Is this the dumbest thing the Twins have ever done?

[cmathewson]

Oh, and "firing Billy Martin."

 

Not sure about that one. He completely destroyed the pitching staff. That was before pitch counts and long relievers.

[IdahoPilgrim]

This. It encourages already low attention-span folks to remain unfocused on a game that for most aspects (besides a hit, run and strikeout) - can only be appreciated with the focus and attention they lack.

 

So, are you saying that only those who can fully appreciate what is happening on the field should attend baseball games? If so, I have to respectfully disagree.

 

Using classical music as an analogy, I have no formal musical training, and when I go to a classical concert I am no doubt missing 80% of what is going on in the music. But does that mean I shouldn't attend? I still enjoy listening to the music and find the experience enriching.

[gil4]

Oh, and "firing Billy Martin."

 

 

The man was born to be fired.

 

One of the best Lite beer commecials was Billy and Steinbrenner arguing about tastes great/less filling, that ended in "Billy, you're fired." "Aw, not again." Not too long afterward they updated the commercial with "Billy, you're hired" after he became the manager again. (It didn't make as much sense, but the "aw, not again" still fit.)

 

There was only so much of Billy Martin that a team, an owner, and a fan base could take.

[IdahoPilgrim]

I think this thread gets us to an issue that we have to always remember.

 

Baseball is not played for it's own sake - it is a game, and professional baseball played before spectators is entertainment. If there are things that go on in between innings (when there is a pause in the game anyway), where is the harm in that? If that can help increase the entertainment value, why not?

 

When I toured the Twins farm system last year, I did it to watch the games, but I also found it interesting to see what each team did to enhance it's game-day experience, particularly for those who are casual fans and do not wish (nor should they be expected to wish) to learn to watch the game with the eye of those who have played it or studied it intensely.

[Ultima Ratio]

So, are you saying that only those who can fully appreciate what is happening on the field should attend baseball games? If so, I have to respectfully disagree.

 

Using classical music as an analogy, I have no formal musical training, and when I go to a classical concert I am no doubt missing 80% of what is going on in the music. But does that mean I shouldn't attend? I still enjoy listening to the music and find the experience enriching.

 

No, I'm not saying don't attend. I don't know how or why you think I'm implying that either. I'm saying that all that extra stuff is mostly noise to me, but since it's mostly between innings, I don't care so much. I'm glad people go to baseball games for whatever reason and for whatever they get out of it. Without these folks, there'd be no money to support a team. I'm just saying that there is a lot more to baseball than the casual observer will ever (or wants to) know, and that a lot of the interesting/fun stuff of baseball (situation, strategy, match-ups) requires attentive focus and this is all the more difficult for a fan with bells and whistles begging to be heard/seen -- and because the game of baseball is slow in nature already, it takes effort to tune in at times especially for the casual and non-native baseball fan. And if the ballparks/teams think you must be constantly bombarded with sensual experiences, and you are a passive observer of the game -- you'll have a hard time ever realizing the fun/interesting things we more focused fans find in the game. I'm not saying that in a condescending way, though I do think it's symptomatic of our culture. It's just a shame more than anything.

 

To your analogy: Ah, but what is the entertainment between songs? Now that would be interesting. In order to sell more tickets, perhaps Yo-yo Ma should rig up a kiss cam between and even during the songs.

[ashbury]

Oh, and I love the Kiss Cam.

 

I'll make sure not to sit with you at a game.

[TheLeviathan]

I don't like the frills either, but there are extremes to it. Having been a Chicago resident for a few years, I can tell you that some of the bells and whistles are nice when all you have is a dude behind a board putting up basic numbers.

 

But then, the frills I like are because I like all the nuance of stats and details in baseball. I could do without some odd under-water camera that isn't really any different than a regular camera but with a ball bouncing around in it. Stuff like that just confuses me.

[70charger]

So, are you saying that only those who can fully appreciate what is happening on the field should attend baseball games? If so, I have to respectfully disagree.

 

Using classical music as an analogy, I have no formal musical training, and when I go to a classical concert I am no doubt missing 80% of what is going on in the music. But does that mean I shouldn't attend? I still enjoy listening to the music and find the experience enriching.

 

I think this kind of misses the point. If you're attending a classical music concert, he's not saying you should be there if you're not an expert, he's just saying that the philharmonic probably shouldn't employ clowns to go up and down the aisle to entertain people while the orchestra plays. It kind of defeats the purpose. Or, to quote Ultima Ratio, it "encourages already low-attention span folks to remain unfocused." If you're there for music, pay attention to the music. If you're there for baseball, pay attention to baseball.

[DaveW]

I think my main problem is that all the "new" mascots really suck.

[spideyo]

Too bad many places don't even use a live organist anymore and just used canned music.

Fortunately, the Twins still do.

 

And really, the mascot race isn't that bad. They COULD choose to have all corporate mascots (they did some even last year where they had the subway sandwich, petey the Pee cup, and some other corporate things running around), or they could not even bother with real mascots and just go all digital like they did at the dome.

 

At least it's more entertaining than the water cam.

[Oxtung]

...bombarded with sensual experiences, you'll have a hard time ever realizing the fun/interesting things we more focused fans find in the game.

 

As a young male sensual experiences are something I could really get behind at the ballpark! And I guarantee I'd have a hard time focusing on the game!

[John Bonnes]

I'll make sure not to sit with you at a game.

 

You should be so lucky. :-)

[Don't Feed the Greed Guy]

It seems to me that kids wanted to go to baseball games before teams started adding inane races with ridiculous mascots sponsored by mega-corporations.

 

Buying a ticket into Target Center is a bow to a mega-corporation, which happens to a corporate leader in supporting education, philanthropy, and hands-on work in local communities. Target on Track to Give $1 Billion for Education by 2015 - Forbes

 

It's a game, Brock. Kids can enjoy baseball, AND singing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch, or a bunch of puppets running around the field at another break in the action. These things are not mutually exclusive.

 

It seems to me that adults wanted to go to baseball games before teams started selling beer, marketed by mega-corporations, at $8 a serving.

[IdahoPilgrim]

I think this kind of misses the point. If you're attending a classical music concert, he's not saying you should be there if you're not an expert, he's just saying that the philharmonic probably shouldn't employ clowns to go up and down the aisle to entertain people while the orchestra plays. It kind of defeats the purpose. Or, to quote Ultima Ratio, it "encourages already low-attention span folks to remain unfocused." If you're there for music, pay attention to the music. If you're there for baseball, pay attention to baseball.

 

And if you're there for the ambience and the total game experience, including the stuff between innings, then that should be OK too, and there should be nothing wrong with the franchise paying attention to that as well as the product on the field.

 

I do apologize if I have unfairly characterized someone's position here, but I have noticed this before (and wrote about it in my blog) that there does tend to be some elitism from some die-hard fans and serious students of the game that minimizes and even somewhat disdains the entertainment aspect of professional baseball. I've seen that in these forums and at the ballpark.

 

'Nuff said - I'm moving on to another topic.

[glunn]

You should all kiss the ground knowing that you get to see the Twins at home. I have to go to Anaheim, and have developed an intense hatred for that fleabag rally monkey and the color red.

[Brock Beauchamp]

You should all kiss the ground knowing that you get to see the Twins at home. I have to go to Anaheim, and have developed an intense hatred for that fleabag rally monkey and the color red.

 

Hey, I was at one of the very first games where the Rally Monkey appeared. It was great. The crowd went nuts.

 

11 years later, not so much.

[Rosterman]

This was not a cheap commercial to do...just the setups alone around Target Field. Probably 20 folks involved in filming alone. Hopefully they paid the mascots some "commercial" money for their time and trouble. At least it had to be warm.

[glunn]

Hey, I was at one of the very first games where the Rally Monkey appeared. It was great. The crowd went nuts.

 

11 years later, not so much.

 

I was there for game 5 of the ALCS. This Twins were winning 5 to 3 until the bottom of the 7th inning. Then that monkey came out and the Angels scored 10 runs. It seemed like the bottom of the 7th inning lasted for an hour, and they just kept piling on the monkey videos.

 

I despise that damn monkey. I oppose animal cruelty, but if a research monkey is absolutely necessary, I would like it to be him.

[Lesser Dali]

I will only comment on the song:

 

1. That song is straight out of one of the handful of Dirt Bike Movies from the 1980's.

2. After hearing this song I began having nightmares that I was stuck living in the 1980's.

3. The song would be much, much better if Trey Parker and Matt Stone wrote the lyrics.

[Han Joelo]

I have a 4 year old and a 1.5 year old (both boys.) My wife and I swore they wouldn't watch TV or play video games. Ever. Needless to say, even the baby knows how to turn on an iPod.

 

All this is to say, the world has changed somewhat. I really wanted to hit a minor league game last year with the boys but was afraid I'd waste the money on tickets and expensive food just so I could spend the time chasing boys up and down the stadium steps. But you know; even that would be worth it--at the ballpark with my boys, beer in a plastic cup, the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd when a homerun is hit (that I didn't get to see.) Baseball is a lot of different things to people. I appreciate the diversity and enjoy the banter on this site and others. I hope that for the folks who have delved into the numbers part of baseball Matrixball style, you can respect those of us who might enjoy that part of the game but really just like baseball because...its a game.

 

ps: I did happen to have the game on t.v. when Jimmers mashed his 600th. I wasn't really able to watch much of the game due to family duties, but in a perfect moment in the space-time continuum, I was watching, and even told my son "watch this," and then I went crazy when he actually hit it out. I'm sure my 2-year old son had very little understanding of what had just happened, but he went wild too.

[powrwrap]

Maybe that is because I am an *******

 

Looks like you got yourself a sig line.

[powrwrap]

I will only comment on the song:

 

1. That song is straight out of one of the handful of Dirt Bike Movies from the 1980's.

2. After hearing this song I began having nightmares that I was stuck living in the 1980's.

3. The song would be much, much better if Trey Parker and Matt Stone wrote the lyrics.

 

Song sounds like the sound tracks of the cheesy 80's movies that Mystery Science Theater 3000 would skewer, like "Alien from L.A." (starring Kathy Ireland), or "Hobgoblins".