Posted By:
David SmithNo, Jeff, I live in Indiana.
As far as bitterness, it REALLY upsets me that ESPN and now FOX, primarily show Yankees and Red Sox games during the regular season. I think I read somewhere that ESPN was going to show the Yankees and Red Sox at least 20 times EACh during the regular season.
By primarily showcasing these two teams, it turns a LOT of fans off, especially those fans of "small market" teams. These fans know they are at a disadvantage every year because of the money the large market teams have and can throw around. THEN to have ESPN and FOX throw it their face every week just makes it worse.
I used to watch baseball on ESPN religiously. I also used to watch Baseball Tonight every night. It was fair and balanced and I could see highlights of games (instead of just reading about them in the newspaper or on the web). I could also see great performances and strange plays and not have to be told about them by somebody else. Finally, I could see the players and know who they were. I could see who was having a great year and who wasn't. This way, when it was Play-Off time, I would have an informed opinion on who I thought should win and why and if they didn't then I could see where I made the wrong assumptions or judgements. I could also have an informed opinion on who should win the individual awards and why.
Then ESPN and FOX started showing more and more of the large market teams and especially the Yankees and Red Sox. As they did that, I started watching LESS games. I thought it would get better after a year or two, especially after the Yankees and Red Sox were NOT winning the World Series and other teams (teams that ESPN almost totally forgot about showing - ala the Tigers last year) WERE winning it, but it only got worse.
The kicker for me was earlier this year, on a Friday night, when I heard that ESPN had a clock on screen that showed how much time was left before the start of the first game of the year between the Yankees and Red Sox. Like the graphic on ABC that shows how much time is left before the New Year and Dick Clark describes the ball coming down the pole. Well, that, to me, showed ESPN's arrogance. The season had already started and was a week or two old but, to them, it wasn't REALLY a baseball season until the Yankees and Red Sox had played.
That arrogance and East Coast bias is what turns the ratings into a self fulfilling prophesy for ESPN and FOX. They show ONLY the large market teams and highlight them at every juncture and that turns off the fans of small market teams. Then, when ESPN DOES get around to showing the small market teams, their fans don't watch because of previously being slighted. The executives of ESPN can then truthfully say that the small market teams just don't draw enough people so, they are going to show the large market teams more. A vicious cycle that is going to result in ESPN only showing five teams the WHOLE year.
As I have said previously, if I had ANY say in the matter, I would make it a rule that ESPN could NOT show ANY Yankees or Red Sox game until after the All-Star break. That way, the small market teams and unknown players would get more national air time and more people would watch. Then, when one of THOSE teams make it to the World Series and WINS it, people would know who they were and why they won. It wouldn't come as much of a surprise.
Last year, the Tigers ( I am not a fan of theirs, I am just using them as an example) played good baseball ALL season long but ESPN didn't show ANY of their games until almost the end of the season. Then ESPN and a LOT of people nationwide were SHOCKED when THEY made it to the World Series and neither the Yankees or Red Sox did. If ESPN had paid more attention to the actual teams and how they were doing during the regular season instead of just keeping their collective heads up the Northeast Coast teams behinds, they would have known the Tigers were good and wouldn't have been so shocked.
David