Letter to the Editor: Better things to do in Poughkeepsie

Poughkeepsie Journal (New York)
October 14, 2011 Friday

Dear Editor,

I just read Tim Dahlberg's column carping about small-market teams in the baseball playoffs ("Small time isn't good for ratings," Oct. 10). This is colossally irrelevant. I actually enjoyed watching lesser-known players. Note the past tense. Baseball was my first love. To lose me took more than strikes, excessive greed and scandals. It took boredom.

The games start late to accommodate television, and take too long, in part to squeeze in more commercials and the huge contracts the TV contracts must support. I haven't been able to stay up late enough to watch the end of a game in 30 years. Some of us work. In the morning. Regular games often take as long as a 15-inning game used to take, and they start an hour later. A game should average 2 1/2 hours, max.

But more than that, on television the games are boring! Why? At the stadium you see the whole tableau. On television you see closeups. On a ground ball you see the ball moving against grass. On a fly ball you no longer see the runner tag, and his race to beat the throw. It's cheaper than hiring a director who can switch cameras to a long shot. We overuse technology in place of intelligent direction. The excitement of the game is hidden. And the endless replays, replays, replays. Sadly, the way baseball is shown on TV, it's only good for curing insomnia. Never mind Yankees-Red Sox. I have better things to do.

Harold Warren

Poughkeepsie