** The Offical 2023 Playoffs Thread**

[TheFrenzy]

Go Rangers

[fulltritty]

World Series Games 2 and 3 were least-viewed in Fall Classic history

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...lassic-history

[The_Reverend]

One of the major problems for the WS is that Direct TV no longer has Fox as a channel. I know in our area we do not and therefore the ratings in DirectTV dominant areas will be impacted. Fortunately we have YouTubeTV, but I still watch very little of the first 4 games.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by jdandns

True, but if Walker could've got a run-scoring double or the like at the end there, things might've got a little interesting, especially with Seager out of the game.

Texas has three match points. Let's see if they can erase the memory of the one-strike-away from glory near-miss heartbreak of 2011.

It was worse than that. If Nelson Cruz had been playing deep like he should have in the 9th inning of a close game, he catches that ball and the Rangers win the World Series. That is the biggest mistake in World Series history over Bill Buckner letting Mookie Wilson's ground ball go between his legs or Barry Bonds misplaying Troy Glaus' fly ball into a game winning double.

[NYBBFAN]

Originally Posted by The_Reverend

One of the major problems for the WS is that Direct TV no longer has Fox as a channel. I know in our area we do not and therefore the ratings in DirectTV dominant areas will be impacted. Fortunately we have YouTubeTV, but I still watch very little of the first 4 games.

Fox is available over-the-air in most major metro areas for absolutely free.

[Scottish Punk]

Wow the Lions/Raiders game was closing in on double the viewership of Game 4. That football game really isn't loaded with "juice" like have some big MVP type stars playing or traditional powerhouses. With the blowout last night, even with a DBacks win in game 5, I would expect World Series numbers to dip further a bit.

[hxcmilkshake]

Originally Posted by rats60

It was worse than that. If Nelson Cruz had been playing deep like he should have in the 9th inning of a close game, he catches that ball and the Rangers win the World Series. That is the biggest mistake in World Series history over Bill Buckner letting Mookie Wilson's ground ball go between his legs or Barry Bonds misplaying Troy Glaus' fly ball into a game winning double.

That was a line shot over Cruz' head. At least it was a hard hit ball, unlike Mookie's. And Cruz being a poor fielder even if he was a couple steps back idk how you can assume he catches that anyway. Its not like he was playing shallow...

Holliday getting picked off 3rd a couple innings before was more boneheaded than Cruz imo. Cardinals could've had a big inning.

AND the Rangers bullpen imploded that game. Only 1 out of like 6 pitchers didn't allow a hit or walk.

But that was an all time game to watch.

And I hate Bonds too but he's not catching that ball...he took a weird roided path to the ball but it was a shot in the gap. Some blame has to go to the pitchers on these line shots, unlike Buckner.

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

[whitmm]

Originally Posted by Scottish Punk

Wow the Lions/Raiders game was closing in on double the viewership of Game 4. That football game really isn't loaded with "juice" like have some big MVP type stars playing or traditional powerhouses. With the blowout last night, even with a DBacks win in game 5, I would expect World Series numbers to dip further a bit.

And yet people here still think that the reason ratings are down for the World Series is because Bryce Harper isn't there...

The amount of fake outrage and being upset over ratings is a freaking joke here. Seriously, nobody cares about the ratings. It's not going to have any affect on your (not you specifically) card prices. Your Seager cards are going to get the same bump when he wins WS MVP, your Evan Carter RCs are going to get the same bump.

[whitmm]

Originally Posted by fulltritty

World Series Games 2 and 3 were least-viewed in Fall Classic history

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...lassic-history

Who cares?

Seriously, explain how this affects you in any way.

[base set]

Ratings don’t affect any of us at a personal level. Big deal. It’s still not fun to see the sport straight decline in popularity, which is an in-arguable fact.

Meanwhile a theme of coverage around this year’s playoffs is the 2 words “bullpen game.” That lead me to discover a new experimental rule tried this year in the Atlantic League - the “Double Hook” rule: if a starter is pulled before completing 5 innings, that team loses the DH and thus either a Pitcher or a Pinch-hitter must bat whenever the DH spot is due up. Did not see any coverage of how the experiment worked but the whole thing would have serious apples/oranges issues attempting to compare roster constraints in Independent baseball vs. MLB; the idea is aimed at pressuring MLB roster decisions.

[Boo]

Originally Posted by base set

Ratings don’t affect any of us at a personal level. Big deal. It’s still not fun to see the sport straight decline in popularity, which is an in-arguable fact.

Meanwhile a theme of coverage around this year’s playoffs is the 2 words “bullpen game.” That lead me to discover a new experimental rule tried this year in the Atlantic League - the “Double Hook” rule: if a starter is pulled before completing 5 innings, that team loses the DH and thus either a Pitcher or a Pinch-hitter must bat whenever the DH spot is due up. Did not see any coverage of how the experiment worked but the whole thing would have serious apples/oranges issues attempting to compare roster constraints in Independent baseball vs. MLB; the idea is aimed at pressuring MLB roster decisions.

That sounds dumb. So your starter gets rocked for 8 runs in the first and you have to keep him in to keep the DH. No thanks.

[fulltritty]

Originally Posted by base set

Ratings don’t affect any of us at a personal level. Big deal. It’s still not fun to see the sport straight decline in popularity, which is an in-arguable fact.

Meanwhile a theme of coverage around this year’s playoffs is the 2 words “bullpen game.” That lead me to discover a new experimental rule tried this year in the Atlantic League - the “Double Hook” rule: if a starter is pulled before completing 5 innings, that team loses the DH and thus either a Pitcher or a Pinch-hitter must bat whenever the DH spot is due up. Did not see any coverage of how the experiment worked but the whole thing would have serious apples/oranges issues attempting to compare roster constraints in Independent baseball vs. MLB; the idea is aimed at pressuring MLB roster decisions.

That sounds like a horrible rule. Probably right up Manfred's alley though.

[fulltritty]

Originally Posted by whitmm

Who cares?

Seriously, explain how this affects you in any way.

It doesn't, but there have been many posts and threads about baseball's ratings and if it is a dying sport here on BO which makes it very much relevant to the current playoff discussion.

[JRX]

Originally Posted by The_Reverend

One of the major problems for the WS is that Direct TV no longer has Fox as a channel. I know in our area we do not and therefore the ratings in DirectTV dominant areas will be impacted. Fortunately we have YouTubeTV, but I still watch very little of the first 4 games.

If that was the cause, you would then see that across all fox programming including the nfl.

[whitmm]

Originally Posted by base set

Ratings don’t affect any of us at a personal level. Big deal. It’s still not fun to see the sport straight decline in popularity, which is an in-arguable fact.

Except the viewership of the WS isn't directly related to the popularity. Yup, two smaller market teams result in lower numbers of people watching. If it was Yankees-Dodgers, the numbers would be much higher, because those teams have much larger fan bases. It's not because more "casuals" are tuning in.

Overall viewership during the season was up. Regional viewership was up 7%. The Rangers saw a 98% increase (funny how when you're winning people watch games). The 5 teams that saw the biggest declines were the Royals, White Sox, Cardinals, Yankees, and Mets. That's two bottom feeder teams and 3 blue bloods that had terrible seasons.

It's okay, the league is doing just fine. There's going to be a 2024 season and for many years after that.

[whitmm]

Originally Posted by fulltritty

It doesn't, but there have been many posts and threads about baseball's ratings and if it is a dying sport here on BO which makes it very much relevant to the current playoff discussion.

Baseball isn't going anywhere.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by hxcmilkshake

That was a line shot over Cruz' head. At least it was a hard hit ball, unlike Mookie's. And Cruz being a poor fielder even if he was a couple steps back idk how you can assume he catches that anyway. Its not like he was playing shallow...

Holliday getting picked off 3rd a couple innings before was more boneheaded than Cruz imo. Cardinals could've had a big inning.

AND the Rangers bullpen imploded that game. Only 1 out of like 6 pitchers didn't allow a hit or walk.

But that was an all time game to watch.

And I hate Bonds too but he's not catching that ball...he took a weird roided path to the ball but it was a shot in the gap. Some blame has to go to the pitchers on these line shots, unlike Buckner.

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

That ball was an easy catch. Cruz was playing way too shallow for that situation. 9th inning of a close game, you can't let any ball go over your head, that is Baseball 101. Josh Hamilton and David Murphy were playing deep, but Cruz was not. He should have been a few steps from the warning track. He almost caught the ball as it was. If he had been properly positioned, He takes a few steps back and the ball is in his glove, not hitting the bottom of the wall, and the Rangers are World Champions.

Bill Buckner gets a lot of heat that he shouldn't. Sure it was an easy ball, but he was playing back, as he should. It was a slow hit ball by Mookie Wilson, a fast left handed hitter. He just rushed and missed the ball. Bob Stanley had just thrown a wild pitch to tie the game and put Ray Knight in scoring position. If Buckner makes the play, it is still a tied game with the Mets at home and the momentum from the rallies in the 8th and 10th. Cruz's play would have ended the World Series. Cruz stands alone as the GOAT of goats.

[JRX]

Originally Posted by rats60

That ball was an easy catch. Cruz was playing way too shallow for that situation. 9th inning of a close game, you can't let any ball go over your head, that is Baseball 101. Josh Hamilton and David Murphy were playing deep, but Cruz was not. He should have been a few steps from the warning track. He almost caught the ball as it was. If he had been properly positioned, He takes a few steps back and the ball is in his glove, not hitting the bottom of the wall, and the Rangers are World Champions.

Bill Buckner gets a lot of heat that he shouldn't. Sure it was an easy ball, but he was playing back, as he should. It was a slow hit ball by Mookie Wilson, a fast left handed hitter. He just rushed and missed the ball. Bob Stanley had just thrown a wild pitch to tie the game and put Ray Knight in scoring position. If Buckner makes the play, it is still a tied game with the Mets at home and the momentum from the rallies in the 8th and 10th. Cruz's play would have ended the World Series. Cruz stands alone as the GOAT of goats.

Yeah rewatching the 86 series during covid made me realize how cruel and unfair bos fans were to Buckner. The pen had already blown the game and they even had a lead in game 7.

[hxcmilkshake]

Originally Posted by JRX

Yeah rewatching the 86 series during covid made me realize how cruel and unfair bos fans were to Buckner. The pen had already blown the game and they even had a lead in game 7.

Schiraldi and Stanley were vilified too, but yeah Buckner got the brunt. Like Bartman with the Cubs.

Two bitter franchises made scapegoats out of them , only to apologize later only after they finally won something. Joke. Threaten these guys and ruin their lives but apologize a million years later. Classy.

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[fulltritty]

Originally Posted by whitmm

Baseball isn't going anywhere.

I've never been one of the posters arguing it is.

[whitmm]

Originally Posted by fulltritty

I've never been one of the posters arguing it is.

You seem to agree with those comments though, since you said it was relevant to the playoff discussion and you posted a link to the numbers.

Low viewership of the playoffs isn't a representation of the health of the sport or the health of the hobby.

[dbackschamp2001]

I'd make an argument that if baseball played as few games as football, then the ratings would be around the same level as football. The fact that the World Series is 4-7 games after a 162 game season plus the rest of the postseason makes it easier for the regular fan to not watch games and not feel like they missed anything.

None of it really matters. Fox isn't going to stop airing the World Series due to one series of low viewership. Sports in general are one of the few things on TV that advertisers can count on people to watch live.

[discostu]

A few plays going differently, we might be looking at the Diamondbacks sweeping last night.

[Jolten Joe]

Good effort by Arizona to at least make it competitive score wise last night. I think they pull off a win tonight but Texas takes it in game 6

[NYBBFAN]

Originally Posted by Jolten Joe

Good effort by Arizona to at least make it competitive score wise last night. I think they pull off a win tonight but Texas takes it in game 6

Not early on! Looked like a slaughter for the first 2/3rds of the game.