baseball.........discuss

[Dez]

Having spent the past week in the US I have had the baseball "world" series trust upon me from all angles. I sat through a couple of games and attempted to get enthusiastic, but i'm afraid I ended up thinking it was a load of over hyped American bollox!

Does everyone agree that American sports, and inparticular baseball are shite? (if anyone cares the Florida Marlins beat the New York Yankees to win the world series 4-2)

 

[BrightonBird]

yes. Complete and utter shite, Went to Brighton Bears once and got really confused (more than usual).

 

[Italiaseagull]

American sports suck big time! How the hell can a they call Florida v New York a world series? Yep I agree overhyped load of shit.

 

[Sam]

american football is bollocks aswell, they shout "41-42 huh huh huh" then run for 10 seconds and then a whole new team comes on to the field!!

 

[BrightonBird]

 

[BrightonBird]

That was for Artois, who's post has suddenly gone missing.

 

[Simster]

Baseball is a decent game but you need to take time out to understand the tactics. And personally, I found it more interesting to watch on the telly with my mates than at the ballpark - although I always got a cack seat in the outfield.

Ice hockey is decent enough, but I don't have much time for the others. Basketball is OK to watch I suppose, but I don't like sports where rules vary depending on who is playing and where some rules are blatently ignored. Basketball is meant to be non-contact!

And as for American Football, what a load of shite. Pure made-for-tv rubbish where a tackle is applauded if it maims an oppononent, a 60 minute game takes 4 hours, and the rules change in the last 2 minutes in order to make it "more exciting".

I always think that the fact that baseball and ice hockey are global sports (and basketball to a lesser extent) must mean they deserve a certain amount of respect.

 

[Artois]

yes. Complete and utter shite, Went to Brighton Bears once and got really confused (more than usual).

Oh BB, you do make me laugh

 

[tinx]

I enjoy watching Ice Hockey and Basketball. Used to love American football but when I went to a live game and was sat in the same chair for about 4 hours I realized how boring it was. As for Baseball I just don't get it at all......

 

[Bwian]

Baseball is a great game, very complex and entertaining once you understand the game and what's going on. Pretty much like cricket although because it's American it is instantly branded as shite. Much the same way that Americans consider 'soccer' a girl's game because of all of the falling over and feigned injuries.

Imagine trying to explain cricket to somebody who had never seen a game before. Give them one or two goes at watching and they'll probably say "load of boring old shite. And this game lasts 4 days? You're having a laugh aren't you?"

 

[Tooting Gull]

I don't agree at all, but I can see why people don't get baseball for the same reason I see why people don't get cricket, and if you don't it must be mind-numbingly tedious, like golf or anything else.

But I do get it, think it's a great game with a lot of subtleties and nuances, it has big star performers going head to head both as pitchers and batters, played in front of huge crowds who turn up for 80-odd home games in the regular season, and it is a huge part of American culture. Know your baseball and you can chat to people in a bar the way you can about football here.

It should obviously be called something else for the finals, but the fact is that is the best baseball in the world, and its big in more countries than you would imagine, can't be far behind rugby in terms of the spread with all the central and south american countries, and the Far East.

Only when you've watched a few do you appreciate when something really big has happened, like being three-down in the bottom of the ninth and someone hits a grand slam home run to win the match. Again, like any other sport.

Personally, its american football I can't stand, but sitting watching a baseball game with a beer and a few tortillas in a great stadium, that'll do me thank you. Not quite as good as a day at Arundel, but you can't have everything.

 

[Sam]

Much the same way that Americans consider 'soccer' a girl's game because of all of the falling over and feigned injuries.

need I say more??

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

In my personal experience of the Baltimore Orioles, baseball is a great excuse to eat peanuts, sup beer and chat to mates in an excellent stadium with the baseball as a backdrop. On the subject of US Football, the sooner C4 bring that back to terrestrial television the better.

 

[JJ McClure]

Ice Hockey is a superb game, and basketball is good to watch aswell.
I'm glad the marlins beat the Yankees, as the Yankees are the Man Utd of Baseball

 

[Bwian]

As for Baseball I just don't get it at all......

Once you do you'll realise that it is a very good game to watch. There's a lot more happening than the batter and pitcher.

I didn't like baseball much but watched nearly a whole season with somebody who explained the subtleties of the game-once I knew them I was a fan.

 

[Bwian]

need I say more??

So you'd wear no protection if you're being hit by some lumbering 300 lb defensive lineman?

Sorry Sam but yours is a typical British response to an American game you don't fully understand.

We could say the same about cricket-I mean really, why the need for all the padding/gloves, etc?

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Nice one Brian. The whole argument about Rugby players being real men because they don't wear the protective gear is just bollox trotted out by people who have no comprehension of what US Football is about.

 

[Simster]

It should obviously be called something else for the finals, but the fact is that is the best baseball in the world, and its big in more countries than you would imagine, can't be far behind rugby in terms of the spread with all the central and south american countries, and the Far East.

Wise words. I think a lot of people don't realise that baseball is the number one sport in the USA, Japan, Columbia, Cuba and whole string of central American countries. And across South America and in Canada it is the second sport. It is also reasonably popular in places like Australia and South Africa. It is every bit as global as cricket and rugby, if not more.

But of course, the USA has the biggest and best league so people assume it is an insular sport, but you only have to take a look at the rosters to see that aint the case.

 

[alan partridge]

i've tried getting into baseball being in japan but its hard work. i occasionally can get into a game when my local team are beating the manure equivalent here but, while i think its a great game. must be good fun to play, i just can't see the subtleties. i wish i could. it seems such a simple game, and as a spectator sport, boring as hell.

basketball i really liked playing as a kid. not bad to watch but the high scores are very dull. undoubtedly skillfull but hardly footie!

american football winds me up. must be great to be a coach and have all those meatheads under your command, sending them out like a game of chess i suppose. but to watch...sod off! if watching enormous men run into each other is your thing, go for it, but for me....snooze

american sports are all just a bit 'monster truck rally'. big bangs and fake thrills. a bit empty if you ask me

 

[Man of Harveys]

Baseball is - despite the hype, the ridiculous salaries, the TV domination - a wonderfully intelligent, subtle and intricate sport, with a mountain of myths, legendary players and great rivalries. I love it, despite being saddled with rather a poor team, the San Diego Padres.

Also, as a ground anorak, baseball has gone full circle on the stadium design front - far from wanting their new grounds to be as modern as possible, they've decided to instill newly-built grounds with as much "character" as possible - they're quirky, assymetrical and about 1000x more interesting as a result. In comparison, new British football grounds look like they've been designed by the MFI design team - except our plans for Falmer, of course.