Major League baseball is a joke now

[Easy180]

Kinda sad that the glory days are long gone for our national past time

The only thing that might get some of it back would be banning players for life if they test positive...That oughta snuff this crap out

http://m.espn.go.com/mlb/story?storyId=8271981

SAN FRANCISCO -- All-Star Game MVP Melky Cabrera was suspended for 50 games without pay Wednesday after the San Francisco Giants outfielder tested positive for testosterone.

Cabrera leads the National League with 159 hits, and is second in batting average behind Pittsburgh's Andrew McCutchen. Cabrera's penalty was the first for a high-profile player since last year's NL MVP, Ryan Braun, had his suspension overturned by an arbitrator last winter.

[MadMonk]

Disappointing for sure.

[Bellaboo]

I quit watching years ago.....boring to watch on TV, not fast enough... I know the live game experience is better though.

[mugofbeer]

It sure is (a joke) here in Denver............

[Snowman]

I wonder when it was that it went from the main sport to an also ran

[mcca7596]

The penalties for PEDs are much better than what was there before (virtually nothing) and it is much more clean than 10 years ago.

Also, that's all I ever hear people who don't like baseball say, "It's too boring and too slow". Why don't they just say they don't like it because it's not violent or physical enough? Have we developed that much of an attention deficit disorder when it comes to entertainment that we can't follow a leisurely game of baseball? If one can watch golf...

[dankrutka]

Actually, the fact that big time players are being punished for this is an indication to me that the sport is not a joke. This was common behavior int he 1990s, but now people are at least getting punished for it...

[Just the facts]

If one can watch golf...

The big difference is that golf doesn't follow one player around on the course and watch him while he walks from hole to hole, talking to his caddy, adjusting himself, etc. You watch a player hit the ball, see where it lands, and then the coverage switches to someone else hitting the ball. Plus, a golfer actually hits the ball everytime he swings at it. So you see the problem, even golf on TV is faster paced than baseball on TV. I have not watched a whole baseball game on TV in atleast 10 years. Love going to games though.

[Jake]

I love playing baseball and going to a game in person but I'll have to agree that watching it on TV is extremely boring. That's just me though. I enjoy watching hockey on TV (when it actually is on tv) and I know most people around here probably think that's boring to watch.

[Lord Helmet]

It sure is (a joke) here in Denver............

LOL! I came to this thread to post something similar. Man the Rockies are bad...I like how the marketing for this season is all about "The Year of the Fan"...yeah...year of the fan...year of $10 beers and a crappy product on the field. I've been to several games this season...not sure why though. Guess I'm a glutton for punishment lol.

[Stan Silliman]

I thought this thread was going to be about perfect games, and despite the fact when only had twenty perfectly pitched games in all of baseball, three more were tossed so far THIS year.
Here's an article I wrote about the last perfect game prior to this year:

Roy Halladay’s No-Hitter: What Was I Doing During the Last Playoff No-Hitter?

Wow! Roy Halladay just pitched a playoff no hitter for the Phillies.

I'm trying to remember the last time I remember a no-hitter in the playoffs. I'm sure Sandy Koufax had some. No? Curt Schilling? No? The Big Unit? No? All those Atlanta Braves guys? No?

Okay! You're forcing Stan Silliman to Google. I'm too old to Google.

Don Larsen? The perfect game in the 1956 World Series? Geez, what was I doing October 8, 1956? Hmmm?

Game 5 was on a Monday so I was in school—junior high—in the Panhandle of Oklahoma. I remember a little of the series. Actually more interested in Darla of civics class, but that was my hormones talking. Darla was our school's Annette (of the Mouseketeers) except without the dark hair...and the big mouse ears.

On top of that, I had just seen The Ten Commandments the night before and little did I know my heart was about to witness two major events in back-to-back days. Really, how often do see the waters of a sea part and a perfect game, back-to-back?

Well, actually I only saw part of the perfect game and I can't really say I saw that much. I will explain.

I did have an interest in the Yankees-Dodgers series. It wasn't my Cardinals with Stan (my name) Musial but it did have two Oklahomans—Mickey Mantle and Dale Mitchell. After finishing algebra and heading to Phys Ed, Joe Clark came up to me saying he heard on the principal's radio a no-hitter was being pitched in the World Series and suggests we skip the final class, head to my house, catch it on TV.

I agreed even though I knew every time Joe Clark suggested a scheme, I always took the blame.

On the way to my house, Joe and I argued Doris Day versus Kim Novak. Both of them had the boobs. Not much diff but I favored Novak on the freckle factor. Didn't care for the freckles.

We hit the door just in time to catch the eighth inning. My mom didn't even know the game was on but we buzzed up the black and white. Snowy black and white...with a rolling bar. We couldn't find the GAME! Either the reception was bad or they weren't carrying it on a Monday afternoon in our part of the world.

We switched on the radio and you could hear the tension. My stomach started to knot. I got out my baseball cards to see how many of my cards were in the game. Jackie Robinson is up. Had his card. Grounds to first. Then Gil Hodges is at bat. Had his card. Lines it to third. Sandy Amoros is up. No card. Hits it deep, there's excitement, flies out.

Then the Yanks come up at the bottom of the line-up - Larsen, Bauer, Collins. Sal Maglie, the Barber, clips them, shaves 'em, strikes out every batter. If it weren't for Larsen doing the impossible, Maglie would have got praise for a special game. Maglie was the Debbie Reynolds to Larsen's Liz Taylor.

Now it's the ninth and our radio gets scratchy. Furillo, Campanella and Maglie are up. I get out my cards. I've got Roy and I've got Sal, no Furillo. Makes no difference as Furillo flies to right. Now Roy is up. He is one of my favorites and he can smack the leather off the ball.

Mom hears us screaming and walks in. Roy grounds to second. One more batter, Maglie! No, Dale Mitchell pinches. Not only do I have the card, but it's autographed. MY autographed card is getting ready to ruin a perfect game. OU's Dale Mitchell will be known as the guy who cost Don Larsen a perfecto.

Strike One. If Mitchell connects it better be a homer. Strike Two! He's pressing. No chasing a slider, he'll wait for a good one. Strike Three! A called strike three.

Joe jumps. Mom jumps. I didn't know she could do that. My cards go flying...and my magazine with Marilyn Monroe on the cover lands on top of them with Mom still in the room. I said my little heart might not handle two big events back to back—10-C and a Perfecto—let's make it three.

[Cocaine]

It's kind of always been a joke at least for the past 15 years.

[Easy180]

Actually, the fact that big time players are being punished for this is an indication to me that the sport is not a joke. This was common behavior int he 1990s, but now people are at least getting punished for it...

And unfortunately coming right back to their multi million salaries...The fact that the games biggest stars are doping and have been doping for years makes baseball one big joke

[dankrutka]

And unfortunately coming right back to their multi million salaries...The fact that the games biggest stars are doping and have been doping for years makes baseball one big joke

My point is that a lot of them aren't doping anymore. What major sport has not had some kind of doping issues?

[Easy180]

My point is that a lot of them aren't doping anymore. What major sport has not had some kind of doping issues?

Not on this scale and its normally with their joe blow players not their All Stars and MVP's

[cjohnson.405]

Not on this scale and its normally with their joe blow players not their All Stars and MVP's

Ummm, the NFL is replete with steroid use but it doesn't seem to bother anyone. I'm not sure why baseball is treated differently.

Jim Haslett said half of the NFL was on steroids in the 80's and 90's. Several of the Steelers from the Steel Curtain have admitted to using steroids. A dozen NFL players were involved in the BALCO scandal that involved fewer MLB players. Half of the Oakland Raiders from 2001 admitted or were caught using steroids including Bill Romanowski, Dana Stubblefield, and Tyrone Wheatley.

But sure, MLB is a joke because of steroids...

[Snowman]

Some of it may be due not seeing the change in the athletes body because of full football gear. Plus it probably is not as easy to correlate a distinct stat with the football players on steroids verses home runs with baseball players

[BoulderSooner]

Ummm, the NFL is replete with steroid use but it doesn't seem to bother anyone. I'm not sure why baseball is treated differently.

Jim Haslett said half of the NFL was on steroids in the 80's and 90's. Several of the Steelers from the Steel Curtain have admitted to using steroids. A dozen NFL players were involved in the BALCO scandal that involved fewer MLB players. Half of the Oakland Raiders from 2001 admitted or were caught using steroids including Bill Romanowski, Dana Stubblefield, and Tyrone Wheatley.

But sure, MLB is a joke because of steroids...

link to "half of the Oakland Raiders from 2001" admitting to using steroids

[Just the facts]

Ummm, the NFL is replete with steroid use but it doesn't seem to bother anyone. I'm not sure why baseball is treated differently.

The reason it is a big deal to some people is that baseball has an anti-trust exemption from the US Congress. Try starting a baseball league for kids (other than a church league) and see how long it takes MLB to show up and demand their percentage. The NFL doesn't have that kind of power so it doesn't hit as close to home for a lot of people. In fact, not only are their multiple football leagues for youths and adults, there are even other professional football leagues (USFL, XFL, AFL, WPFL, WIFL) as well football-like leagues (Arena League, Lingerie League, Indoor Football League etc). You don't have that in baseball.

Ever wonder why there isn't a women's baseball league? They have to play softball (which has men's leagues as well).

[Snowman]

There is a difference between anti-trust exemption and a government sponsored monopoly or having some form of copyright on baseball which predates MLB anyway. The exemption mostly affects the rights of the players and some negotiation options the union has.

A more likely reason why there are not rival leagues in baseball is they made tie ins with the minor leagues creating the farm system long ago, so most cities having the resources to support a professional team major or minor already had one or one was close enough their was not a huge demand for a new league. Plus the best to average players go to existing leagues in this country and others so starting up a new one is even more difficult. Their has been some arguments that television hurt the minor leagues since they have to compete with the majors for fans in their market. To see an example of difficulties establishing a new league most of the football leagues you mentioned failed and no longer exist. On th AFL, part of the reasoning for the merger with the NFL given was that if the price war on players continued it was going to bring down both leagues.

[BoulderSooner]

The reason it is a big deal to some people is that baseball has an anti-trust exemption from the US Congress. Try starting a baseball league for kids (other than a church league) and see how long it takes MLB to show up and demand their percentage. The NFL doesn't have that kind of power so it doesn't hit as close to home for a lot of people. In fact, not only are their multiple football leagues for youths and adults, there are even other professional football leagues (USFL, XFL, AFL, WPFL, WIFL) as well football-like leagues (Arena League, Lingerie League, Indoor Football League etc). You don't have that in baseball.

Ever wonder why there isn't a women's baseball league? They have to play softball (which has men's leagues as well).

what are you talking about .. mlb doesn't get money from rec baseball leagues .. their are a ton of different baseball leagues ..

[Just the facts]

what are you talking about .. mlb doesn't get money from rec baseball leagues .. their are a ton of different baseball leagues ..

Are they church/school related? My kids played T-ball when they were little and I 100% know for a fact we hade to pay MLB a fee (unless the guy running the league lied to me when I asked him what the participation fee was used for).

[BoulderSooner]

you 100% didn't have to pay mlb a fee to play tball ..... do you think the ncaa pays a fee to mlb ... or jucos or naia or high schools .... no .. mlb doesn't "own" baseball

[RadicalModerate]

Are they church/school related? My kids played T-ball when they were little and I 100% know for a fact we hade to pay MLB a fee (unless the guy running the league lied to me when I asked him what the participation fee was used for).

Suggested Reading . . .
http://www.amazon.com/The-Mark-Insid.../dp/0307272486

[BoulderSooner]

Suggested Reading . . .
http://www.amazon.com/The-Mark-Insid.../dp/0307272486

priceless .. lol