I was watching Bob Ryan on PTI. The gist of his comment was that the KC fans booed Robbie because their team has been so bad that they do not have a real rivalry so they figure they might as well hate the Yankees. Hilarious.
If Royals fans are so fired up about the omission of Billy Butler from the derby, they need to get a grip. This is not George Brett, or John Mayberry, or even Amos Otis. Billy Butler? Really? This is a guy who has hit a career-high of 21 home runs in a season! That's pathetic.
Who cares if they booed or not? SelicCo consistently tinkers with the ASG to make it more marketable and "important," and then gets egg on his face when the fans don't respond the way he wants. So brace yourselves for more rules-changes tomfoolery. This is what happens when so much importance is placed on an exhibition game.
[3] But nobody thinks the home run derby is important. That's kind of the point -- it's a charity event, and the Kansas City douche bags got so caught up in the importance of their Billy that they were cheering the loss of big bucks to the Boys and Girls Clubs.
I think Rob just laughed it off (his dad seemed a little stunned, though).
[5] I disagree. MLB pushes the entire ASG circus, thus generating (or trying to generate) high levels of fan interest. While the HRD is not important vis-à-vis standings or, say, home field advantage in the WS, the high level of fan investment makes the event necessarily "important."
As for the charity nature of the event, I've always felt it odd that sports teams and leagues tie charitable giving to outcomes on the playing field. If Robbie hits a home run, little Timmy gets a new crutch, but if he fails, too bad. How about just giving money to the charity and not trying to hold fans morally hostage (you're not really rooting against Robbie, but against little Timmy-without-a-crutch).
[6] It's hard for me to imagine how a baseball fan feels that way about the home run contest. It's announced as an exhibition, not a competition -- the Three Clowns just ooh and ah as if they were watching fireworks. They actually changed the rules in the middle so that Jose Bautista could still hit a couple of the golden balls for charity even if he locked up a spot in the finals early in his second round. It's obvious that nobody is taking the competitive aspect seriously.
I assume State Farm asked to donate in the way it did because it's better publicity, and it makes perfect sense to me that MLB agreed because this way all except the most clueless boneheaded fans will get the point, that it's an exhibition and you can go ahead and get excited and whoop it up like Nomar when Prince Fielder hits a ball 460 feet even if you aren't an Angels fan.
But whatever the reason that MLB and State Farm do the donations the way they do, the Kansas City fans actually did root against new crutches for Tiny Tim. Douche bags.
[7]It's hard for me to imagine how a baseball fan feels that way about the home run contest. It's announced as an exhibition, not a competition...
Then why did I read so many headlines about who was going to be on the two teams, whether or not Cano would be able to "defend his crown," about the eventual winner (Fielder), etc? Cripes, the league and network dedicate an evening to the event.
MLB pushes the event---it *wants* fans to be invested in it, including the outcome (or else they wouldn't bother making it a competition). But sooner or later, this is what invested fans do. Bravo, MLB!
Yes, they dedicated an evening to the event as an exhibition.
Thus the charity money (which isn't tied into the actual All Star Game because "it counts!"), the circus atmosphere, the emphasis on sluggers from different teams all giving each other hugs and advice, the instant distance markers, the golden balls, the orgasmic moaning from Chris Berman... I could go on but I'm making myself sick. It's like the NBA's slam-dunk contest -- nobody gives a damn who wins, nobody even remembers who won this year; it's an exhibition dressed up as a contest.
I think fans have to be particularly stupid to be 'invested' in the way the Kansas City fans were. You can blame MLB if you want to, but I hold the KC douche bags responsible for their own actions. The Milwaukee fans didn't boo A-Gon and Rob last year despite the fact that they were up against Prince Fielder, so somehow they managed to retain their free will in the face of the onslaught of MLB mind-control. They might have special techniques... or maybe they aren't douche bags.
Wow, the KC fans are so invested in the outcome of this game that they are actually cheering an AL out because Cano is the hitter. Now that's what I call investment!
[16] Jeter made a great play, and the throw bounced right to Prince's glove. Tex or just about any other 1B would have made the play. Prince must have stretched 14 inches there.
The Steinettes can't be pleased. The potential loss of a WS home game is an eight figures hit.
[21] There is a split for the players, opposing team, etc., but the home team gets the largest share. But that does not include souvenirs, food concessions, suite revenues, additional season ticket sales, stadium advertising, and probably an additional hundred things I can't think of.
Hm, I think you're mistaken, o victim of Ken Boyer. This Forbes piece says the gate is just split between the two teams (after the Commissioner and Players get their share). So the concessions revenues would really be the main extra, and although that's money it isn't close to eight figures.
[28] True. I dunno -- it isn't mentioned in Rule 45, so I suppose the Yankees would get Yankees Radio Network money just as they do in the regular season.
But I think we're talking about middle-reliever money, not Carl Crawford money.
Not at all like a teenager. Lol... I know his age has nothing to do with the twilight but Bryce is 2 for 4 so far in plays. Walk good. Tag up good. Poor baserunning bad. Missed fly out bad.
[32] The many articles on the WS revenues on the intertubes mention a split with the players, with the home team getting 40%. When everything else is included (and additional sales tax revs for the city and state) the windfall for a high revenue team like the Yankees must be close to $10M. But who's to know exactly? I suppose the Yankee insiders do. Maybe we can get the answer at a later time.
Something about Shaq saying, "you don't know Buick" is absurdly funny (commercial that just ran). What he really seems to saying is "you don't know fuck about shit".
[44] Can you give me a link?
The Forbes article I linked says the teams split what remains of the gate after the Players and Commish get their cuts.
The article also cites leaked documents obtained by Deadspin showing that team revenues amount to about $2 million per post-season game (but that's a bit complicated because the teams in question did not play long series, and the teams reap much more in long series because the players get paid only for the first four games!). Not per home game -- just per game.
By the way, by my calculations the Commissioner's Office takes down about $75,000,000 for its share of the post-season gate. Holy smokes. What the hell does he do with it???
Okay, well, William is mistaken. Rule 45 says that in the first three games of the Division Series and the first Four games of the other series, the players get 60%, the Commissioner's Office gets 15%, and the remainder is divided equally between the two teams.
CLUBS—COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE.
(1) World Series. After the fifteen percent payable to the Office of the Commissioner and the sixty percent which forms the players' pool in the first four games of the World Series, as required by Rule 45(b)(1)(A), the balance of the gate receipts shall be equally divided between the two participating Major League Clubs.
That's rule 45 (c) (1) on p. 125 of the document you can find here at the Biz of Baseball site.
I can't stand Mike Lupica.
He's best buddies with Fred and Jeff Wilpon and a Boston College grad, main reasons he's been trashing the Yankees for the last 20 years.
But we have a chance to get back at him with immediate gratification.
He has a radio show on ESPN (1050 am and 98.7 FM) every weekday from noon to 1 p.m. EST. You can also listen online at http://espn.go.com/espnradio/newyork/play.
And of course, he continues to bash the Yankees - always mentioning payroll, killing A-Rod, saying the Mets are the best New York team etc..blah. blah.
Let's all call him at 1-800-919-ESPN (3776) as much as possible and get on his Yankee-hating!
He's been flustered by some angry Yank fan calls. We can get him good! Let's do it!
Ah, so Selig can regulate the game as much as he wants, but he can't regulate the players' hearts.
Verlander pretty much stated that as far as he's concerned, this is an exhibition game and fans want to see hard fastballs, not perfect games. What has he got to lose anyway, his team stinks this year and unless their quality of play does a 180, they are little better than Kansas City as far as the playoffs are concerned. Why should he go all out for a team (like the Yankees) and give them the advantage in the World Series?
This is the level of constant denial in Selig that disturbs me to no end; he's living in a utopia where all players are pulling for each other regardless of affiliation and AL/NL league pride that barely or no longer exists trumps team standings personal needs. While Jeter may be playing for AL pride, Verlander is not; Verlander has much more control over the flow of the game and has nothing to gain or lose by being masterful in a game of artificial importance. What it does though is handicap the team that does go into the WS with perhaps a stronger record than the opponent by taking away home field advantage.
And if you use the argument that home field advantage is overrated, then what's the point of making the All Star Game the deciding factor? It was Selig's personal overreaction to a tie game, and the irrationality that followed rendered this game even more irrelevant to the players, never mind the fans this was supposed to appeal to.
I'm listening, Will!
I do think home field advantage is overrated, but it's worth something, and the Tigers have a shot at a Wild Card spot. But I can see how that might not be enough to motivate Verlander.
[52] Games 5, 6, and 7 are the same but the players get no cut. (Apparently this is because MLB did not want players to have a financial incentive to throw games so as to get more gate money!) You can read this yourself -- it's on the next page of the MLB rules doc I linked.
Since Home Field advantage is not been overrated it's time they stop the nonsense of having the ASG the deciding factor. I hated this idea at its conception and hate it still. And I hate Bud Selig.
I was watching Bob Ryan on PTI. The gist of his comment was that the KC fans booed Robbie because their team has been so bad that they do not have a real rivalry so they figure they might as well hate the Yankees. Hilarious.
If Royals fans are so fired up about the omission of Billy Butler from the derby, they need to get a grip. This is not George Brett, or John Mayberry, or even Amos Otis. Billy Butler? Really? This is a guy who has hit a career-high of 21 home runs in a season! That's pathetic.
Who cares if they booed or not? SelicCo consistently tinkers with the ASG to make it more marketable and "important," and then gets egg on his face when the fans don't respond the way he wants. So brace yourselves for more rules-changes tomfoolery. This is what happens when so much importance is placed on an exhibition game.
I think the entire farce is glorious.
[3] Did you read Charles Pierce's piece on the ASG? He says about the same thing, with a nice conclusion. Baseball still rules. :)
[3] But nobody thinks the home run derby is important. That's kind of the point -- it's a charity event, and the Kansas City douche bags got so caught up in the importance of their Billy that they were cheering the loss of big bucks to the Boys and Girls Clubs.
I think Rob just laughed it off (his dad seemed a little stunned, though).
[5] I disagree. MLB pushes the entire ASG circus, thus generating (or trying to generate) high levels of fan interest. While the HRD is not important vis-à-vis standings or, say, home field advantage in the WS, the high level of fan investment makes the event necessarily "important."
As for the charity nature of the event, I've always felt it odd that sports teams and leagues tie charitable giving to outcomes on the playing field. If Robbie hits a home run, little Timmy gets a new crutch, but if he fails, too bad. How about just giving money to the charity and not trying to hold fans morally hostage (you're not really rooting against Robbie, but against little Timmy-without-a-crutch).
[6] It's hard for me to imagine how a baseball fan feels that way about the home run contest. It's announced as an exhibition, not a competition -- the Three Clowns just ooh and ah as if they were watching fireworks. They actually changed the rules in the middle so that Jose Bautista could still hit a couple of the golden balls for charity even if he locked up a spot in the finals early in his second round. It's obvious that nobody is taking the competitive aspect seriously.
I assume State Farm asked to donate in the way it did because it's better publicity, and it makes perfect sense to me that MLB agreed because this way all except the most clueless boneheaded fans will get the point, that it's an exhibition and you can go ahead and get excited and whoop it up like Nomar when Prince Fielder hits a ball 460 feet even if you aren't an Angels fan.
But whatever the reason that MLB and State Farm do the donations the way they do, the Kansas City fans actually did root against new crutches for Tiny Tim. Douche bags.
[7] It's hard for me to imagine how a baseball fan feels that way about the home run contest. It's announced as an exhibition, not a competition...
Then why did I read so many headlines about who was going to be on the two teams, whether or not Cano would be able to "defend his crown," about the eventual winner (Fielder), etc? Cripes, the league and network dedicate an evening to the event.
MLB pushes the event---it *wants* fans to be invested in it, including the outcome (or else they wouldn't bother making it a competition). But sooner or later, this is what invested fans do. Bravo, MLB!
Let's go
Jim Joyce at first?
Melkman!
yay melky!
Yes, they dedicated an evening to the event as an exhibition.
Thus the charity money (which isn't tied into the actual All Star Game because "it counts!"), the circus atmosphere, the emphasis on sluggers from different teams all giving each other hugs and advice, the instant distance markers, the golden balls, the orgasmic moaning from Chris Berman... I could go on but I'm making myself sick. It's like the NBA's slam-dunk contest -- nobody gives a damn who wins, nobody even remembers who won this year; it's an exhibition dressed up as a contest.
I think fans have to be particularly stupid to be 'invested' in the way the Kansas City fans were. You can blame MLB if you want to, but I hold the KC douche bags responsible for their own actions. The Milwaukee fans didn't boo A-Gon and Rob last year despite the fact that they were up against Prince Fielder, so somehow they managed to retain their free will in the face of the onslaught of MLB mind-control. They might have special techniques... or maybe they aren't douche bags.
Mean while, wtf is wrong with Justin V???
Oh good, Joe Buck is going to explain it to us.
Well that's unexpected.
I like the All Star Game and the home run derby. 5-0. Oi! Teix woulda picked that for ya', Captain.
Wow, the KC fans are so invested in the outcome of this game that they are actually cheering an AL out because Cano is the hitter. Now that's what I call investment!
Or, it could be that they're just douche bags.
Thought Josh had that.
[17] Because they know there's no risk the Royals will make the post season.
[16] Jeter made a great play, and the throw bounced right to Prince's glove. Tex or just about any other 1B would have made the play. Prince must have stretched 14 inches there.
The Steinettes can't be pleased. The potential loss of a WS home game is an eight figures hit.
[20] Is that right? I never thought of that -- they don't just split the gate between the teams for post-season games?
Right, I'm sure the first soccer player who comes to Adam Dunn's mind is Pele.
Wow, Joey Bats! Dazzling.
Not hard to understand. Red Sox are in last place.
[23] That has a wonderful ring to it.
[21] There is a split for the players, opposing team, etc., but the home team gets the largest share. But that does not include souvenirs, food concessions, suite revenues, additional season ticket sales, stadium advertising, and probably an additional hundred things I can't think of.
[25] I don't think an extra home game gets you additional season ticket sales, but yeah, the rest adds up to serious money.
Damn, Curtis. Look at them white shoes!
Hm, I think you're mistaken, o victim of Ken Boyer. This Forbes piece says the gate is just split between the two teams (after the Commissioner and Players get their share). So the concessions revenues would really be the main extra, and although that's money it isn't close to eight figures.
[26] Is the radio broadcast also local? That's not going to be huge, but it's a few ducats. It all adds up.
Wow, who is that Cabrera guy???
Melky! NL is pulling away.
Good for Melky. But this game is embarrassing.
[28] True. I dunno -- it isn't mentioned in Rule 45, so I suppose the Yankees would get Yankees Radio Network money just as they do in the regular season.
But I think we're talking about middle-reliever money, not Carl Crawford money.
Love the Melky Robbie interaction.
Atta boy, Robbie!
Now they cheer Cano.
Bautista is awfully likeable.
Dang, Braun!
Hey, Bryce gets to play.
"Such awareness on the base paths..."
You still have things to learn Bryce.
[40] I'll say.
Many things, Bryce.
Not at all like a teenager. Lol... I know his age has nothing to do with the twilight but Bryce is 2 for 4 so far in plays. Walk good. Tag up good. Poor baserunning bad. Missed fly out bad.
[32] The many articles on the WS revenues on the intertubes mention a split with the players, with the home team getting 40%. When everything else is included (and additional sales tax revs for the city and state) the windfall for a high revenue team like the Yankees must be close to $10M. But who's to know exactly? I suppose the Yankee insiders do. Maybe we can get the answer at a later time.
Something about Shaq saying, "you don't know Buick" is absurdly funny (commercial that just ran). What he really seems to saying is "you don't know fuck about shit".
Cano would have had that one Kinsler just misplayed.
[44] Can you give me a link?
The Forbes article I linked says the teams split what remains of the gate after the Players and Commish get their cuts.
The article also cites leaked documents obtained by Deadspin showing that team revenues amount to about $2 million per post-season game (but that's a bit complicated because the teams in question did not play long series, and the teams reap much more in long series because the players get paid only for the first four games!). Not per home game -- just per game.
By the way, by my calculations the Commissioner's Office takes down about $75,000,000 for its share of the post-season gate. Holy smokes. What the hell does he do with it???
[48] It probably gets split among the teams. Minor league salaries are paid by the parent club.
Hmm, Salmon, Trout. Are the Angels going to pick a Bass next?
[47} Here's one from our own William's Captain Blog:
http://www.captainsblog.info/2010/09/17/making-cent-of-home-field-advantage/2677/
Okay, well, William is mistaken. Rule 45 says that in the first three games of the Division Series and the first Four games of the other series, the players get 60%, the Commissioner's Office gets 15%, and the remainder is divided equally between the two teams.
That's rule 45 (c) (1) on p. 125 of the document you can find here at the Biz of Baseball site.
[51] But what about games 5, 6, 7? Anyway, let's say that you are probably correct.
Well, good on ya Melky, anyhow.
Geeky baseball fun here that ends on a perfect note:
http://what-if.xkcd.com/1/
Hi folks:
I can't stand Mike Lupica.
He's best buddies with Fred and Jeff Wilpon and a Boston College grad, main reasons he's been trashing the Yankees for the last 20 years.
But we have a chance to get back at him with immediate gratification.
He has a radio show on ESPN (1050 am and 98.7 FM) every weekday from noon to 1 p.m. EST. You can also listen online at http://espn.go.com/espnradio/newyork/play.
And of course, he continues to bash the Yankees - always mentioning payroll, killing A-Rod, saying the Mets are the best New York team etc..blah. blah.
Let's all call him at 1-800-919-ESPN (3776) as much as possible and get on his Yankee-hating!
He's been flustered by some angry Yank fan calls. We can get him good! Let's do it!
Why didn't they have an interpreter for Melky in the post-game interview?
Ah, so Selig can regulate the game as much as he wants, but he can't regulate the players' hearts.
Verlander pretty much stated that as far as he's concerned, this is an exhibition game and fans want to see hard fastballs, not perfect games. What has he got to lose anyway, his team stinks this year and unless their quality of play does a 180, they are little better than Kansas City as far as the playoffs are concerned. Why should he go all out for a team (like the Yankees) and give them the advantage in the World Series?
This is the level of constant denial in Selig that disturbs me to no end; he's living in a utopia where all players are pulling for each other regardless of affiliation and AL/NL league pride that barely or no longer exists trumps team standings personal needs. While Jeter may be playing for AL pride, Verlander is not; Verlander has much more control over the flow of the game and has nothing to gain or lose by being masterful in a game of artificial importance. What it does though is handicap the team that does go into the WS with perhaps a stronger record than the opponent by taking away home field advantage.
And if you use the argument that home field advantage is overrated, then what's the point of making the All Star Game the deciding factor? It was Selig's personal overreaction to a tie game, and the irrationality that followed rendered this game even more irrelevant to the players, never mind the fans this was supposed to appeal to.
Ah, what's the use, no one's listening anyway...
I'm listening, Will!
I do think home field advantage is overrated, but it's worth something, and the Tigers have a shot at a Wild Card spot. But I can see how that might not be enough to motivate Verlander.
[52] Games 5, 6, and 7 are the same but the players get no cut. (Apparently this is because MLB did not want players to have a financial incentive to throw games so as to get more gate money!) You can read this yourself -- it's on the next page of the MLB rules doc I linked.
Since Home Field advantage is not been overrated it's time they stop the nonsense of having the ASG the deciding factor. I hated this idea at its conception and hate it still. And I hate Bud Selig.
Sorry about the bad grammer. Bad week. Hope the Yankees start off the second half on a big roll and bury the AL east.