High School Baseball Popularity?

Its because they all think baseball is *** and they dont understand it or whatever.They go to where all the girls and their friends are going on a friday night which is football and basketball game. We dont get many and we are 500 team or so. Most dont see it as a sport when most athletes can pick up a basketball or football and be good and cant pick up a bat and glove and they stink lol rough opinion

That's just how it is. It's the same reason that the only college baseball games on TV are playoffs. Same reason the MLB draft is the least viewed out of the three major sports. Basketball is much quicker and easy to get into the game. It's also easy to recognize a player and cheer. Baseball is harder for student to enjoy that don't love baseball because at times, even in 2-1 game in the last few innings, you can't feel the sense of urgency like you can in basketball.

Baseball is the redheaded step child because it is not an easy sport. The skills needed are very difficult to master and the knowledge of what to do, when to do it and how to do it are much harder than other sports. I'm glad this is a baseball message board because what I am about to put has got me blasted and ridiculed in the past but baseball takes the most skill out of all of the sports.

I could take 5 of my guys and put on the basketball court and probably come close to beating our high school basketball team. But if anyone of the basketball players stepped foot in the batters box against my number 4 pitcher he would look silly. And let's not even think about watching them catch a ball and then try to throw it to any base.

Baseball at my school gets so little respect it makes me want to puke. We haven't won a football game in two years and we are not that good in basketball. Yet the baseball team beat 4 teams in our top 25 (all classifications) including the number 4 team in the state with a freshman pitching. In the past 8 years I have put more kids into college playing baseball than all the other sports put together. I have more and more kids who want to try out for baseball every year but the numbers in the other sports are dwindling.

Baseball is a game that takes special people who are athletic and intelligent. It is the ultimate team game where you can be an individual in most cases. Football is the ultimate team game where all have to be on the same page and basketball is becoming such an individual game.

Sorry I just have a chip on my shoulder tonight.

I don't remember it being any other way. We drew 5,000 for football, about 3,000 for basketball and friends and family for baseball. When I was in junior high more kids came to the basketball games than the high school baseball games.

Also, high school football is played on Friday night. That makes it a social event. Basketball is played on Tuesday and Friday night. Once again Friday night is a social event. Baseball is played in the afternoon. A lot of kids possibly interested in coming are at their own practices or games.

Some of the best attended games my high school had were summer night games under the lights. The field was very visible and easy to get to, and people from the surrounding area knew that if the lights were on that night there was a game. They would usually stop on by, but it was nothing like football or basketball games. In the past 5 years, that baseball team has 4 state championships (3A, Nevada goes up to 4A) and has had multiple players graduate every year and go on to play in college. Basketball has been successful winning many state titles in the same span, but only a few kids playing in college. Football, the best attended, hasn't won a championship at all in its history, and I can't recall any players going on to play collegiately. Yet it gets by far the most attention.

While I love playing the game and watching the individual performances, the game of baseball is not a fan friendly game. There can be periods of time that NOTHING exciting happens for the casual fan. Sometimes the less eventful games end up being the “better” games for the true baseball fan. A pitcher can have a perfect game in progress and the game appears boring to the casual observer. I remember my son pitched a perfect game in high school and I was unaware it was a perfect game until the last inning. The only fan response was when he retired the last batter. Basketball and football both have an added dimension that baseball lacks --- the “clock”. Football is like a “Tug-O-War contest. Not too hard to figure out where both teams stand at any given time. You can hear the grunts and smell the participants. Basketball is easy to follow: 2 for them 2 for us and is very fast paced. Pre-schoolers to old people have no problem following a basketball game. Basketball players are easily identified by their different tattoos. Post office pictures make many basketball players easily recognizable. Instead of fireworks, basketball players participate in a player fashion show after each game.
Fungo

I guess it is the area that it is in. Around here, fans are loud and support their teams. So many of the kids grew up playing with and against each others in leagues and in all-stars, that the rivalries start early.

It's Sesame Street and Big Bird's fault. Shows like that where they have segments that are about 30 - 45 seconds long decrease a child's attention span. That carries over into young adulthood and that explains why when they are in the classroom you cannot teach them you have to entertain them.

Now that their attention spans are destroyed when it comes to baseball they are useless. To sit through a game where, like Fungo says, there are long stretches of "nothing" going on is torture for most high school kids. The ones who can handle are probably on the field. Since it's impossible to get them to pay attention in the classroom how in the world can we expect them to pay attention at a baseball game.

If we knew Big Bird was going to do this back in the day I am sure society would have done something about it then.

My son's high school games can have a few hundred in attendance. Things get spiced up with the presence of an elderly man who is the self-designated yell leader for the team. In between innings, he walks over to the crowd and starts yelling at people to get into the game. He lets a few cuss words fly occasionally. He repeatedly leads the crowd in "Two bits, 4 bits" cheers and his voice BOOMS above all the others.

I have heard that this year during district play, the school's varsity cheerleaders will be in attendance. Now that should make for some interesting baseball!

Our varsity team usually plays at 3:30 pm and draws about 35 people o the game. Last year we played one game under the lights at 7:00 pm on a Friday and drew about 150 peope to the game indluding quite a few students. I spoke to several adults who don't regularly attend the game asked them why they came, the general consensus was "I love baseball, saw the lights on and decided to come check it out". Maybe reguar Friday night games would be even more popular. The game was a 14 inning barn burner with the home team winning 10-9.

This might draw a few more fans:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TMYCw6-fmM

Maybe the STL area is a little different...

My son pitched in a district championship game two years ago. It was an "away" game, yet over 400 fans were there supporting his team...I estimate maybe 150 were students. The home team had an even larger contingent of fans. His school has a little over 1000 students.

More do attend each of the football games, but overall, due to the discrepency in number of games played between football (less than a dozen) and baseball (about 35), I would think the overall attendance is comparable.

quote:

Originally posted by coach2709:
I'm glad this is a baseball message board because what I am about to put has got me blasted and ridiculed in the past but baseball takes the most skill out of all of the sports.

Not blasting you at all because I love Baseball and that is all my son's do now, but at one time this is what we did and it has to be as difficult if not more to master

Hence we now play baseball again.

Threeboysdad I was actually referring to football and basketball and you are right. Those X - games guys are freaks of nature with their skill and daring. I love watching that stuff.

I know that this started as a discussion of attendance at games, it think that there is a bigger problem. That is the number of kids playing the game.

Over the past 8-10 years participation is down (at least in our area). While I can't quote an authoritative study, I can give antidodal evidence.

The number of rec league programs in our area have shrunk, either programs folding, number of teams reduced or just unable to field competitive teams.

At my son's HS the year he was freshman (7-years ago) 85 kids tried out for the freshman team. This year it was down to 45.

Last season I went to several of the "average public school" teams games. What I saw were "varsity" teams with 12-16 kids with half of them being underclassmen. The quality of baseball was awful. This isn't universal,but it is indicative of a deterioration of the sport.

Skip attendance at HS games, the game itself is shrinking.

High school baseball games are no fun because of the parents most often.

If the other side has a loud supportive crowd, the other team parents complain that their kids are being intimidated.

If a player makes a bone head play or error and the home crowd boo's, the kid's parents are getting crazy in defense of their kid.

If a kid hits a homer and the fans cheer the other team's coach complains that the crowd is threatening his players.

There are too many adult egos at the games to let the games be enjoyable.

Imagine if the umpire's families all came to games.

quote:

Post office pictures make many basketball players easily recognizable.

Nice one Fungo.

fungo nailed it

Three years ago in Maine the state championship was Mark Roger's team (5th pick in the draft by the Brewers) versus Ryan Flaherty's (Vanderbilt SS and rated SS prospect) and several other D1 prospect's team. The game was played at Hadlock Field, the home of the Portland Seadogs (Red Sox AA). The stadium holds 8,500. It was sold out a day after tickets went on sale. Maine is Sox country. They love their baseball.

quote:

Originally posted by coach2709:
Threeboysdad I was actually referring to football and basketball and you are right. Those X - games guys are freaks of nature with their skill and daring. I love watching that stuff.

I knew you were, I just had to throw that in.

The crowds at our high school games fluctuate greatly depending on weather and day of the week.

One factor: There's a bit of a love/hate relationship with baseball. Around here, I think baseball or softball for most kids was their first love. So many T-ballers! Eventually for 99% of them the game became too difficult and they dropped out or were forced out. Now there's nine guys on that field they knew from T-Ball or some other youth team and it's too painful to watch because they wish they were there themselves.

By the way.. I kind of disagree witht the posters who say out-of-control parents and coaches drive away the fans. Some of my favorite baseball memories are of the coach vs. umpire or parent vs. the coach variety. Never do I take part in that stuff but I'll admit I get a big chuckle out of the drama and people making fools of themselves. It's a time-honored baseball tradition!

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Fool? What fool? Whatever are you talking about Bum?




Everyone now! And a one, and a two...

"Oh Susanna, don't you laugh at me..."


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..cuz I come from West Chicago
and I do slap-stick on T.V.

RJM
*Quote*Also, high school football is played on Friday night. That makes it a social event. Basketball is played on Tuesday and Friday night. Once again Friday night is a social event. Baseball is played in the afternoon. A lot of kids possibly interested in coming are at their own practices or games.[/QUOTE]

I agree, Play the game in a gym in the winter on a friday night. It would fill up the stands to.
EH

Fungo said: While I love playing the game and watching the individual performances, the game of baseball is not a fan friendly game. There can be periods of time that NOTHING exciting happens for the casual fan. Sometimes the less eventful games end up being the “better” games for the true baseball fan
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The fan outcome of most complaints has to do with length of time it takes to play the game with so little activity. With the game moving to pitchers who throw "heat" and long ball mania that usually turns into one-two-three innings it is no wonder that people become bored with baseball.

The beauty of baseball is the connectivity in watching things like the fluidity of the GIDP of the middle in field, and fielding ballet that takes place with the 9-4-5 play that gets out the sliding runner at third. But the movement away from higher scoring games in deference to the shutout or the one run wins with low scores has the fans running for the exits.

I'd rather watch the 13-15's play where the fielders get a lot of chances to show their skills because seldom do you see a pitcher with the ability blow everyone out of the box, and the game comes down to strategy of how to get the kids playing time while still maintaining some semblance of defensive baseball. 15-14 games eg., are fun to watch and usually give the kids a lot of chances to show their abilities...and they have fun.

I haven't been to a MiLB or MLB, game in years...you will find me during the season watching the 13-15's, & some college games. Just pure BB and no BS.
JMO

LLorton..

15-14 games are fun to watch? Yikes!

Sorry, gimme 3-2 any day.

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For sheer excitement I'm with you Bum. Do you see that little arrow? That's right where I'll be sitting during a close, tightly fought ballgame...right on the edge!




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We have quite a bit of fan support for baseball, but I think the main reason the crowds are smaller is because in good weather the kids have other things they can do.