They make too much money to get mad at the other team. Winning was more important because back then that playoff and World Series check was sometimes as much or more then the salary was. Body armor for hitters. Pitchers ejected for throwing 4 inches inside. Umpires ejecting players for questioning a call. It’s all soft. 2 other examples ( please don’t do this at home). Bert Campenaris throwing his bat at a Tiger pitcher after a pitch at his feet and Lenny Randle drag bunting just to peel off and explode on the pitcher fielding the ball. Both resulted in bench clearing fights. Everything changes. Like every other sport, the players are all the same, and damn , it’s boring sometimes
Too much choreography. Most of the emotions, or bat flips and poses, are fake rather than natural.
Examples:
-The idiotic pause and side step between second and third after a home run, like Acuna and others do.
-The silly ass shake dance all the Dodgers have been doing after every hit for years now. That was fine for a day or two, but it's absolutely a joke now.
-And, then there is the props and all the nonsense in the dugout after homers, even if said homer means absolutely nothing in a 12-2 game. It's emotionless, pre-planned BS. Let's put a jacket on this guy (Blue Jays), lift a trident, which apparently weighs 30 pounds and could seriously hurt someone (Mariners), and all the other nonsense like taking photographs for a team's Instagram page after long balls as well. Fans don't come to watch baseball players entertain themselves. We want to be entertained by their hard work and play on the field. Save the fun for overpaying fans.
I hear what you're saying. It's fake, it's soft, and eventually, if baseball isn't careful and doesn't bring back more of the natural human element, then most of us who know what sports, especially baseball, used to be in comparison to now (can say the same for basketball and it's softness as well), then we'll be watching less and less.
Got to real, tough-minded athletes, with drama, fights, and dislike. That's what sports in America have lost over the last 15-20 years, sadly. Name the last real, worthy rivalry that everyone got excited for in either MLB or the NBA...there hasn't been that in MLB, anyway, since, I would say, the Sox and Yankees about 20 years ago, when players such as Pedro were part of the action. Most everyone, even neutral fans, tuned in for that gritty rivalry back in the day.
Baseball needs something to bring back that spark. Good article.
I immediately thought of Roger Clemens and Mike Piazza. Raw emotion that leads to tossed broken bats and sheer hatred. And Pedro was exactly as you said, and even he knew when to admit when a team ended up being his metaphorical paternal figure. That’s the respect he gave and the respect he got back. These guys were epitome of what the kids say nowadays: FAFO (Fuck around & find out)
Reading this makes me think who is the closest to that old school grit / psychotic player and the closest I can think of is Tommy Pham. He’ll slap the shit out of player, get stabbed at Pacers, and threaten others with his Kung Fu and Muay Thai skills.
"The second one makes the hitter know you meant the first one."
That was Sal Maglie's philosophy of pitching inside and knocking people down. I suppose suspension would result if someone admitted to that today?
The death of baseball stirrups is the most disheartening thing of them all.
They make too much money to get mad at the other team. Winning was more important because back then that playoff and World Series check was sometimes as much or more then the salary was. Body armor for hitters. Pitchers ejected for throwing 4 inches inside. Umpires ejecting players for questioning a call. It’s all soft. 2 other examples ( please don’t do this at home). Bert Campenaris throwing his bat at a Tiger pitcher after a pitch at his feet and Lenny Randle drag bunting just to peel off and explode on the pitcher fielding the ball. Both resulted in bench clearing fights. Everything changes. Like every other sport, the players are all the same, and damn , it’s boring sometimes
Even the fights you see now seem watered down and lacking in grit, although last year's Jose Ramirez vs Tim Anderson squabble was one for the ages!
Totally agree. Much too sterile now. Yet it still manages to preserve the best parts of it.
Preach.
Pedro was trying to kill people out there. He was crazy. He was incredible
Too much choreography. Most of the emotions, or bat flips and poses, are fake rather than natural.
Examples:
-The idiotic pause and side step between second and third after a home run, like Acuna and others do.
-The silly ass shake dance all the Dodgers have been doing after every hit for years now. That was fine for a day or two, but it's absolutely a joke now.
-And, then there is the props and all the nonsense in the dugout after homers, even if said homer means absolutely nothing in a 12-2 game. It's emotionless, pre-planned BS. Let's put a jacket on this guy (Blue Jays), lift a trident, which apparently weighs 30 pounds and could seriously hurt someone (Mariners), and all the other nonsense like taking photographs for a team's Instagram page after long balls as well. Fans don't come to watch baseball players entertain themselves. We want to be entertained by their hard work and play on the field. Save the fun for overpaying fans.
I hear what you're saying. It's fake, it's soft, and eventually, if baseball isn't careful and doesn't bring back more of the natural human element, then most of us who know what sports, especially baseball, used to be in comparison to now (can say the same for basketball and it's softness as well), then we'll be watching less and less.
Got to real, tough-minded athletes, with drama, fights, and dislike. That's what sports in America have lost over the last 15-20 years, sadly. Name the last real, worthy rivalry that everyone got excited for in either MLB or the NBA...there hasn't been that in MLB, anyway, since, I would say, the Sox and Yankees about 20 years ago, when players such as Pedro were part of the action. Most everyone, even neutral fans, tuned in for that gritty rivalry back in the day.
Baseball needs something to bring back that spark. Good article.
Good points.
You ain’t alone, buddy, you ain’t alone.
I immediately thought of Roger Clemens and Mike Piazza. Raw emotion that leads to tossed broken bats and sheer hatred. And Pedro was exactly as you said, and even he knew when to admit when a team ended up being his metaphorical paternal figure. That’s the respect he gave and the respect he got back. These guys were epitome of what the kids say nowadays: FAFO (Fuck around & find out)
This is an exact analogy for what has happened in the book world
Reading this makes me think who is the closest to that old school grit / psychotic player and the closest I can think of is Tommy Pham. He’ll slap the shit out of player, get stabbed at Pacers, and threaten others with his Kung Fu and Muay Thai skills.
Bob Gibson was the OG of intimidating pitchers. He would throw at your head if he thought you were looking at him funny.
32 years after Pete Rose ran over Ray Fosse, the all star game ended in a tie because the teams ran out of pitchers.
I'm pretty sure if Pete had been playing in the 2002 game, he would have taken the mound and finished the game.