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wsnydes

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Everything posted by wsnydes

  1. I thought that's what we were doing here?!
  2. As if it weren't obvious already, I think I'll go ahead and book that fall vacation now. I certainly don't need the money, or the availability, for playoff games... Probably a good thing that Monday's game was rained out or they'd be even further in the hole.
  3. He's one of those guys that I'd love to have on my team but absolutely despise when he's not.
  4. Realistically, the umpires making the final call makes the most sense. They're there at the ballpark and control everything else once the game starts. It makes the most sense for them to also control when the game actually starts under such conditions. They can get all of the information from the grounds crews and local meteorologists and make a determination themselves. That seems like the best way to go, in my opinion.
  5. Target Field has all of the kid friendly amenities that you list. They have two sections devoted to a family section. They also have a beer stand every 4 paces. I don't have kids either, but my issue is going to be the amount of alcohol consumed and the behavior and atmosphere that it creates. I'm definitely not against the sale of beer/booze at a game, I imbibe myself at times. Some people simply can't control themselves and it becomes problematic, in my opinion. I don't like being subjected to a drunken idiot yelling at the top of their lungs all game long, let alone exposing a kid to it. I do like your ideas for the marketing. The only thing I would add is that it would be nice to give the experience to families as well. They do have some, and they're pretty popular. I think your ideas are great to get that initial exposure, but if they don't have that ability to go again and again, then I'm not sure that it goes anywhere. That's where the parents come in, in my opinion. The Twins do have opportunities like that, but I'm not sure that they're advertised as they could be. And yes, MLB has many other issues besides growth that they need to address. Address the in-game issues and attendance should improve organically to some degree, but other things will need to be done to keep that growth.
  6. I'm torn on this. I do think that local field staff need some input on a final decision. Just because a field is supposed to drain 'x' amount of rainwater/hour, that doesn't mean that the field is playable or even safe. There's no reason to play on a field that's a sloppy mess because someone not local said so. I think that's a disservice to fans, the team and the game frankly. I don't really mind the gamesmanship all that much, but similar to what @Otto von Ballpark says, the system could probably use some tweaking before it really gets out of hand.
  7. I think the answer is really yes and no. Good players get caught in a 40-man crunch or get buried on the organizational depth chart often enough that a draft was created specifically to give those guys a chance. Sometimes it's a gamble to see who they think they can slip through and keep. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't. I don't really see that instance being an issue. That's going to happen to every team. A 40-man roster needs to be constructed in a manner to allow flexibility. And, in my mind, how that roster is constructed differs between that of a contender or non-contender. Detroit can afford to take a risk and have a guy like Baddoo on the active roster, they're not a contender. The Twins were supposed to contend, so they couldn't. The only reason that Celestino is on the roster now is due to injuries. I can't expect a FO to foresee that. That's reasonable in my view. It's the guys jettisoned for no real reason that is more concerning, and that seems to be on the pitching side of things. Which is doubly concerning since the FO was touted as pitching gurus. I do think that the contender/non-contender window comes into play, but that makes the Anderson and Littell moves all the more curious.
  8. If the pandemic taught me anything, it's that I could live just fine without sports.
  9. I think I follow you here. And it makes sense. My experience must differ from yours though, because I do see the coverage more locally. But that doesn't mean that it's that way everywhere. I am curious though. If you don't make games and the gameday experience more interesting to younger generations, how would you work to grow the game? Passing the experience down from generation to generation is about the easiest marketing ploy there is. It's obviously not working right now, for a variety of reasons as stated in this thread, but that doesn't mean that it can't help in the future.
  10. Thanks for making me feel old at 40...?
  11. Definitely agree. I see college baseball on tv all of the time. Hockey is a relative niche sport. That's why I was curious as to how he defined "big coverage". I was looking for how he defined it because of exactly what you mention.
  12. I'm not sure how you define "big coverage", but the college and little league World Series are broadcast nationally every year. On ESPN, if I'm remembering correctly.
  13. True, but if it negatively impacts the fan experience, it'll catch up to you eventually. And as @TheLeviathan pointed out, if you have a serious problem with fans then you can't be like everyone else. These venues have become very family unfriendly. I don't want to subject myself to drunken idiots all of the time, let alone exposing a kid to that.
  14. Agreed on the marketing issues. I do think that focusing on the draft is probably a poor idea though. It takes too long for the vast majority of those guys to get to the big leagues, if they get there at all. That isn't the case with the NFL or NBA. That's not to say that they should ignore it though. It still creates visibility, which is obviously good. But, I do think that showcasing the minor leagues is a really good idea. And with the young talent that's come up in the majors the last few years, those teams should be showcased more instead of every single NYY/BOS tilt. Expand the fan base, don't pander to the relative few that are already in it. Few outside of the NY or Boston area care about seeing the Yankees and/or Red Sox for the 400th time. Show me Toronto. Show me Atlanta. Show San Diego. Show me Washington.
  15. No worries, I see where you're coming from. My initial point probably could have been a bit clearer. Your comment allowed me to further clarify.
  16. This is actually a fairly common occurrence, in my experience. They don't always do the anthem, but they'll let everyone in knowing that there will be a delay (usually when it's already raining), announce the delay around when first pitch is slated, and let people buy concessions and whatnot for about an hour and then postpone it at that point. It's ridiculous and why I simply quit going downtown if I think the game will be called. I'm right most of the time, but I have missed a few games that ended up getting played. I've actually been complaining about this very thing for almost the entire existence of Target Field. I'm glad to see people are catching on to this clear money grab.
  17. My understanding is that the home team makes the call prior to the game starting, but the umps make the call if the game has started.
  18. For what it's worth, in Apple Valley, it rained all afternoon and sometimes rather hard. The storm was moving north, so I can see why they called it. I cancelled a tee time in Mpls for the same reason. That said, it annoys me to no end when they do that. I've driven downtown far too many times to only have to have the game called after sitting there for an hour waiting for it to start. Now, if it looks like the game will be delayed I'll head downtown later or not at all if it looks like it'll be called.
  19. I think the NFL creates that for themselves to keep themselves out there. It comes across as "needy" to me. That said, it's still working for them. Regardless, it's not apathy that they suffer from. It is a different problem then MLB, no doubt. But, I know that I'm not the only one that has stopped watching the NFL for the reasons that I stated.
  20. I'm in the mode of trade anyone that has value, but I'm wondering how wise it is to trade someone with no clear player to inherit the position now or long term. Would they simply create a bigger problem by leaving a gaping hole where Donaldson used to be - both offensively and defensively? I realize that his injury history nullifies that argument a bit, but it's one thing to fill the gap temporarily with several guys and quite another to have to permanently fill that void. Moving Sano back to 3B excites me even less than leaving him at 1B does. I could probably live with that for the rest of this season, but that's a massive problem for me long term. And I think Donaldson's salary, age and injury history limit the return that they'll get for him. Couple this with a potential trade of Simmons, and you're left trying to fill in the left side of your infield less than a full season after you made upgrading your infield defense a priority.
  21. I quit watching the NFL about a decade ago. I got tired of the endless, year round media saturation, constant rule changes, slow play and the fact that a catch was the most disputed thing in the game despite it happening about 100 times in each game. It ceased being football to me. So, you are absolutely correct. Baseball has started down that same path for me, unfortunately. And it's always been my favorite sport. Slow, boring play has turned me off quite a bit. Like @Vanimal46, my group of friends that talk Twins, or even baseball in general, has shrunk considerably. I can't watch games (Hulu subscriber) and really have made no effort to figure out a way to do so. I'll listen to 3 or 4 games a week on the radio or follow via Gamecast. I used to attend 30 some odd games a year, now I'm down to 10 to 15. I've still got my season tickets, but I don't even enjoy the gameday experience as much as I used to. I've minimized the time (and money) I spend there now, whereas I used to be in the doors as soon as they opened so I could watch BP. If the game can manage to start turning away fans like me, it's in trouble. And it's difficult for me to see how they can change that trajectory.
  22. I'm not saying that I want them to do that or that I think they will, rather that there will be a team that will. So, if I'm Buxton, 2/$50m is a nonstarter because I know I can get that much for a longer term elsewhere. I agree completely that it isn't worth the risk if you're the Twins. But if you're the Yankees, it's not nearly as big of a deal. And I'd be perfectly happy if they want to take that risk.
  23. But he, and his agent, knows that every major market team will likely be after his services and will be willing to pay him $25+M for 4 or 5 years (if not more), not two. The AAV will need to be quite a bit higher to make that enticing. Even at 5 years, he'd be a FA again at 32 and can still sign another bigger contract like Donaldson did. And if he does continue to be hurt all of the time, a longer deal still guarantees that he's making that cash. A short term deal doesn't afford that.
  24. This. This is the sole reason why I'd spend more energy trying to lock down Berrios. It's not a matter of who is better, in my view. It's more about signability and Buxton has turned down multiple offers and he's only gotten better as he's went. Buxton is clearly the game changer this team needs, but I don't realistically believe that they can sign him. Buxton has repeatedly bet on himself and he's proven to be correct. I don't know why that would change at this point. Obviously the team has to try. I'd be furious if they didn't, but I just don't see them taking the financial risk. Teams like the Yankees can take that risk and not really blink. The fan in me wants nothing more than for him to sign here, but the realist in me doesn't think it's a good idea unless it's team friendly or incentive laden. And he's shown no interest in that. And frankly, I don't really blame him.
  25. I feel like this is something that shouldn't be discussed. Because with Buxton, anything seems within the realm of possibility! That said, well done, Stu!
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