PABaseball posted:fenwaysouth posted:Dominik85 and PABaseball,
Thank you for making my point. You (and me) are not the people that MLB needs to targeting. You are not in your teens, twentys or thirties. Every major sport is modernizing, automating and transforming their business to compete with other major sports to their existing fanbase and trying to bring new ones into the fold. I gave you my example of tennis, although I would consider tennis a major world sport...it is not a major sport in the United States. Yes, tennis is progressive and probably ahead of the curve. The game is fast and there is a lot of money on the line through sponsorships and prize money. Nobody wanted bad line calls (especially on 140+ mph serves) and there could be no suggestion of line calls being influenced by others...betting is allowed in Europe. I can name a half dozen really bad line calls in major championships before the ATP and WTA agreed to implement video and computer line calls. 80% right is not good enough period.... in any professional sport. Let's give professional athletes the best possible system not the same system we have in sandlots and Little League fields. This is absolutely ridiculous to me. I happen to love both tennis and baseball, but they are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Baseball doesn't realize it has a problem...20% of the time. Tennis knew it had a problem and did something about it. I'd really like to know what the younger professional baseball players at all levels would (honestly) think if they could have a predictable, and accurate strike zone (based on their specific dimensions) 100% of the time or if they prefer 80%.
As always, JMO.
I'll be the first to admit baseball has an audience problem, can't deny that. But automating umpires is not the solution to the problem. Technology within the confines of the game is not the solution. I understand what you're saying, introduce technology to familiarize people with it. But technology or the lack of technology is not where baseball is failing.
Baseball's biggest problem does not involve technology or social media. They are doing everything the NBA and NFL does. Baseball's problem can be traced all the way down to little league, parenting and club baseball. Not enough kids are playing, not enough parents are involved/invested, and there are too many 8u travel teams.
Without going down that route too much and trying to stay on topic...I will agree that 80% is not enough. That being said, it's one study. MLB needs to run their own study and address the results, however poor they might be. Reestablish the strike zone with umpires and give them two years to fix or or they will move on with either replacements or an Ezone.
But for the people who say baseball desperately needs an electronic zone are misguided.
FWIW - I will admit I would rather umpires get the call wrong 60% of the time than see an electronic strike zone. Changing a game, that doesn't necessarily need fixing, due to social pressure doesn't really sit well with me. Pandering to cries from the vocal minority is not how you deal with problems. If they did a study and said hey our umps suck we're making a change...different story.
PABB - I will tell you what I really am sick of - the endless whining by pitchers, hitters and coaches about balls & strikes. All the chatter out here doesn't really effect me at all.
To illustrate - does anyone really miss the Manager charging out of a dugout, screaming at an umpire, who walks up the 1st base line and after couple of minutes chucks the guy which then allows him to really go off and kick dirt, throw bases and all the other horse crap that used to happen? Or is it better to have the guy stay in the dugout, hold his hand up for 15 seconds, and either protest the call or the game moves on? I do not miss these Earl Weaver-ish tirades.
Fenway makes the point about tennis lines - John McEnroe was a 1st rate butthead and ending that type of nonsense - worth it.
Anything....ANYTHING that stops the chirping is a good idea IMO with this single caveat - it doesn't stop the game for an lengthy period. To the extent the players and managers accept the solution - so will everyone else.