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[Tschumi]

Got this from a story on AP about TV ratings for the Baseball World Series.

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I'm not so sure about America's pastime. It feels like an anachronism. I personally haven't found a baseball game interesting since I was in my highschool's varsity team (leaning heavily on natural skills for throwing, catching, and jumping and running, not so much technique) And this seems to confirm something or other about this general potential for baseball to kinda fade away.

What could the reasons be? Covid-19? It's hard to think so, since these are TV ratings.

Could it be the teams involved? I don't think so, very sportsfriend areas of the country in LA and Tampa Bay...

Could it be season burnout? This seems a little closer to me, baseball goes on forever, almost every day.. Compare that to the NFL - a sport with arguably pretty comprable stats (which Americans love) potential, but which only comes around for a few months a year and enjoys colossal TV ratings- and I feel like you might be getting into the meat of the problem.

Anyway, I'm almost certain that I'm dead wrong. So educate me, help me diagnose why this didn't get much coverage.

 

[diffusionx]

Baseball has a lot of problems, even in a good year. Nerds have kind of killed the sport with the shift, endless relievers, every stupid decision AKSHULLY'd to death. The games go on way too long and the sport hasn't figured out a way to fix it.

But normally it does ok ratings wise. The problems this year is that the sport really stunk. On the field it was just a mess, the quality of play was abominable, especially in the beginning, but considering the season was only 60 games, that was most of it. Teams basically only played in their division. So it was just bad all around.

Beyond that, I think a lot of people are giving up sports, not just for the politics (which MLB handled with a light touch, but still a few teams decided not to play after the lowlife in Wisconsin got shot). I said this in the other low ratings threads, but I think a lot of people just realized they didn't need this stuff in their lives going forward. April and May was like an addict going cold turkey and getting over it, for many.

 

[Tschumi]

Beyond that, I think a lot of people are giving up sports, not just for the politics. I said this in the other low ratings threads, but I think a lot of people just realized they didn't need this stuff in their lives going forward. April and May was like an addict going cold turkey and getting over it, for many.

That's an interesting take. If it is true then it's a shame, throughout history sports have been an important way for people to channel their combative instincts. Maybe for you politics have eclipsed it, but I hope one day again you can rediscover the idle fantasy of following a team or something~ Maybe the consoles wars have been pretty intense this year because sports have dried up a bit, heh~

Anyway, I think there are plenty of sports around that are still going along strong all things considered - NFL for one - so it's not quite dead yet, I reckon~

Yeah, these things happening during a presidential election might also have some bearing on how many minds are tuned in to them~

 

[Shadowplay1979]

Its because the Dodgers are a boring moneyball team

 

[bigsnack]

I’m a massive baseball fan. I love everything about it, aside from minor gripes. I barely watched a single game this year, and only watched parts of the WS. Here’s my .02:

I live in LA, and I’m sick of seeing the Dodgers in the WS. They’ve been there three out of the past four years, I’m over it and would love to see an exciting team with good young stars make a run. Pittsburg, San Diego, anybody really. I’m actually from New England, so I’m a Sox fan. I Went to games 4 and 5 of the 2018 WS locally, which was an absolute dream come true.

For me as a fan of the game, the 60 game season wasn’t a real season. It didn’t feel like a real season, and so I tuned out and considered this year an extended practice for next year. Part of the challenge of winning the WS is the war of attrition that it takes to get there. The injuries through the season, giving new guys a chance to come up and make a name for themselves, etc. A lot of that was missing.

 

[chimpsteaks]

TV ratings for almost every sport on the planet have been drastically down this year.

1) Fan interest for empty arena games in a shortened season is naturally lower, and a lot of people find the games just don't have the same feeling of importance as they do in a normal year.

2) All these sports leagues are competing with the news more than ever. All news networks ratings are *dramatically* up this year due to the 1-2 punch of the pandemic and it being an election year

 

[Gamerguy84]

I’m a massive baseball fan. I love everything about it, aside from minor gripes. I barely watched a single game this year, and only watched parts of the WS. Here’s my .02:

I live in LA, and I’m sick of seeing the Dodgers in the WS. They’ve been there three out of the past four years, I’m over it and would love to see an exciting team with good young stars make a run. Pittsburg, San Diego, anybody really. I’m actually from New England, so I’m a Sox fan. I Went to games 4 and 5 of the 2018 WS locally, which was an absolute dream come true.

For me as a fan of the game, the 60 game season wasn’t a real season. It didn’t feel like a real season, and so I tuned out and considered this year an extended practice for next year. Part of the challenge of winning the WS is the war of attrition that it takes to get there. The injuries through the season, giving new guys a chance to come up and make a name for themselves, etc. A lot of that was missing.

It all just felt so empty.

 

[BlackOlivesMatter]

(Covid-empty stadiums-weird late start shortened season) + (fake woke black lives matter virtue signaling) + (disdain for the Astros cheating scandal and how MLB handled it) = Perfect triple threat storm for historically low ratings

 

[-Arcadia-]

I think sports are a high tide raises all ships kind of scenario. The better each sport does, the better it’s neighbor does.

Even though MLB hasn’t really done this, as far as I know, the conversion of fun entertainment that people love to watch with friends, or alone to relax after a hard week, into non-stop political lectures, I think really harmed the entire idea of watching any sport.

 

[teezzy]

Me rn:

 

[Reptars Revenge]

Election year, wokeness, cable cutting, bifurcation because of overlapping leagues, pandemic, people on different schedules now.

 

[Majima Everywhere System]

Sports are kind of a hamster wheel. A lot of people who work really hard during the day may have realized sacrificing every night and weekend to these teams was not time well spent.

It‘s probably not much different from WoW and other time sinks. Combined with the fact they had enough free cash to buy a jet ski this summer, and it’s not looking great for regular season or when you team isn’t in the Big Game.

Thats also a lot of Tampa Bay to consume this year.

 

[highrider]

I’ll go to my grave saying fun to play, but far too boring as a spectator sport.

 

[Catphish]

I'm a huge White Sox fan, but I gave zero fucks about this season, even with them making their first post-season appearance in over a decade. I didn't watch more than a couple of innings all year.

Why? Because the whole season was a farce. Only 60 games, constantly-changing schedules, no fans, cardboard heads in the stands, piped-in crowd noise, masks everywhere... For me, it was more depressing to watch it than to just go without it, and I doubt I'm alone in that sentiment.

I love baseball (out-of-control budgets and prices notwithstanding), but without the roar of an actual crowd, or the ability to attend actual games, to me, there's absolutely no point to it, at least not professionally.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Baseball had their hands full with everything BUT baseball this past season it doesn’t have to be rocket science.

 

[synchronicity]

Baseball is my first love, so I certainly feel it. The most succinct way I could express my view is to say that the essence of baseball is out of step with the essence of modern culture. I doubt it will ever see any real glory days (Sing it Bruce! ) again - not anywhere close to its prime anyway. It will hang on, like all things do for a while - who knows how long.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

A lot of entertainment ratings have dropped. Although gaming is on fire.

It didn't help baseball that TB was there. Small market team.

If it were Yanks or Red Sox or Houston, it definitely would not be down 30%. Still down, but probably more reasonable at -10 or -20%.

NHL finals were similarly down. But there is no way a finals between Dallas and TB would ever be big ratings even during a normal year.

 

[DESTROYA]

Baseball had their hands full with everything BUT baseball this past season it doesn’t have to be rocket science.

Can you translate this to standard english bot

 

[BigBooper]

People are already too bored being stuck at home. The boredom of baseball is a bridge too far.

 

[HellforLeather]

Sports are weird without fans and baseball is boring even at the best of times.

 

[Ballthyrm]

I went to one Pro - Baseball match in my life and the fun parts were drinking beer and eating hot dogs.
Both of which i can do without watching baseball.

 

[HellforLeather]

 

[Super Mario]

This is actually a good question

1) Fan interest for empty arena games in a shortened season is naturally lower, and a lot of people find the games just don't have the same feeling of importance as they do in a normal year.

I believe this is closest to the mark. I believe there are a lot of activities that people have "written-off" due to COVID that is just not worth their time.

I do also believe that sports are losing their allure. There is so much content out there these days that watching the same activities thousands of times over doesn't hit the same way it did decades ago. Throw in what NBA and NFL did with woke politics, and it created an even speedier exit.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Teams, not a "real" season, the teams winning a championship in not a real season, politics, etc..

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I went to one Pro - Baseball match in my life and the fun parts were drinking beer and eating hot dogs.
Both of which i can do without watching baseball.

Baseball is not a sport your have your eyes on all the time like hockey. If someone is actually staring at the ball during downtime between pitches, they must have the most patience in history.

Every year, my buds and I do 1-2 Jays games and we aren't even in our seats half the time. Just like you, we're just walking around the concourse finding spots to chill, eating, and then we'll get back to our seats. Or we are just gabbing at our seats.

It's one of those sports where it's fun to sit in your seats for the opening innings, then get up and disappear for the mid game. If you have patience, then come back to your seats for the end if it's a close game.

If it's the 8th inning and looks over, leave and beat the rush out the stadium.

 

[synchronicity]

I already chimed in, but I just thought I'd add that game 4 was one of the best post-season games I've seen in a long, long while. Fantastic, thrilling stuff.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

I want to know the NBA did and how the NFL is doing before I pass judgment on how baseball did...

 

[quickwhips]

Look baseball is racist. Don't watch it. Any sport that lets you hit a ball with a bat has got to be racist. Think about that for a few minutes. A white baseball with a wooden bat. RACISM!

Spoiler

I don't fucking know man

 

[WoJ]

I want to know the NBA did and how the NFL is doing before I pass judgment on how baseball did...

NBA ratings were at 25 year lows. NFL ratings are down roughly 15 to 20% too.

As a huge sports fan, I will just say sports suck right now. Part of it is the politics. I am actually okay with athletes using their platform to "protest" by kneeling for the anthem because it is a tool to raise discussion about issues. The problem is it swung too far and athlete's revealed a great deal of ignorance in their stances.

I also don't have any desire to be lectured by the political morality police when I watch sports. I'm tired of COVID in my day to day life. I don't want to turn on sports and hear about how so and so isn't playing because he has COVID or how this coach violated this rule because he didn't wear a mask.

Lastly, to be quite blunt, none of the sports going on right now seem real to me. It's basically an exhibition. With no crowds sports sucks. Mix in all the other nonsense and it's very difficult to just turn sports on to be sports.

Baseball is no different. And others have brought up the problems baseball has as a sport. It's just not very engaging right now. If I want sports I'll fire up my game consoles for that as they offer a better experience than the current product.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I want to know the NBA did and how the NFL is doing before I pass judgment on how baseball did...

NBA did way worse. NFL has done ok. In a recent report, somehow PGA golf was up slightly.

 

[TrainedRage]

People have ADD now.

 

[DeepBreath87]

Baseball has a lot of problems, even in a good year. Nerds have kind of killed the sport with the shift, endless relievers, every stupid decision AKSHULLY'd to death. The games go on way too long and the sport hasn't figured out a way to fix it.

But normally it does ok ratings wise. The problems this year is that the sport really stunk. On the field it was just a mess, the quality of play was abominable, especially in the beginning, but considering the season was only 60 games, that was most of it. Teams basically only played in their division. So it was just bad all around.

Beyond that, I think a lot of people are giving up sports, not just for the politics (which MLB handled with a light touch, but still a few teams decided not to play after the lowlife in Wisconsin got shot). I said this in the other low ratings threads, but I think a lot of people just realized they didn't need this stuff in their lives going forward. April and May was like an addict going cold turkey and getting over it, for many.

The last part is me. I’m watching less sports than ever. It’s not even close. I’m trying to watch less news too. It’s just not adding to my life right now. I’ve got a lot of things going on and I just don’t have the bandwidth for sports. I thought it was just getting older, but it seems like it’s not just me.

 

[Grinchy]

Did the MLB go full BLM too? I don't watch any of these sportsballs.

 

[DESTROYA]

It went from no sports to too much sport's overload.
Baseball has been trending downwards for years but the Wu Flu timing screwed everything up.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Did the MLB go full BLM too? I don't watch any of these sportsballs.

Kind of.

When the NBA skipped a few days, the NHL did too.

But baseball was all over the place. Some teams skipped a game or two, but some other teams played as normal. There was no cohesion among teams or league communication.

 

[HoodWinked]

i dont know that shortened season makes much of a difference there are way too many games in a season having less should boost their importance and thus their ratings.

i think the reason it's down is because unlike other sports they don't have a Lebron or Brady, so they rely very heavily on zeitgeist, the year the Cubs won there was tremendous hype about how they hadn't won in 100 years so that was thrown around everywhere and it was exciting despite many probably not knowing any player's names, they tried to do that this year with the Dodgers but because of the election, riots, etc it monopolized all the mindshare and focus. And by game 6 people never were able to get invested.

the NBA definitely crashed because of the BLM stuff, comparatively the NFL has been less focused on it and is doing fine, plus i think for the NFL people have "their" team and the way the NFL is setup to be one game a week people are accustomed to the cadence of the sport. like even if you're a casual fan you can just expect to watch on Sunday and see your team 90% of the time.

 

[dorkimoe]

Nothing is wrong with baseball. There was so much other stuff going on this year. Watching the games was tough for some people this year with canceling cable, different providers not providing certain channels. Its a nightmare out there.
Fuck the Dodgers. The only people who tuned in were Dodger fans, the rays dont have any fans.

I believe NFL and NBA are down too right?

 

[Evangelion Unit-01]

This didn’t feel like much a season. Same with CFB this year. I don’t find myself very interested-this whole year has felt off. Everything feels like Christmas in July.

Also my team fell apart this year...again.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

i dont know that shortened season makes much of a difference there are way too many games in a season having less should boost their importance and thus their ratings.

i think the reason it's down is because unlike other sports they don't have a Lebron or Brady, so they rely very heavily on zeitgeist, the year the Cubs won there was tremendous hype about how they hadn't won in 100 years so that was thrown around everywhere and it was exciting despite many probably not knowing any player's names, they tried to do that this year with the Dodgers but because of the election, riots, etc it monopolized all the mindshare and focus. And by game 6 people never were able to get invested.

the NBA definitely crashed because of the BLM stuff, comparatively the NFL has been less focused on it and is doing fine, plus i think for the NFL people have "their" team and the way the NFL is setup to be one game a week people are accustomed to the cadence of the sport. like even if you're a casual fan you can just expect to watch on Sunday and see your team 90% of the time.

No doubt the NBA killed itself with BLM.

It's not like there were small market teams in the finals.

When NBA commissioner Adam Silver said a month ago they will cut back on politics next year as they realized fans want it toned down, you know you got issues.

The politically correct thig to say is BLM is great and the league endorses it to it's fullest etc..... Not too often you see a corporation downplay BLM. But it happened in a statement during the finals.

 

[DESTROYA]

Nothing is wrong with baseball. There was so much other stuff going on this year. Watching the games was tough for some people this year with canceling cable, different providers not providing certain channels. Its a nightmare out there.
Fuck the Dodgers. The only people who tuned in were Dodger fans, the rays dont have any fans.

I believe NFL and NBA are down too right?

NFL down 10%
NBA down 37%
NHL down 38%
MLB down 40%

 

[dorkimoe]

NFL down 10%
NBA down 37%
NHL down 38%
MLB down 40%

Yeah this is pretty crazy. NFL didnt have any delays, started on time. NBA missed how many games?

Baseball missed so many games.

 

[Maxwell Jacob Friedman]

Ratings are down for everything because people either use their apps, stream it via internet or use hulu or streaming services to watch now.

 

[Pagusas]

NFL down 10%
NBA down 37%
NHL down 38%
MLB down 40%

only 10% for the NFL? Thats honestly way better than I thought. I'm going to be very curious to see what the league does about the salary cap next year as every team except the patriots looks to have a massive shortage due to the cuts.

 

[FreedomOfSpeech]

Who wants to spend time in a stadium when half the crowd is OF THE WRONG TEAM

 

[Musky_Cheese]

Not legitimate season, so fans don't care.

 

[Lionel Richie]

Figures it would have to be the Dodgers to finally win one in the most irrelevant year ever for the sport. Feels like Tampa robbed us of the one amazing thing that could happen this year, the bitch ass Astros beating the Dodgers. That would have been LMAOtastic.

 

[Superkewl]

I normally subscribe to MLB.tv, but due to covid, this didn't feel like a real season. I did not watch a single game this year, even though my cardinals made the post season.

 

[German Hops]

You know, MLB should really bring back steroids.