Hello Everybody. I am travelling from Scotland to Toronto in August. Please help.

[Omar]

No Major League?!

 

How dare you? How actual dare you?

 

Well he also forgot:

[John_Havok]

Well he also forgot:

 

I dunno, I don’t really see the Natural as a “baseball movie” the same way as say Bull Durham is a baseball movie. The Natural is more like a Roy Hobbs story and baseball is the backdrop.

 

In Bull Durham, baseball is the story with characters like Crash, Nuke, the manager and others there to bring the struggles of the minor leagues to life.

[jaysblue]

The Naked Gun probably has the one of the funniest baseball scenes ever!

[Omar]

I dunno, I don’t really see the Natural as a “baseball movie” the same way as say Bull Durham is a baseball movie. The Natural is more like a Roy Hobbs story and baseball is the backdrop.

 

In Bull Durham, baseball is the story with characters like Crash, Nuke, the manager and others there to bring the struggles of the minor leagues to life.

 

[Matt McGrain]

You'll love it.

 

I do love it. I absolutely love it. It brings a tear to the eye in fact, as a boxing fan that is subjected to the likes of Fite TV and DAZN.

 

The channel already knew I was a BJ fan - presumably because of some sort of tie in with ticket sales, which is absolute genius. Every time I log on, there it is, bang, BJ link right at the top of the page, no messing. I got the channel selection wrong a couple of times and ended up watching enemy commentary But even that was an education.

 

Long live the Blue Jays.

 

Long live MLB TV.

[Matt McGrain]

So apart from being there, the real thrill for me has been watching us glide into the playoffs which everyone kept saying was a sure thing but we kept f***ing losing. That two nil loss on Friday was especially difficult. The weekends are a great joy to us, we now watch two BJ games on Saturday - one starting at just after midnight "on Friday" and then another one at just after 8pm on Saturday night, but there have been some tough nights...anyway, what happens now?

 

When will we know the fixtures list?

 

Do I have to pay extra on MLB TV for playoffs? I'd sort of assume so.

[Laika]

So apart from being there, the real thrill for me has been watching us glide into the playoffs which everyone kept saying was a sure thing but we kept f***ing losing. That two nil loss on Friday was especially difficult. The weekends are a great joy to us, we now watch two BJ games on Saturday - one starting at just after midnight "on Friday" and then another one at just after 8pm on Saturday night, but there have been some tough nights...anyway, what happens now?

 

When will we know the fixtures list?

 

Do I have to pay extra on MLB TV for playoffs? I'd sort of assume so.

 

I do not believe you pay extra

 

Toronto plays Minnesota in about 29 hours. It's a short round one series, best of 3. So it could be over in 2 games.

 

The winner moves on to a best of 5 series. The "American League Divisional Series".

 

The winner of THAT moves on to a best of 7. The "American League Championship Series"

 

The winner of THAT moves on to the WORLD SERIES which is the final finals.

[Matt McGrain]

I do not believe you pay extra

 

That is so great. All I pay for are BJ games, so maybe that does actually make sense. They asked me to pit a tick in the box for other teams I was interested in and I just laughed and laughed.

 

Toronto plays Minnesota in about 29 hours. It's a short round one series, best of 3. So it could be over in 2 games.

 

The winner moves on to a best of 5 series. The "American League Divisional Series".

 

The winner of THAT moves on to a best of 7. The "American League Championship Series"

 

The winner of THAT moves on to the WORLD SERIES which is the final finals.

 

Thanks for that. What's your prediction for this Minnesota series? Do you think we will just get a hiding? I kind of feel like there are pieces missing but I couldn't explain why.

[Laika]

That is so great. All I pay for are BJ games, so maybe that does actually make sense. They asked me to pit a tick in the box for other teams I was interested in and I just laughed and laughed.

 

Thanks for that. What's your prediction for this Minnesota series? Do you think we will just get a hiding? I kind of feel like there are pieces missing but I couldn't explain why.

 

Playoff baseball is almost always just a coinflip.

 

The Minnesota team has some injuries and they are very strikeout prone on offense. I think they can be pitched to and the Toronto pitchers have a decent chance of shutting them down.

[Laika]

Now, shutting them down is only half the battle....

 

But Toronto - Minnesota is a fair matchup.

 

And Toronto has a puncher's chance against every other team in the playoffs.

[John_Havok]

Now, shutting them down is only half the battle....

 

But Toronto - Minnesota is a fair matchup.

 

And Toronto has a puncher's chance against every other team in the playoffs.

 

Yeah, their 1-2 SPs have as much chance to make our lineup look as bad as our pitchers can make theirs look.

 

It will all come down to intangibles and unquantifiable grit, who wants it more, clubhouse attitude and pre-game buffet meal choices.

[Matt McGrain]

Now, shutting them down is only half the battle....

 

But Toronto - Minnesota is a fair matchup.

 

And Toronto has a puncher's chance against every other team in the playoffs.

 

Well this is almost like tempting me to wish for a victory in my very first third of a season as a baseball fan...but I get it, one at a time, starting Tuesday. I'll get the Tuesday game live (about 2140 here) but I'll miss the Wendesday game - but I'll get the Thursday game. Hopefully it is settled by then!

[Matt McGrain]

clubhouse attitude

I heard people say (on the enemy commentary) that we have a "low energy bench". Is that true?

[Grant77]

I heard people say (on the enemy commentary) that we have a "low energy bench". Is that true?

 

If it is true, it doesn't really matter. It's not like basketball where you want your bench guys to rah rah throughout the game.

[John_Havok]

I heard people say (on the enemy commentary) that we have a "low energy bench". Is that true?

 

Depends on your point of view. They're as energetic as anyone when they win, and as lethargic and boring when they lose. That kind of stuff is really hard to say whether it's good or bad, but the clubhouse will sort that out themselves.

 

Last season the bench had tons of energy and happiness, and fans hated it because they thought it meant they werent taking the game seriously. This year they say its low energy and they take the game too seriously and arent having enough fun.

 

So, that kind of thing is really just all ******** stuff that fans look at as use as easy ways to dump on a team after failure, or praise after winning. It's all rather meaningless to what goes on the field.

[Brownie19]

Depends on your point of view. They're as energetic as anyone when they win, and as lethargic and boring when they lose. That kind of stuff is really hard to say whether it's good or bad, but the clubhouse will sort that out themselves.

 

Last season the bench had tons of energy and happiness, and fans hated it because they thought it meant they werent taking the game seriously. This year they say its low energy and they take the game too seriously and arent having enough fun.

 

So, that kind of thing is really just all ******** stuff that fans look at as use as easy ways to dump on a team after failure, or praise after winning. It's all rather meaningless to what goes on the field.

 

This is so true.

[Matt McGrain]

What do I do now?

[Marew]

Watch baseball??

[Matt McGrain]

Batter up!

 

Why does the pre-season go on so long in baseball? Isn't playing this many games bad for the players, soft tissue damage stuff like that? Is it necessary to extend the season this far? Seems wild.

 

I am watching today's game and I was surprised how sad it made me feel - i'm so far away from Toronto and the Blue Jays. My Canadian will go back next year, but probably I won't go with her so It will be 2026 I think before I see a game, the earliest. Looks like a sunny day.

[Laika]

Batter up!

 

Why does the pre-season go on so long in baseball? Isn't playing this many games bad for the players, soft tissue damage stuff like that? Is it necessary to extend the season this far? Seems wild.

 

I am watching today's game and I was surprised how sad it made me feel - i'm so far away from Toronto and the Blue Jays. My Canadian will go back next year, but probably I won't go with her so It will be 2026 I think before I see a game, the earliest. Looks like a sunny day.

 

Mostly because of the starting pitchers. It takes a few turns for them to build up stamina and since they only pitch every 5 days, it takes a few weeks.

 

If it was just hitters and relievers that needed to get ready spring training could be two weeks long.

[Brownie19]

Spring training is also great for baseball IMO. It provides an opportunity for fans to get better access to the players and it acts as a 'build up' to the upcoming season. It's great for the economy in the various City's that host ML teams too. It also gives prospects time to interact with the big leaguers, learn from them and become more comfortable in that environment. Finally, there is an element of players being able to showcase themselves and to "make the team" as well. I'm not truly sure how often that happens anymore (likely did happen a lot more back in the '80's and '90's), but that would be lost if spring training was only a few weeks long.

[Matt McGrain]

Mostly because of the starting pitchers. It takes a few turns for them to build up stamina and since they only pitch every 5 days, it takes a few weeks.

 

If it was just hitters and relievers that needed to get ready spring training could be two weeks long.

 

Right and I suppose it enables the ballclub to make money while they do it - because obviously you could do this behind closed doors more easily and be more medically sound.

[Laika]

Right and I suppose it enables the ballclub to make money while they do it - because obviously you could do this behind closed doors more easily and be more medically sound.

 

I'm sure they don't really make anything after considering the costs to staff and support the players. Tickets are cheap and many of the games are sparsely attended.

 

It's more vestigial than anything. It began way back when players had normal jobs all offseason and needed a few weeks to get back in shape. People probably thought, well, why not send them somewhere warm and just get them to play friendlies while we sell a few tickets to it.

 

You are right, if they were designing a new system from scratch it would probably not have many actual games at all.

[Matt McGrain]

I'm sure they don't really make anything after considering the costs to staff and support the players. Tickets are cheap and many of the games are sparsely attended.

 

It's more vestigial than anything. It began way back when players had normal jobs all offseason and needed a few weeks to get back in shape. People probably thought, well, why not send them somewhere warm and just get them to play friendlies while we sell a few tickets to it.

 

You are right, if they were designing a new system from scratch it would probably not have many actual games at all.

 

I actually looked at tickets (they send me ticket links almost every week, it's awful) and I saw you could get some ok seats for 20 bucks. 3

[Laika]

Yeah you can do even better than that at some places.

Like, $5 for a ticket and a beer.

[burlingtonbandit]

Lots of the teams basically get their facilities paid for (or at least a substantial portion) by the governments of the cities/states so in exchange they have to have a certain amount of ST games.

[Brownie19]

I actually looked at tickets (they send me ticket links almost every week, it's awful) and I saw you could get some ok seats for 20 bucks. 3

 

I just came back from Spring Training (video evidence available). I've been going for years and we've learned to just buy "berm" seats to games. They've all increased in price, but we paid $118.75 USD for 5 berms seats and parking at the ATL @ TB game in Port Charlotte. So $160 CAD for my family of 5 to go ($32/person). We did sit on the berm a bit (which gave access to autographs and balls to be thrown from outfielders, etc.), but there is always open seats so once we got too hot, we just moved to some open seats. We often cruise around and check out different parts of the park as the game goes on (go stand near the bullpens for a bit, move to bar areas, etc.). It's so laid back, if you miss an inning or 2, it's no big deal. That's the cheapest way to watch a TB spring training game.

 

The game in North Port (Atlanta Braves home) was MUCH more expensive. My parents and brother came to this one and they're old, so we got them seats in the upper deck, under shade for $45 each USD. Berm tickets were $20 each. I got 4 seats and 4 berm tickets and it was $313.20 USD ($424 CAD) for 8 of us to go ($53/person). It's a brand new park and it was gorgeous - but not as affordable as one might think (especially when you add in a few beers and hot dogs).

[Matt McGrain]

Cool post, thanks.

[Carlos Danger]

Most teams sell Spring Training tickets using dynamic pricing.

 

So if it is Blue Jays vs the Pirates, you it would see the base level price for each section. If Blue Jays vs Yankees or Red Sox, the ticket prices will increase.

Edited February 29, 2024 by Carlos Danger

[Brownie19]

Most team sell Spring Training tickets using Dynamic pricing.

 

So if it is Blue Jays vs the Pirates, you it would see the base level price for each section. If Blue Jays vs Yankees or Red Sox, the ticket prices will increase.

 

With all the snowbirds in Florida, I think the Jays are one of the top teams that draw out the fans.