Monday, January 9, 2017

To boost ratings, the NFL celebrates "America's Team," while MLB does everything it can to sink the Yankees

In this week's print edition of Sports Illustrated - (yeah, Dinosaur Me still subscribes) - the Scorecard headline proclaims, "THE 'BOYS ARE BACK" with a subhead: "The NFL season got off to a rough start, but to the delight of the honchos in New York, America's Team rode to the rescue just in time."

The gist of it: The NFL suffered crapola ratings this season, but a recent bump - linked to the rise of the beloved/hated Dallas Cowboys - has restored order to the sporting Death Star. Says writer Jack Dickey:

The Cowboys have been as potent as they are popular, leading the NFL in rushing yards and TV ratings, attendance and merchandise sales too. Nostalgia pumps through the sports world, and fans fall hardest for stories, like Dallas's dominance that remind them of the ones they heard when they were young.

Blah-blah-blah and Mars needs women. I hate the Cowboys. They killed JFK. Still, Dickey has a point. Given the chance to watch Dallas lose, or suffer massive casualties, I'll watch.

Of course, you know where I'm going here. Baseball once had a version of the Cowboys - (actually, they were a version of us) - but through creative rule-making, it turned the Yankees into the Kansas City Royals. After years of swimming against the undertow, our GM finally convinced Owner Hal to punt at the July 31 trade deadline and launch a multi-year rebuilding process. To win again, all we need to do is suck for a few years, draft high, trade for prospects and wait. That's how Boston built its Redsock '17 Hall of Fame Superteam of Destiny (TM). Twice, they finished fifth in the division. This could be Year Five without a Yankee post-season victory and if Aaron Judge craps out... well, I don't want to think about it.

MLB has sought to eliminate the advantage of big market teams. That leaves smaller cities with an advantage - less distractions, cheaper lifestyles. MLB wants parity: Every team contends, and a .500 year keeps you in the Wild Card race through mid-September. Last year, according to Forbes, the nine most highly rated prime time baseball teams were the Royals, Tigers, Orioles, Pirates, Indians, Redsocks, Mariners and Giants. That's right. No Yankees. Not only were the Yankees chopped out of Comcast broadcasts in New Jersey, but they weren't among the nation's most watched teams.

Well, maybe one of these days, MLB's ratings will fall. At that point, they'll wonder why the league became so boring, and realize a fundamental aspect of human curiosity: Every good story needs a villain... but they went and blew up the Evil Empire.

I wonder if they're rooting for the Cowboys.

11 comments:

JM said...

Don't worry, when MLB loses its ratings, the hand-picked successor of Bud "Pump You Up" Selig will suddenly forget there was ever a PED controversy, and ratings will soar on the strength of baseball's first 100 HR season by a hitter. My guess, it'll be an aging Pedroia, who will test positive but nobody will do anything about it and he'll get into the Hall on the first ballot.

Anonymous said...

Can't disagree with John M. It's already happened with Fat-Ass Ortiz (re: HOF). The drop in popularity rests squarely with the Steinbrenners' who relishes mediocrity and "just want to fit in". Actually it's an excuse to live off of Daddy's money. Hopefully attendance keeps dropping. -m

Alphonso said...

Duque's rant is another sign of " our world gone mad."

We have to root for arrogant, over-privileged assholes ( Dallas....or any team in Texas ) to lose. But they don"t. They get lucky. And that converts to two rookie of the year candidates who are both so good they could be league MVP's. The New York
Team ( Giants in this case, though Jet fans may feel free to enter their team name) : hey traded up to get Ryan Nassib, who couldn't stay healthy as a fourth year back-up who has never run anything but a kneel down.

The cowboys are owned by one of the worst humans in creation. Jerry Jones. Billionaire. Close friend of you know who. Guess who will attend the super bowl as Jerry's guest if the Cowboys get there? Will they fly to gather on Airforce One, or in Jerry's similar aircraft?

New York and California are currently hated and isolated, because their citizens think, reason, believe in science, educate, and have extra-ordinary talents. They love people from all places and of all backgrounds. They understand the history of this nation...that we all came from somewhere else....and they understand the meaning of a , " government of the people, by the people and for the people "; the constitution,; and a belief that " all men ( and women ) are created equal.

Instead, we hear that the top selling item in America today is Dallas Cowboy paraphernalia, which is the latest version of wearing a confederate flag, only less blatant. And everyone who loves the Cowboys now conveniently forgets how long it has been since they have been in the hunt for the NFL trophy. A convent lie, so to speak. A denial of the record, so to speak. If Cowboy fans were a political candidate, it would be as if they won the popular vote every year but, somehow, lost the election.

The Yankees? That proud franchise is now a " has been," brought to its knees by the cheapness and stupidity of Hal and Brian.
Another example of how the 1%, when they inherit what they have, due to the good work of forefathers, always screw it up due to greed and ego. Just a thought; maybe we'll see Hal run for President in a few years.

The world has gone mad, and I am on the losing side.

Some say it is the winning side, but it doesn't feel that way.

Parson Tom said...

Bravo, Alphonso. Bravo!

el duque said...

Some fine ranting there, folks. It's a Monday, all right.

Stang said...

MLB has sought to eliminate the advantage of big market teams. That leaves smaller cities with an advantage - less distractions, cheaper lifestyles

It's the fucken Electoral College all over again.

el duque said...

Damn right. And if unlimited campaign spending is good for democracy, then how about unlimited payrolls for baseball teams! Isn't democracy more important than baseball?

Local Bargain Jerk said...


Tom said:

    Bravo, Alphonso. Bravo!

I say "Ditto". Nice work on a superfine rant.

Anonymous said...

OK, Guys, you're pretty much all right on this - - so, how about it?? Send some great Ju-Ju vibes the way of my Pack next Sunday - - and maybe - - just maybe - - the Dull-Ass Cow-Punks won't win, this time.

Shucks, I can remember multiple years in a row where they lost to my pack: 1967-ish - - one of my fondest memories is of that exemplary sport, Tom Landry, throwing his ten-gallon hat on the ground, and stomping it flat - - 'cause my Pack just whomped his Cow-Punks.

Root for the Pack Sunday, please - - if you don't, I SWEAR I will find that picture of Chris Christie hugging him some Jerry Jones, and post it - - I will....LB (no J)

el duque said...

That's a no-brainer. I've hated the Cowboys since the days of Eddie LeBaron.

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