Should MLB shorten their games, or eliminate other aspects in order to increase interest from younger people? Or should it stay as is? What should or shouldn't be done?
http://www.breezejmu.org/sports/should-mlb-implement-rule-changes-to-speed-up-the-game/article_42bd7c88-22f4-11e7-b672-9f4c001f128e.html
ESPN poll: http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/19069535/mlb-fan-survey-baseball-boring-other-burning-questions
I do not believe that the MLB should change their rules. While I see how it could speed up the game and make it more appealing to others, they already have millions, possibly billions of fans from all around the world. Those who enjoy the game, and are dedicated towards it will watch the full thing. The game of baseball should stay how it is, it appeals to many already and it would be a literal game changer to drastically change the rules now. The MLB has already been around for almost one hundred and fifty years, with the rules it currently has. Not only is it a tradition to have these rules, but it also is how the game is played everywhere. The MLB is seen as the “capital” of baseball, if they change their rules, so will everyone else.
ReplyDeleteThe MLB shouldn't change their rules, doing so would ruin the authenticity of the game. Suggestions like removing extra innings, adding a player on second at the beginning of extra innings, or even changing the intentional walk rule would change the game for the worse. The whole culture and tradition would be ruined by these rules. These rules have been in baseball since the start of the league. There are so many fans that have connection to the game and how its been played the same way for over a century. Things like extra inning walkoff homeruns and hits like Vladimir Guerrero's walkoff off on an intentional walk pitch would either cease to exist or become even more rare. I think that changing the rules of baseball would make the game worse and potentially more "boring".
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the MLB should change the rules of the game. Baseball has been an American tradition for decades, and I think that it would be ruined by changing the rules. There are so many games in a season, meaning that each one is less significant (compared to a sport like football), so no matter how exciting the games are changing the rules won't help that much. Part of the fun of going to a baseball game is the length. Even though it can be slow or boring, a lot of it is about the experience, not the actual game. I agree with the point in the article that even if a game was shortened by a half hour, there wouldn't be a significant increase in viewership. Personally, this wouldn't encourage me to watch more games on tv. I also agree that extra innings should be kept. Especially in the playoffs, walk offs are arguably the most exciting end to a baseball game. By taking extra innings away, it would take away a big element of the game. Finally, the last rule change that I strongly disagree with is beginning each inning with runners on second. It just doesn't make sense to me, and will greatly raise ERAs of pitchers, which they won't like. Overall, I think that the game is a tradition that shouldn't be changed, and changing these rules won't greatly impact viewership.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the MLB should change the rules of baseball. Baseball has been a popular sport in America since the days of Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson, and by changing the rules, the historical connection to the game is lessened. There are 162 games for every team in the regular season, so each game means less than each football or hockey game. People who care about baseball and enjoy watching or going to the games will be turned off by the rule change. The fun in going to a baseball game lives in the seventh inning stretch, the bottom of the ninth, and being at the stadium for hours.
ReplyDeleteI really dislike the idea of adding a pitch clock. Giving the pitcher only 20 seconds to pitch the ball increases their tension, especially in a close game. Also, it is always fun to see the pitcher try to get player who is leading on first tagged out. Extra innings are entertaining even for non-baseball fans. People who turn on the TV and see a baseball game in the 13th inning are always inclined to watch, even if they dislike the sport or have no interest in the teams playing. Baseball is an American tradition, and changing the rules will overall decrease American interest and turn fans away.
I do not think the rules of MLB baseball should be changed. Baseball is such n important part of American culture and changing the game would only hurt the game. Most baseball fans come from a family of baseball fans who pass down the sport through many generations. By changing the rules I believe the MLB would be losing all older generations of baseball fans and viewership and ticket sales would decrease as a result. I also do not think decreasing the innings would be a good idea because even people who do not enjoy the sport, do enjoy buying tickets and coming to the game with family and friends to enjoy an entire day of baseball. The experience of attending baseball game would completely change if the game was shortened. I also think youth interest comes from playing the game, so as long as the rules are the same in MLB baseball as they are in youth baseball then younger kids will still have interest in the MLB as the positions, rules, and overall playing experience is something they can relate to.
ReplyDeleteThe MLB should not change the rules of baseball. Baseball is an American tradition and past time. It is an essential part of the American culture. Changing the rules is changing years of tradition, tradition that dates back to extremely influential players such as: Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, Sandy Koufax, etc. It doesn't make sense to change the rules on a revenue basis. Signaling the intentionally walked batter instead of throwing four pitches is not going to make a non-baseball fan or a non-regular game attender suddenly have a desire to see a game. Also, taking extra innings away and starting a player on second base at the beginning of extra innings are definitely not the ways to gain more viewership. Taking major measures like these would not make baseball more interesting, it would make it more boring. Exciting, edge of the seat moments like Vladimir Guerrero hitting a walk-off on an intentional walk pitch would cease to exist. These rule changes just don't make sense.
ReplyDeleteI believe that personally I would love to see the game of baseball get shorter because right now it is just too long and too slow. However in order for the MLB to appeal to the masses I believe that they cannot change the rules at all. The game is defined as "America's pastime" and it is meant to be a slow, lazy game. Personally I am not into it but there is plenty of people that are. Baseball isn't meant to be fast paced like other sports hence no hard running and players are usually bigger. A comparison to the pace of baseball is Nascar, however it is Americas most popular sport. If people love watching a car go around a track for 200 laps then people will love a slow game of baseball. Baseball is about tradition and passing it on, so if the old people like it they will pass it down to the younger generations.
ReplyDeleteI think that the rules of baseball should be changed. While it would feel weird and not right initially if the rules of this iconic sport were to change, I think that after a couple of years to adjust, baseball will be enjoyed as much as it ever has. "America's Pastime" has been slowly losing popularity because of its slow pace and may lose its title if major rule changes do not happen. Simple changes like less innings or smaller area of play could both increase the pace of play. If the pace of play is increased then it will gather an even bigger fan base for the sport.
ReplyDeleteI think that the rules of baseball should remain as they always have. The sport is not so much about the people watching on television during the regular season, but also fans that go to the games. Part of going to a live baseball game is the other activities that are happening at the stadium such as socializing with others at the game, the seventh inning stretch, and others. By shortening the game, it puts too much pressure on the audience to be focused on the game when in reality that's what makes baseball unique. Plus, it adds more excitement to a baseball game when something large does happen. Other sports like the NFL are known for having constant action. MLB games, especially during the regular season, are more of a pass time. The games aren't worth very much. People come for leisure rather than excitement. If baseball loses this edge, they will lose even more popularity. If truly feel the need to implement these changes, they should only do so in the post season when there is a lot on the line.
ReplyDelete-Jesse H
I don't think that the MLB should change anything. Over the past few years they have been trying to shorten the pace of play because they think they are losing a lot of viewers. I think that no matter how long a game is, people will still want to watch it. By adding all of these new rules, it is ruining the game. The game isn't what it used to be, and a lot of people liked watching baseball back in the day. The MLB should just keep everything the way it is and things will be fine.
ReplyDeleteBaseball is Americas past time for a reason. I do not think you need to change the rules, in the past decade baseball has become less popular but I think that is a result of talent. Now in baseball we are seeing new young starts which is attracting a younger audience once again. For example Bryce Harper he has brought many new fans to baseball, younger kids look up to him. They copy his style, how he dresses, his hair, etc. Baseball wasn't interesting because of talent not because of the game itself. So no, I do not think baseball should change its rules.
ReplyDeleteAs people have said, baseball is America's past time and while most of us may not sit down and watch an entire game the game still has plenty of viewership. They have improved the game with replay and other features but ultimately it is difficult to speed the game up. For the high quality games, they usually take longer because of how highly intense and focused the players are. We are entering an exciting era in baseball with young studs like Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Kris Bryant and Bryce Harper just to name a few. They are making baseball fun again and I think with teams like the Cubs winning baseball is going to see a resurgence in overall excitement very soon.
ReplyDeleteBaseball is a big part of American history and so many improvements have been made to the game over the course of many years. The game has evolved to appeal to its fans. To me the game shouldn't be changed because the not every sport is going to be appealing to everyone. Maybe making the games shorter might help a little bit but not a vast amount in my opinion. Beyond that any other changes made to the sport will probably have a negative effect on viewership. People love the game as it is.
ReplyDeleteI do not think the MLB should change its rules to speed up the game in order to get more viewership. I think the reason the MLB is so popular is because it is "America's Pastime" and people see it as a classic American tradition. If the rules were changed, the MLB would become less authentic and the remarkable history of the sport would be blurred out. Also, if the MLB is focused on increasing viewership, I think this is the last thing they should want to do. The amount of people that will stop watching because of the rules change will be much more significant than the amount of people who start watching because of the rules change. Baseball is meant to be a long, dragged out game, and if the rules were changed to make it faster, the sport would lose popularity.
ReplyDeleteI do think that certain MLB rules should be changed or added to bring in younger fans. Things such as a pitch clock could be very useful to keep games shorter, which is a large concern. The core rules should still stay the same though, because it is Amerca's National Pastime. Any major changes (other than adding the DH to the NL) would result in losses of longtime fans.
ReplyDeleteI dont think they should change the rules of the MLB to speed up the game. Baseball is a popular sport and its always been the length it is. I think changing the game and the rules could change some aspects of the sport that people enjoy and that would make the viewer ship decrease. I think that fans watch the sport because they enjoy the sport, and they realize the length of the game. After watching it for however long they do, I don't think they will just stop watching it bc it is too long. I think if they do change the rules to make it slightly shorter, I don't think it will increase the viewer ship by that much.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the MLB rules would benefit from change so that the fan base can change for the better. The younger fans are more interested in short and interesting games. Fans wouldn't have to wait for the game to get exciting at the end for as long as they do now. Baseball is one of Americas most beloved sports but not many people watch an entire regular season game on the air because it takes a long time and is fairly slow. With some alterations of some of the rules that elongate the game and make it more complicated, more fans will want to watch it. However there are some MLB rules that should stay like the core rules in baseball because it keeps the sport traditional. Also, with less time the game will be much more exciting because the players have less time to add numbers to the score board. Nonetheless, regardless of whether the rules change or not, baseball will always be a fan favorite sport that fans will love for the rest of time.
ReplyDeleteI think MLB is doing enough that they can to shorten the game but still retain the traditional values of the game. Yes the game is always changing, but I think it will cause more uproar to change the innings amount. Not every sports fan is going to like baseball because of the slow pace, but people who are at the ballpark or sitting at home enjoy time to think inbetween pitches or talk and sink in the moments of the game. Plus I personally think it's more exciting when baseball players comeback from any deficit because baseball allows for tension and stress to build unlike basketball where you just have to live in the moment.
ReplyDeleteI think the MLB should definitely change the rules of the game if they wanna increase viewership. NCAA lacrosse makes rule changes almost every year now to improve the sport for both the players and the fans. With the more access to live games and yet the viewers of games still go down, this shows that this is a major problem. I think they should get rid of an inning or two which will help shorten up games so people don't get bored and quite watching future games. If the speed of the game increased it could become a lot more interesting for everyone including non baseball fans.
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