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Started by corco, October 28, 2011, 12:45:13 AM

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Stephane Dumas

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 06, 2020, 08:13:35 PM

As much as I love hockey it will never surpass baseball in the American sports scene.  The only reason I probably even got into hockey was simply due to the fact that it was mainstream in Detroit and Canada. 

I think it's also mainstream in Chicago and Minnesota. The St. Louis Blues also have a good share of fans in Missouri and now they have a Stanley Cup championship. ;)


Max Rockatansky

Quote from: Stephane Dumas on June 07, 2020, 09:08:02 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on June 06, 2020, 08:13:35 PM

As much as I love hockey it will never surpass baseball in the American sports scene.  The only reason I probably even got into hockey was simply due to the fact that it was mainstream in Detroit and Canada. 

I think it's also mainstream in Chicago and Minnesota. The St. Louis Blues also have a good share of fans in Missouri and now they have a Stanley Cup championship. ;)


Very much mainstream in Chicago and Minnesota.  Black Hawks tickets were tough to get and I used to play pick up hockey with my cousins in Minnesota like you would pick up basketball anywhere else.  The Blues always had a decent following, but they almost always have a decent team. 

jp the roadgeek

I would say the I-70 corridor is the dividing line between hockey lovers and those that could care less (DC, Pittsburgh, Columbus, St. Louis, and Colorado being right on the line more or less).  Anything north of there is hockey territory, with exclaves in Nashville and Tampa-St. Pete.  MLS is a distant 5th, and is more of a niche sport in hockey areas, with the inverse being true in non-hockey areas; my friend in Houston wonders about the obsession with hockey, and hardly considers it a sport, while in New England (and where I am in CT, despite losing a franchise), it is probably 3rd ahead of the NBA (NFL and MLB being a close 1-2).     
Interstates I've clinched: 97, 290 (MA), 291 (CT), 291 (MA), 293, 295 (DE-NJ-PA), 295 (RI-MA), 384, 391, 395 (CT-MA), 395 (MD), 495 (DE), 610 (LA), 684, 691, 695 (MD), 695 (NY), 795 (MD)

Stephane Dumas

Quote from: jp the roadgeek on June 07, 2020, 10:56:45 AM
I would say the I-70 corridor is the dividing line between hockey lovers and those that could care less (DC, Pittsburgh, Columbus, St. Louis, and Colorado being right on the line more or less).  Anything north of there is hockey territory, with exclaves in Nashville and Tampa-St. Pete.  MLS is a distant 5th, and is more of a niche sport in hockey areas, with the inverse being true in non-hockey areas; my friend in Houston wonders about the obsession with hockey, and hardly considers it a sport, while in New England (and where I am in CT, despite losing a franchise), it is probably 3rd ahead of the NBA (NFL and MLB being a close 1-2).     

And to think there was a time when Houston got an hockey team with the WHA Aeros when Gordie Howe did his return on the game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2bKZcaN_JM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXUHeM9bOY

Back to baseball, if those players aren't satisfied enough, they should create their own league and it'll be fun to see how they'll feel when the shoe is in the other foot.

1995hoo

Ten years ago tonight, Stephen Strasburg made his major league debut by striking out 14 Pirates (and walking none) in seven innings. I was at that game. Great night. I was at the Nationals' first home opener in 2005, and as much fun as that was, I'd argue Strasburg's debut was the more electric night because it was about something specific to that team. In 2005, you could have put Charlie Brown's team out there and people would have gone nuts that we finally had baseball again.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

SEWIGuy

Quote from: Stephane Dumas on June 07, 2020, 04:38:24 PM
Back to baseball, if those players aren't satisfied enough, they should create their own league and it'll be fun to see how they'll feel when the shoe is in the other foot.

Satisfied enough?  You realize the owners are offering to pay them less per game than they would normally right?  They are pretty much the only major league that is doing that.

ftballfan

Quote from: webny99 on June 06, 2020, 12:22:44 PM
Yeah, it sure seems like NFL>NBA>MLB>NHL.

I'm not really a huge sports follower but it seems like the NBA has been on a upward trajectory, it certainly hasn't always been more popular than MLB, even going back 15-20 years it probably wasn't.

In Michigan, it seems to go NFL>MLB>NHL>NBA. The Lions, Tigers, and Red Wings have decent-sized radio networks. The Pistons, on the other hand, have the smallest radio network (and for years didn't have any radio affiliates north of Grand Rapids and the Saginaw area)

SEWIGuy

For those thinking the players are being greedy by wanting to be paid the full pro-rated amount of their salaries, read this...

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/59421/veteran-presence-thats-rich/

SEWIGuy

From an alleged memo from the PA to players today.  The union letter included other details in its summary of the meeting:

**Spring training would begin no later than June 28 for position players.
**The season would consist of 60 games, beginning July 19 or 20 and ending Sept. 27.
**Expanded postseason in 2020 and 2021, with a minimum players' pool of $25 million.
**100 percent prorated salaries (60 games would amount to about 37 percent of a 162-game season and salary)
**Designated hitter in both leagues in 2020 and 2021.
**Opt-out rights for high-risk individuals, as defined by the CDC.
**MLB would direct $10 million for social justice initiatives.
**Minimum' player commitments for broadcast elements, including the miking of players.
**Corporate advertising on uniforms in 2020 and 2021.
**Enhanced housing allowances for spring training and regular season.
**Mutual waiver of potential grievances under the March Agreement.

ftballfan

If the season happens, I would almost expect the Blue Jays to have to play their home games somewhere in the US (such as their spring training complex in Florida or at their AAA team's ballpark, which I think is in Buffalo)

Stephane Dumas

Quote from: ftballfan on June 20, 2020, 11:49:33 PM
If the season happens, I would almost expect the Blue Jays to have to play their home games somewhere in the US (such as their spring training complex in Florida or at their AAA team's ballpark, which I think is in Buffalo)

Yeah, the AAA Jays' farm team is currently the Buffalo Bisons. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Bisons

And ironically, Buffalo attempted in the past to attract the MLB.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-07-10/they-built-it-but-the-mlb-never-came
https://www.city-data.com/forum/buffalo-area/3029212-buffalo-almost-had-major-league-baseball.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20200430081420/https://buffalonews.com/2020/03/30/buffalo-sports-greatest-what-ifs-what-if-buffalo-awarded-major-league-baseball-team-news-opinion-fantasy-2020/

SEWIGuy

Quote from: Stephane Dumas on June 21, 2020, 09:35:49 AM
Quote from: ftballfan on June 20, 2020, 11:49:33 PM
If the season happens, I would almost expect the Blue Jays to have to play their home games somewhere in the US (such as their spring training complex in Florida or at their AAA team's ballpark, which I think is in Buffalo)

Yeah, the AAA Jays' farm team is currently the Buffalo Bisons. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Bisons

And ironically, Buffalo attempted in the past to attract the MLB.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-07-10/they-built-it-but-the-mlb-never-came
https://www.city-data.com/forum/buffalo-area/3029212-buffalo-almost-had-major-league-baseball.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20200430081420/https://buffalonews.com/2020/03/30/buffalo-sports-greatest-what-ifs-what-if-buffalo-awarded-major-league-baseball-team-news-opinion-fantasy-2020/


Those were the days where expansion played out so much more publically.  The MLB and NFL both expanded at about the same time, and the list of cities, finalists, etc. were all very public and the drama played out over time.

Anyway, a franchise in Buffalo would have been a terrible idea.  Denver was a slam dunk.  Miami has had its issues but it was a much better location than Buffalo would have been.

Stephane Dumas

Quote from: SEWIGuy on June 22, 2020, 11:35:06 AM
Those were the days where expansion played out so much more publically.  The MLB and NFL both expanded at about the same time, and the list of cities, finalists, etc. were all very public and the drama played out over time.

Anyway, a franchise in Buffalo would have been a terrible idea.  Denver was a slam dunk.  Miami has had its issues but it was a much better location than Buffalo would have been.

I guess the Buffalo curse is too strong, I wonder if that curse have an Achille's Heel?  There's even a book who mentionned it. https://books.google.ca/books?id=fsilCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA62&lpg=PA62&dq=buffalo+baseball+curse&source=bl&ots=Z7keyxN7xB&sig=ACfU3U096t1awOys4ZJ_3J7bcT49kKxxPA&hl=fr&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjxg7jCi5bqAhXvQjABHaPaCHIQ6AEwF3oECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=buffalo%20baseball%20curse&f=false

Henry

Well, the Bills lost four straight Super Bowls, and didn't the Sabres lose in the Stanley Cup Finals too? And the less said about the Braves-turned-Clippers, the better.
Go Cubs Go! Go Cubs Go! Hey Chicago, what do you say? The Cubs are gonna win today!

Stephane Dumas

Quote from: Henry on June 24, 2020, 11:02:28 AM
Well, the Bills lost four straight Super Bowls, and didn't the Sabres lose in the Stanley Cup Finals too? And the less said about the Braves-turned-Clippers, the better.

Yes, the Sabres lost the finals too twice (1975 and 1999) as well, one by a controversial goal done by Brett Hull in the 1999 finals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VWAtMxXVCs

Henry

Go Cubs Go! Go Cubs Go! Hey Chicago, what do you say? The Cubs are gonna win today!

ftballfan

Quote from: Henry on June 30, 2020, 09:34:15 PM
Count the minor league season as a casualty of the pandemic:

https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/29389693/baseball-minor-leagues-cancel-2020-seasons-due-coronavirus
Surprised it took this long to officially call it off. It had all but officially been called off a few weeks ago, if not earlier

mgk920

The Brewers' second stringers are training here in the Appleton, WI area (Class 'A' Brewers' affiliate Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' facilities).  The team itself is otherwise using their facilities for such things as showing outdoor movies, picnics, etc.

:no:

Mike

Duke87

I briefly watched a live baseball game in person today.

It was our local little league, which has begun play this weekend, but hey, it's baseball.
If you always take the same road, you will never see anything new.

MisterSG1

The Blue Jays got the go ahead to have training camp in Toronto. Which appears to allow them to skip the national 14 day quarantine.

I'm not entirely against this if the players are confined to the SkyDome Hotel, which is an advantage of this scenario as the SkyDome has a hotel attatched to it so the players never have to leave.

I would only agree to having Toronto be used in the season if the players on both teams are confined to the skydome hotel for their entire time in Canada, transport from airport will be directly to hotel and they cannot leave for any reason whatsoever.

You may think I'm being tough, but it"˜S fair to consider when you realize, Ontario with a population of around 14.5 million has consistently for the last two weeks, have almost all days with sub 200 new cases.

Many in this city are angry of the prospect of them playing here. This is in contrast to the NHL's hub cities model, in which players would have to clear the quarantine before playing any games presumably, and wouldn't require players to constantly hop over the border.

NWI_Irish96

MLB schedule just released. Teams play 10 games against each division opponent, but it's not a 5-5 home-away split, it's either 7-3 or 6-4. Teams play either 6, 4 or 3 games against the teams in their geographic counterpart division in the other league.
Indiana: counties 100%, highways 100%
Illinois: counties 100%, highways 61%
Michigan: counties 100%, highways 56%
Wisconsin: counties 86%, highways 23%

SEWIGuy

Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 06:55:06 PM
MLB schedule just released. Teams play 10 games against each division opponent, but it's not a 5-5 home-away split, it's either 7-3 or 6-4. Teams play either 6, 4 or 3 games against the teams in their geographic counterpart division in the other league.


That seems strange.  Why not just play five game series?  It limits travel.

NWI_Irish96

Quote from: SEWIGuy on July 06, 2020, 07:39:47 PM
Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 06:55:06 PM
MLB schedule just released. Teams play 10 games against each division opponent, but it's not a 5-5 home-away split, it's either 7-3 or 6-4. Teams play either 6, 4 or 3 games against the teams in their geographic counterpart division in the other league.


That seems strange.  Why not just play five game series?  It limits travel.

With 15-team leagues, some teams are always playing interleague series, and unless those are also all 5 games, it would make scheduling impossible.
Indiana: counties 100%, highways 100%
Illinois: counties 100%, highways 61%
Michigan: counties 100%, highways 56%
Wisconsin: counties 86%, highways 23%

SEWIGuy

Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 07:42:54 PM
Quote from: SEWIGuy on July 06, 2020, 07:39:47 PM
Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 06:55:06 PM
MLB schedule just released. Teams play 10 games against each division opponent, but it's not a 5-5 home-away split, it's either 7-3 or 6-4. Teams play either 6, 4 or 3 games against the teams in their geographic counterpart division in the other league.


That seems strange.  Why not just play five game series?  It limits travel.

With 15-team leagues, some teams are always playing interleague series, and unless those are also all 5 games, it would make scheduling impossible.


Excellent point.  Didn't think it all through obviously.

corco

Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 07:42:54 PM
Quote from: SEWIGuy on July 06, 2020, 07:39:47 PM
Quote from: cabiness42 on July 06, 2020, 06:55:06 PM
MLB schedule just released. Teams play 10 games against each division opponent, but it's not a 5-5 home-away split, it's either 7-3 or 6-4. Teams play either 6, 4 or 3 games against the teams in their geographic counterpart division in the other league.


That seems strange.  Why not just play five game series?  It limits travel.

With 15-team leagues, some teams are always playing interleague series, and unless those are also all 5 games, it would make scheduling impossible.

They're effectively playing in a 10 team league this year though



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