Some May Call Me A Traditionalist

I've been called a traditionalist and even an old-timer but I think of myself as a preservationist. I think traditions of the sport should be preserve while also preserving the game itself. I understand the fact that money drives everything these days, but at what cost? In this era of stadium naming rights and "this segment brought to you by...", I was quite pleased when the powers that be rejected the idea of advertisements on uniforms and bases. Having players running around looking like NASCAR drivers with their medley of patches all over their uniforms would have ruined the integrity of the game. Playing games at Great American Ball Park or Chase Field is fine, but keep the intrusions off the field.


However, the mighty dollar has taken it too far in some situations. For example, when ESPN changes opening day that has been traditionally started by having the Cincinnati Reds play the first game just to make an extra buck, that's unacceptable. Is ESPN hurting so much that they need that first game? While I'm on the subject, what happened to being able to watch a game on regular television? Exposure to the game has been all but eliminated in the inner city and poorer parts of the country where many people don't have cable. How can that be healthy for the sport? The Great American Pasttime has been taken away from America.


I do like the alternate jerseys though. I think this is a good way to bring in revenue while letting the fans feel like they are involved. Adding some color over the traditional grey or white uniforms is a nice touch.


The All-Star Game: Really, it isn't important enough to multi-million dollar players to play 1 exhibition game for the fans and try to win the game that we have to make it determine home field advantage for the World Series. That's ridiculous. So the representative for the last place Pirates helps decide whether the National League penant winner will get home field advantage. So the guy that's shelling out a hundred bucks to come see one of your games and pay your exhorbent salary isn't worth putting on your best performance in an All-Star game. Even though this same guy also voted you into the All-Star game. Joe Dimaggio once said he played his hardest everyday because that might be the day a kid sees him play for the first time and the kid deserves it. What happened to those days?