Posted on 05/21/2015 5:49:56 AM PDT by BlueStateRightist
...MLB faces headwinds that have been years in the making and forces that are outside its direct control. In 2002, nine million people between the ages of 7 and 17 played baseball in the U.S., according to the National Sporting Goods Association, an industry trade group. By 2013, the most recent year for which data is available, that figure had dropped by more than 41%, to 5.3 million.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
It is beyond boring.
Its a thinking man’s sport in a world increasingly dominated by the stupid.
I agree.
They’re not supposed to use squirt guns.... and you want them holding a baseball bat?!!!.......shocking!
Glad I’m not the only one who thinks that.
My wife is obsessed with dumb base or any ball.
Yup, it's a game within a game within a game, and it's fascinating once one figures that out...
Well, here in Columbus, GA (home of the 2006 LL champs) the game is alive and well. Our SECTION of town has nine teams. The coaches are great. Balance of fun and discipline. My son played this year (he is six), and the improvement over one season one phenomenal. It is a commitment, and impossible to do here without a car (unless you are in walking distance to the field), but the coaches are very sacrificial, working even with the younger, and less talented kids.
not to mention the easily microaggressed concerns of the “average” helicopter parent playing a role in keeping kids as far form the ballfield as possible..lest they be struck by a baseball
A friend of mine has coached youth baseball for the better part of two decades. He says the problems are 1) There are a lot more youth sports for children to choose from when we were young. 2) The drive to specialize at an early age. There are kids 10 and under playing on traveling teams year round now. That means if you choose soccer, basketball, etc. as your sport (or if your parent chooses it for you) there’s no “off season” to play baseball in. 3) The expense of baseball. No, playing in your local Little League isn’t that expensive. But if “playing baseball” means playing a on a traveling team, the costs are pretty large, larger than basketball. And the shoe companies will underwrite the more successful traveling basketball teams in hopes of building relationships with future starts. They don’t do that for baseball. 4) The lack of athletic scholarships for baseball, even in D1 schools. Yeah, most kids who play any sport aren’t going to get a scholarship offer. But in basketball and football there are at least full scholarships there to fuel a dream. Boys know that even if they bust their butts and are really talented the most they can hope for, unless they are a catcher or a pitcher, is a partial scholarship.
IF you live in an urban area It may not be so easy to find a field big enough to play baseball. To play basketball all you need to do is nail a hoop to the side of a building. Or just put a pole in the ground. Much more opportunity for basketball. Go to any neighborhood in the ‘burb and over 30% of the homes have a basketball goal in the driveway. You won’t find any homes with a baseball diamond in the back yard.
Turned-off by a lengthy procession of cheaters and roidheads in MLB.
It used to be a sport populated by men that young guys wanted to emulate. We played baseball to be like Ted Williams or Babe Ruth or others but now we have multimillionaire prima donnas and no soul.
The game turned into a high-dollar racket, nothing more.
Why even try. Look at Little League last year.
You wouldn’t know it in St. Louis.
Oh my goodness. I went to a few baseball games when I was in high school. The only thing I enjoyed was the way the pants fit the players;-). It bores me to tears, so glad my sons are out for track.
The cost of little league baseball has been driven way up with the liabilities, need for insurance and equipment.
When I was a kid, the whole team’s equipment consisted of a half dozen bats, as many balls, catcher’s mask and padding. Uniforms consisted of a t-shirt and cap with everyone having their own glove.
Another way of putting it is: it's dull. There's a lot of standing around, waiting for things to happen, especially at the lower age levels, where you'd "hook" a kid on a sport.
A major problem we see in recent years is that baseball is a summer sport - when it's hot out, a slower-paced game with small bursts of activity works quite well. But to work around family schedules, we see youth leagues mostly playing April/May or September/October, and baseball is no fun - at all - for most kids when it's not warm.
It’s become too specialized. It is a very difficult and skilled game. To stay competitive kids have to play travel baseball.. The kids who are casual players really can’t keep up. It has become a HUGE business Every minor league drop out has become a “hitting coach or a pitching coach” and drags these teams around the country for thousands of dollars. I know a family of a 9th grader who spent 10K one season.. Ridiculous. The quality of high school baseball has improved dramatically in the last 4-5 yrs just because of repitition but the average kid just can’t participate anymore
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