believe the Expos can be successful.
Since their relocation, the national TV deals have been insane. And I'm sure they'd have a better local TV and radio deal in place as well (near the end, the Expos were asked to PAY in order to have their games broadcast on the radio).
Not to mention revenue sharing.

I also agree that having a team relocated there is a much better option, but I think an expansion team could work.
IMO, I think 30 teams is the max for any league, with maybe the NFL as an exception. But even they seem to always have 1 or 2 franchises strugg-a-ling.
Just move the Rays already.

BTW, it drives me nuts when I read about these fantastic documentary's on MLBN. I can't get that channel because of where I live!
Rogers needs to make it available to all CDN providers!!! You can get Sportsnet with Bell, Cogeco, etc, why can't we get the stinking MLBN as well!?!?

[Money99]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

MLB studying shrinking the strike zone:

http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2016/01/26/ap-mlb-studying-raise-strike-zones-bottom/

Major League Baseball is studying whether to raise the bottom of the strike zone from the hollow beneath the kneecap back to the top of the kneecap.

“I’m not in a position to predict whether it’s going to happen or not,” Rob Manfred said during an interview with The Associated Press on Monday on his first anniversary as baseball commissioner. “I think that the interest in the topic is really driven by the fact that if you look over time there has been a movement down of the strike zone, largely as a result of the way we evaluate the strike zone with umpires.”

[Money99]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

From the same blog:

http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2016/01/26/ap-mlb-studying-raise-strike-zones-bottom/

SHORTENED SEASON

Whether to shorten the season from 162 games, its length since the early 1960s, is a topic for collective bargaining.

“The broadcast agreements are a really serious issue, and we’re going to sort out what flexibility we have once the issue gets aired at the table,” Manfred said.

While he is concerned about the demands on players, “by the same token, there are certain economics built on a 162-game season. Something less than that has massive economic ramifications, not to even mention statistics and undermining the comparability of performances of players over time. It’s not something you can undertake lightly.”

To me, this is a non-issue. Or maybe not as big a deal.
The stats is one issue. How to compare 154 to 162. Considering most of MLB's life, they were playing less than 162, this isn't a question of breaking some huge tradition.
Also, not too many players get in a full 162 anyway. Most healthy players are around 155 or so.

The bigger issue, as Manfred stated, is economic.
The TV deals are enormous and they want 162 games.
The other issue is player salaries. Would the players take a 5% paycut? Doesn't seem like much, but the union might have something to say about it.

I still think they should go back to 154. I adore baseball, but I don't think any WS game should be played in November or close to it.

[areobee401]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

New Spring Training caps.

http://www.mlb.com/photos/gallery.js...id=mlb&imgId=6

Some goodies in there.

Edit - Closer look w/ jerseys and patches.

http://news.sportslogos.net/2016/01/...-mlb-for-2016/

[The Kid 24]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

From the same blog:

http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2016/01/26/ap-mlb-studying-raise-strike-zones-bottom/

To me, this is a non-issue. Or maybe not as big a deal.
The stats is one issue. How to compare 154 to 162. Considering most of MLB's life, they were playing less than 162, this isn't a question of breaking some huge tradition.
Also, not too many players get in a full 162 anyway. Most healthy players are around 155 or so.

The bigger issue, as Manfred stated, is economic.
The TV deals are enormous and they want 162 games.
The other issue is player salaries. Would the players take a 5% paycut? Doesn't seem like much, but the union might have something to say about it.

I still think they should go back to 154. I adore baseball, but I don't think any WS game should be played in November or close to it.

Definitely agree, I love the game of Baseball very much... But it's supposed to be played in the warm months!

[Majingir]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

New Spring Training caps.

http://www.mlb.com/photos/gallery.js...id=mlb&imgId=6

Some goodies in there.

Edit - Closer look w/ jerseys and patches.

http://news.sportslogos.net/2016/01/...-mlb-for-2016/

Jays one is weird. A black maple leaf hat? Doesn't fit at all with the team. The Black Jays era is one that fans hate.

Should've gone with the white panel hats fans love(and players love too,its most guys hat of choice during practice),or just combination of white panel + red maple leaf hat

[Scott]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

I like the one for Texas...

[Sportsforever]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

I picked up TSN Yearbook and for the first time in...well ever, I immediately turned to the Minor League system rankings instead of straight to the Braves. Lo and behold, they have the Braves system ranked #1 in baseball, a jump from #22 just a year ago.

I know people scoff at prospects (they are prospects after all), but the Astros and Cubs are the teams that have held that #1 spot over the last 5 years and we see how that's turning out. Here's hoping it works for my Bravos...

[redsox4evur]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

I picked up TSN Yearbook and for the first time in...well ever, I immediately turned to the Minor League system rankings instead of straight to the Braves. Lo and behold, they have the Braves system ranked #1 in baseball, a jump from #22 just a year ago.

I know people scoff at prospects (they are prospects after all), but the Astros and Cubs are the teams that have held that #1 spot over the last 5 years and we see how that's turning out. Here's hoping it works for my Bravos...

Really??? The Stros and Cubs? I'm pretty sure the Red Sox have held that spot as well.

[Sportsforever]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

Really??? The Stros and Cubs? I'm pretty sure the Red Sox have held that spot as well.

I just looked back to 2011...at least with TSN the Red Sox have never been #1. The last few #1's for TSN have been the Cubs, Cubs, Astros, Pirates, Rays.

This year they have the Red Sox at #5. FWIW, TSN picks the Red Sox over the Giants in the Series...

[SPTO]

Re: MLB Off-Topic

Jays one is weird. A black maple leaf hat? Doesn't fit at all with the team. The Black Jays era is one that fans hate.

Should've gone with the white panel hats fans love(and players love too,its most guys hat of choice during practice),or just combination of white panel + red maple leaf hat

First of all, that's not black, it's navy. Secondly, I agree with your sentiments. I would've gone with the white panel hats but maybe that might become a regular season alternate in a year or two.

I would be fine with this cap if the maple leaf was red or there was a red outline around it.