BASEBALL IS BACk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!k!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Abomination]

Shorter season means more variance in the standings. For a team which isn't elite, and not even necessarily competitive, that can only help us. Some early injuries for the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays combined with a hot start from some of our players can cause all kinds of chaos in the projected standings and it would be extremely beneficial since the regression from those injuries and unsustainable hot starts usually occurs throughout the long 162 game season.

 

Some of our young pitchers would also not have to worry about innings limits.

[Orgfiller]

Some of our young pitchers would also not have to worry about innings limits.

 

Great point.

[Boxcar]

I'm accepting apologies.

 

I believed you from the start

[Spanky99]

I'm accepting apologies.

 

http://www.quickmeme.com/img/11/11fcb66db6dc2e50798a4c04d6b92e529f0d2b2be7a3de577c503dbfa0800da7.jpg

[saskjayfan]

http://www.quickmeme.com/img/11/11fcb66db6dc2e50798a4c04d6b92e529f0d2b2be7a3de577c503dbfa0800da7.jpg

 

that's pretty good. My question is how does service time work? With no AAA when and can you call up Pearson? Do we see him this year?

[Spanky99]

that's pretty good. My question is how does service time work? With no AAA when and can you call up Pearson? Do we see him this year?

 

I'm not sure, the first two questions need to be answered prior to the start of the season, as for the last one, I'd assume so.

[glory]

that's pretty good. My question is how does service time work? With no AAA when and can you call up Pearson? Do we see him this year?

 

If there is a 80-100 game season, then you definitely call Pearson up and start him in the rotation immediately. It is a no brainer. They can restrict his innings due to a shorter season, and him throwing innings in the condensed big league season is better for him than another lost season in the minors (this time not due to injury).

 

As far as service time, from what I remember being reported before, if the season happens then it will count as a full season for players. If there is no 2020 season at all, then whatever service time a player accrued in 2019 becomes their 2020 service time.

[Brownie19]

Ontario just permitted sports teams to return to their facilities...

[glory]

This season might actually be kinda fun. Tons of variance and stud prospects (on every team) that will get a shot.

 

I'm starting to come around to that opinion as well. Fewer games will mean each game will have more meaning, more young players will play due to expanded roster size + the need to have more bodies available, and if any sport can visually not get too impacted by having no fans in attendance, it is baseball (just imagine every game is being played in Tampa or Miami......or Toronto on a Tuesday night when the team sucks). They can try different things with no backlash. It might actually help the sport a bit if the timing and the execution is done properly.

[Slade]

 

Corona virus going to be the thing that pushes change in baseball.

[BTS]

Runner at 2B to start extra innings is a f***ing stupid idea that needs to die.

[Boxcar]

Ontario just permitted sports teams to return to their facilities...

 

God bless Big Doug

[Grant77]

I'm looking forward to seeing players get ejected for spitting.

[TheHurl]

Why could they play baseball in Florida, but Toronto couldn't make an exception for having games at Rogers Center without fans etc..? The Teams use charter flights and you can get permission to cross border etc.

 

It's the 14 day quarantine. They aren't going to allow Jays players to cross the border and then come back here without quarantine. Professional athletes cannot be trusted to stay in their hotels.

[TheHurl]

can we fix the lower case k in the title...thanks.

 

done

[TheHurl]

Runner at 2B to start extra innings is a f***ing stupid idea that needs to die.

 

I still think the runner at 2nd is the dumb idea...starting the innings with baserunners is absolutely necessary

[Dick_Pole]

I still think the runner at 2nd is the dumb idea...starting the innings with baserunners is absolutely necessary

 

Oh don't try to walk that back. You were advocating for that s*** before. Plus I don't know why one would think the runner at second is a bad idea while some other combination of phantom runners would be absolutely necessary? It's all terrible. The way managers budget their pitchers nowadays position players will be pitching by the 13th anyways.

[Dick_Pole]

I would rather just have games end in ties after the 12th or 13th than put runners on base. This is a worse idea than NHL shootouts.

[Grant77]

I would rather just have games end in ties after the 12th or 13th than put runners on base. This is a worse idea than NHL shootouts.

 

Agreed. No gimmicks, a tie is fine.

[saskjayfan]

Agreed. No gimmicks, a tie is fine.

 

This is the Covid season....after 11 if it's still tied, it goes to a home run competition to decide it!

[glory]

https://nypost.com/2020/05/09/details-of-mlbs-restart-proposal-from-coronavirus-emerge/

 

Looks like MLB plans to propose a 78-82 game regular season starting in July. Spring Training would begin in June and last 3 weeks. The schedule would be entirely region based (so I guess Jays only face the AL East and NL East). The playoffs would be the same format that made Trevor Bauer's head explode when it was announced in Feb.

[TheHurl]

Oh don't try to walk that back. You were advocating for that s*** before. Plus I don't know why one would think the runner at second is a bad idea while some other combination of phantom runners would be absolutely necessary? It's all terrible. The way managers budget their pitchers nowadays position players will be pitching by the 13th anyways.

 

Extra innings cause injuries and make zero money for anyone (and cost the team money). It's going to happen (probably the 11th inning is what they will settle on). Without minor league play taking place, there will be no unlimited extra innings. Live with it, as MLB couldn't give a s*** that baseball fans love long games. You will watch regardless and much like every change ever...people will get used to it and love it.

[Grant77]

Extra innings cause injuries and make zero money for anyone (and cost the team money). It's going to happen (probably the 11th inning is what they will settle on). Without minor league play taking place, there will be no unlimited extra innings. Live with it, as MLB couldn't give a s*** that baseball fans love long games. You will watch regardless and much like every change ever...people will get used to it and love it.

 

Do teams not make a good chunk of their revenue from television ads? More innings means more ad revenue.

 

Also to your last point, the shootout in the NHL is still disliked by players and new and old fans alike after 20 years. Change can be good, like when MLB added the wild card, but a bad idea is a bad idea and people don't get used to it. Time will tell if extra inning gimmicks will be well received.

[Beans]

Do teams not make a good chunk of their revenue from television ads? More innings means more ad revenue.

 

No, because viewership dies off dramatically in the extra innings, and even still the amount of ad revenue is not more than they lose in the myriad moves they have to pull afterwards.

[Barkerfan23]

of all the sports baseball has the weakest positioning. basketball has the greatest social media presence, hockey has a hardcore following and is already niche and NFL will hardly lose anything

 

baseball players need to think it through before they make stupid statements about compensation. this might be the year to take what you can get and take millions to chase a ball around the field.

 

every year the baseball fanbase gets older. the game is slow to begin with. Take baseball out of the public eye for an year and I wouldn't be surprised if the fanbases get cut in half.

 

I'd get the season going as soon as I can if I had any stake in this even if you have to play in the Dominican.

[TheHurl]

Do teams not make a good chunk of their revenue from television ads? More innings means more ad revenue

 

In the play-offs yes they sell contingency ads in case games go much longer. But according to Sportsnet in regular season games they play ads at the "poker" rate once they have played all the ads scheduled

[Grant77]

No, because viewership dies off dramatically in the extra innings, and even still the amount of ad revenue is not more than they lose in the myriad moves they have to pull afterwards.

 

That could be true, but do you have numbers to support that?

[Beans]

That could be true, but do you have numbers to support that?

 

Well, Grant, this is not only common sense, but also common knowledge around baseball. Here is a clip from last years ‘Business of Baseball’ program on the MLB Network where a bunch of GMs at the December 2019 Winter Meetings went on record saying the next rule change they’d all like to see would be “anything that would allow us not to have those roster-crushing games.”

 

https://www.mlb.com/video/business-of-baseball-evolving-game

 

If you’d like specific numbers, former Marlins president Dave Samson did half a podcast on how much it costs a team to go deep into extra innings. I can’t remember the exact episode, but it was about 4-6 weeks ago.

[glory]

I hate the runner on 2nd idea, but I also see the logic in trying to avoid anything beyond 10 or 11 inning games, and I agree that after a while fans will either warm up to it or simply just accept it as part of the game. This rule wouldn't go over well with the core baseball fans, but if the average MLB fan is in their late 50s, then change isn't necessarily a bad thing. They will definitely need to implement this rule (or something similar) in 2020 since without a minor league season they won't be able to send players down and call others up, but I think once they try it out, it's a rule that will end up sticking. Much like the draft rounds.

[Grant77]

Well, Grant, this is not only common sense, but also common knowledge around baseball. Here is a clip from last years ‘Business of Baseball’ program on the MLB Network where a bunch of GMs at the December 2019 Winter Meetings went on record saying the next rule change they’d all like to see would be “anything that would allow us not to have those roster-crushing games.”

 

https://www.mlb.com/video/business-of-baseball-evolving-game

 

If you’d like specific numbers, former Marlins president Dave Samson did half a podcast on how much it costs a team to go deep into extra innings. I can’t remember the exact episode, but it was about 4-6 weeks ago.

 

Roster difficulties don't support your statement that viewership drops off dramatically in extra innings.

 

Are more people watching the 9th inning of a 13-1 trouncing than the 10th inning of a 3-3 nail biter? I don't know either way, but it isn't as clear as you suggest.