Unpopular Opinions (sports edition)

[1995hoo]

A no-hitter is not necessarily a shutout. The other team can get a runner on base via a means other than a hit and then advance him around to score in other ways (stolen base, ball, error, sacrifice fly/bunt, etc.).

It's not even necessarily a win. There are a few games where a team has given up zero hits and lost, though only two are nine-inning no-hitters (since the home team doesn't bat in the ninth if they're winning) and only one was a single-pitcher nine-inning no-hitter.

Absolutely correct. I didn't mention that because the comment to which I was responding referred to a shutout.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

A no-hitter is not necessarily a shutout. The other team can get a runner on base via a means other than a hit and then advance him around to score in other ways (stolen base, ball, error, sacrifice fly/bunt, etc.).

It's not even necessarily a win. There are a few games where a team has given up zero hits and lost, though only two are nine-inning no-hitters (since the home team doesn't bat in the ninth if they're winning) and only one was a single-pitcher nine-inning no-hitter.

Then in that case it's just a magnificently pitched game where the pitchers happened to give up 0 hits, it is not a no-hitter unless 1 pitcher does it, I do make exceptions for injuries and ejections, or if it happens during the All-Star Game. Why take a pitcher out if they are throwing a no-hitter?

[kphoger]

magnificently pitched game where the pitchers happened to give up 0 hits

That really rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

magnificently pitched game where the pitchers happened to give up 0 hits

That really rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

Yes!

[formulanone]

magnificently pitched game where the pitchers happened to give up 0 hits

That really rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

Yes!

I thought it in Vin Scully's voice.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

magnificently pitched game where the pitchers happened to give up 0 hits

That really rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

Yes!

I thought it in Vin Scully's voice.

I can picture it too

[1995hoo]

You can't convince me that the Babe Ruth/Ernie Shore game was not a no-hitter. (For those unfamiliar: Ruth was the starting pitcher. He walked the leadoff batter and was ejected for arguing balls and strikes. Shore came in, caught the runner stealing, and retired the next 26 batters.)

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

@1995hoo That Ruth/Shore no-hitter is the reason why I make exceptions for injuries and ejections such as the Oswalt/Munro/Saarloos/Lidge/Dotel/Wagner no-hitter is also an actual no-hitter in my opinion due to Oswalt getting injured in the 2nd Inning

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

MLB is the only real All-Star Game

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

The Superbowl should be more about football instead of a holiday

[LilianaUwU]

The Superbowl should be more about football instead of a holiday

I don't think it's that unpopular of an opinion to have.

[SP Cook]

Uniforms - I would be OK with the idea, except in baseball, it would be OK for both teams to wear colors and only use white when both are too similar.  That used to be the practice in college football until TV came in, which made one team in white necessary since most any color shows up as grey on a B&W TV. 

Baseball should be green grass, blue skies, and white uniforms.  Home team wears white.  E V E R Y day.  No "city connect" no black out alternates, no throw backs, no colored tops, and certainly no blues.  About a third of the league wore light blue, called "victory blue" back in the 70s and 80s, as an alternate AWAY uniform rather than grey, until it died out.  Now some teams, like the Phillies, Blue Jays and Cardinals are wearing these as HOME "throw backs" uniforms.  Learn history.

All-Stars - I agree.  The baseball all star game is 10000 times better than any other, because baseball can play a straight game with no modifications needed.  The NFL was right to just quit trying.  The NBA should copy the NHL and just go with USA vs. not USA.  The NHL is fine, but USA-Canada-Sweden-Everybody Else would be better, no one should miss the all star game because of his nationality. 

Soccer - The affectatious use of British English terms like "pitch" (field), "in to touch" (out of bounds) etc. is part of the reason soccer will always be viewed as foreign to the USA.  I have been working on my Spanish and watching on Peacock. 

Super Bowl - I said long ago in this thread that the NFL would eventually go to the $$ well once too often.  I still believe that. 

The "hydration breaks" are TV time outs.  Nothing more.

The mismatches we are seeing is because they have too many teams in the finals.  48, which is about one third of the counties in the world leaving out microstates and such, is just too many.   About 12 of 16 should have been eliminated in more rounds of qualification.

Golf - The "LIV" golf failure is just so satisfying to me.  Seeing these greedy ba****s humiliated is just so great.  Golf was a wonderful system is no real owners and all of the profits going to charity, all the while making the players quite wealthy.  But no, these losers had to make yet more millions, pulling the ladder the next generation would have used up behind them.  And it failed.  Totally.  So wonderful.  Especially seeing Mickelson's collapse is so great.  He could have, he had the skills and popularity, been the color commentary guy for the next 20 years.  When it ends, BAN THEM ALL FOR LIFE. 

Hockey - I am tired of the easy drive by commentary about "warm weather" cities and the NHL.  OK, there are no iced over ponds in Florida or North Carolina or Nevada.  OK.  And?  You play football  and baseball, and most other outdoor sports on grass.  No one ever comments that there are places like Las Vegas, Phoenix, and for that matter if you way back before the Bureau of Reclamation, LA and San Diego, where there is no native grass.  You play basketball on hard maple. Which is grown only in the northeast and midwest (and eastern Canada).  No where south of Tennessee or west of Minnesota.  No one ever says "how can you have a basketball team in Texas or California, there are no maple trees there".