Somehow, methinks the “Rally Guillaume” trend isn’t gonna catch on…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
this may be a sign i’m getting softer, but this year i’m actually considering checking the options on buying legal ways of viewing baseball. so i guess, first question, what are the options and how much do they cost? i don’t suppose there’s single a super-cheap way to watch all the games on my computer without blackout dates, is there? (it’s have to be on computer btw, we don’t have “television” at home.)
*i’m* AV. alex vause. put this loon in psych before she hurts someone.
You’re FKd if you want to follow the A’s legally in the bay area on a computer only.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Yep, Comcast pays lots of money to prevent you from watching the A’s or Giants on your computer. Now if you want to be a Colorado Rockies fan, MLB.TV would be great, except when the Rockies were playing the Giants or A’s you’d be blacked out.
See and that doesn’t make sense to me. It should be easy as all get out to tweak the deal so that those in the “black out” area can only access the “local” feed (including commercials) for all games they broadcast and can only get any alternate feed if they’re not broadcasting. I mean, the stations/networks would have to be complete idiots not to do that deal. It would increase their ad revenue streams with the increased viewership. MLB would do it because more people would be willing to pay for the thing. It’s mutually beneficial all around.
not if the regional cable networks are vastly overpaying for rights contracts out of the idea that “live sports are the only shows on TV where people sit through the commercials”
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
People who don’t even watch baseball pay for baseball as part of their basic cable package.
MLB.tv can’t make any money off of people who don’t watch baseball because they aren’t forced to subscribe to it as a part of a package deal.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Not sure what your point is. Baseball will remain apart of the basic cable package. It’s not like MLB.tv would take the place of the current broadcast setup. It would only expand the network’s viewership. Someone like myself who already pays for cable and gets the regular broadcast would never bother with mlb.tv since I’d be blacked out. But without the blackout, I wouldn’t ditch cable, but I might consider mlb.tv for games that weren’t broadcasted that are currently blacked out anyway. Add in those who’s cable networks don’t carry the channel, anyone signing up for mlb.tv benefits the network by since they’d be forced to view the network’s broadcast and commercials.
Without the blackout(s), many if not most people who only buy cable for sports would not be buying cable.
Therefore, the ratings would sink and cable contracts with baseball would be for a much lower value, and it’s possible the difference wouldn’t be completely made up with the league internet sports packages. Maybe it’s more profitable right now for the sports leagues to black out games and treat their internet products as a secondary product behind the more lucrative cable packages.
The cable companies (IMO) are currently overpaying for sports rights. When that inefficiency goes away, the motivation to black out games and protect the ability to be overpaid for rights goes away, and the blackouts will end.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Meh, i think you’re confusing cable & networks. While certainly cable companies do own a number of networks, a lot of teams are owning them now along with non-cable owned networks. If baseball were the ONLY thing bringing these people in, they might have to worry, but there are other sports and other draws to watch. It’s certainly not a deal breaker. The biggest banking for the networks is ad revenue and the increase in viewership (probably even nation-wise) would up the ante quite a bit. A lose of cable subscribers isn’t the issue here. Hell, they can’t even control you watching on their cable system when there are alternatives.
The other thing is that the cable companies smartly realize that the world is moving to ala carte media and that there are really very few things that people are unwilling to get from a source like netflix or hulu, even if it is delayed. Live sports you have to watch live (for the most part) and you cant get them from a streaming service unless the league offers one or you go through the effort to find a pirate stream. Its going to be the only reason people in my generation buy cable.
In play, run(s)! Talk dirty to me gamecast, talk dirty. - Nevermoor
Here are the monthly/yearly prices for MLB.tv. If you have a smartphone, you can get MLB at bat for free with a subscription. At bat has news, highlights, Gameday, and lets you stream the radio feed for games. You can stream the video broadcast too if you have MLB.tv.
You can still circumvent the blackouts on MLB.tv if you use an IP changer/masker or if you use free, but tedious to use, proxies. But of course, that’s not exactly legal.
What impressed Braden the most: Ramirez’s ability to express exactly what he wants to get across, his clear explanations of very technical hitting ideas. Some great athletes can’t explain what they’re doing or how, or at least not all that well. Braden said that Ramirez can talk hitting all day in minute detail.
Also, Ramirez is calling Braden “209″ already. I think those two are going to be a fun Odd Couple this year.
He said he loves the A’s white shoes – he called the A’s home whites “beautiful” – and added, “My friends call me and say, ‘You look so good in green!’ “
You beat me to posting about the white shoes. I think he was aiming his comments directly to FK, knowing that if he wins us over he’s got it made in this town.
Well, if Manny being Manny means he’s being new Manny not old Manny, then I say he deserves another chance.
Maybe he really did grow up a little bit…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
I think that the possibility of losing his wife and kids scared him the FK straight, at least for a while.
I would guess he’s clean right now, and I also think he won’t hit for shit because of it.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
My friend is a professor of urban planning and a generally bright guy. He was telling me how he wants to start a media company that specializes in, well, two things. 1) Stories with original reporting about positive things going on in the world; community-building types of stories. 2) Commentaries with fresh/cool/unique perspective. I told him about how freekraut and a few other blogs have, in their own way, covered #2. And since he’s talking about actually STARTING such an enterprise, I thought I should go to you for an account of what that experience is like.
A little context about my friend’s background in all this: he says he doesn’t read ANY blogs … just the Economist. He gets his sports news, I think, from yahoo.
Anywhoo, shortly after sending the e-mail, I find myself reading Sully’s piece on Breitbart. About how Breitbart might be viewed as a casualty of the 24-7 news cycle, about the near mania required to participate in that cycle. I can identify with it–I feel manically inclined to participate myself at times. I find it to be a dramatic tension: how do I awaken to the relationships around me and to my own individual destiny–to whatever it is I’m supposed to accomplish as an indivdual–when I can stay busy 24-7 online chattering about the accomplishments and failings of others? I mean, I have sh*t to do, constantly, but yet I constantly find myself veering away from that to-do list and toward the Internet to read Sully, Ratto, Monkeyball, and … YOU!
So like I said, there’s a tension. I think there is value in this online communication, but I have a lot of difficulty in putting it in its proper place. To tie this back to my e-mail at the top–I think there is value in this online communication, and I understand my friend’s desire to dive into it, to make it a vocation, or a more-serious avocation. But at the same time, I find the nonstop nature of all this communication to be so addictive–and the degree to which I no longer think of it as a potential vocation makes me feel like I’ve grown up a little. (As I should have–after all, I was probably about 25 when I started posting on AN and I’m 34 now–WTF!?) Still, the addiction continues, and yet it’s valuable, and, well, how much should I allow myself to feed it? Interested in hearing how all y’all strike this balance.
I didn’t which was the problem with **. Here the great thing is I actually care about almost everything that people have to say because of the quality of folks here. Does it distract from other things? Absolutely, but here I see it more as getting a beer with friends rather than wasting time.
In play, run(s)! Talk dirty to me gamecast, talk dirty. - Nevermoor
Doing it for the money with random “customers” sounds like a recipe for success… in 2007! Too late now… that ship has sailed…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Maybe there are enough potential unrepresented affinity groups to rip off SBN’s model and make community interaction-based blogs about other topics/hobbies/interests…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Back then, sabermetrics was still open enough of a field that breakthroughs happened often enough to be worth discussing.
there were shithead trolls back then too, of course.
Especially that SPWC asshole… with his pro-beanball essays and baseball-as-a-religion fetish…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
They admit they’re the Devil(s). They’re heels all the way, easily hatable, and it’s ironic that their rivals are called the “Heels” even though they’re faces.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
My wife’s taking her allergy meds so I can open up all the windows and turn the whole house fan on…
70 degrees in Sacto at 11:30…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
I don’t know if I have said this before, but in my heart it is an almost annual tradition to think of this around this time of year:
IT IS AN UTTER JOKE THAT THE CLOSEST MLB TEAM TO FOLKS IN FRESNO CANT BE HEARD ON LOCAL RADIO!!! I can listen to anything on Earth for the Dudgers or the Gnats, but it is a challenge for the A’s. I think one year we actually had them on a station out of like 5-6. Pa-thetic
Charter Cable still hasn’t agreed with Comcast about carriage of CSN California so in Reno/Carson/Tahoe you continue to need a dish to watch the A’s (except limited availability of AT&T U-Verse in Reno only). They haven’t had a radio station up here in years. The Giants continue to be on Charter both on CSN Bay Area and a local station for the “NBC Bay Area” telecasts and they do have a Reno radio station.
This would be a good time of year for you both to complain to the relevant stations. Find out who the general manager is and send him or her an email. It may not help, but it can’t hurt. Most broadcasters/cablecasters get way less feedback than you’d expect.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
just finished a long day in which I made an L-shaped desk for my wife, and six containers (two with drawers and four without). I’m completely exhausted (a bit unhealthy again, so that helped for sure).
however, I love the way our study looks now. checking out, sending love and hugs to all who care for them
It’s pleasant to be exhausted in a good cause and with visible results. Not like the exhaustion of just keeping up with the things that you don’t enjoy and that just maintain the status quo.
Too many justs in that post. My prose is suffering today because I have been lazing in bed and reading Sei Shonagon; and since I can’t write about exchanging poetry with Heian court gentlemen in six layers of brilliantly colored robes, I can’t really emulate her.
Meh. It won’t truly be 2012 until the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man shows up.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Did anyone else catch Fosse’s anecdote about being in the clubhouse with Sal Bando, and them getting excited when Jerry Blevins walked by with a giant plate of spaghetti and meatballs? For some reason that cracked me up.
He probably grunts a lot too. Good thing he does it (mostly) off-air.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Winning is an unfortunate but necessary byproduct of a game that cannot end in a tie.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
One of the two innings was the designated chat-with-the-manager time, so we didn’t hear very much about Parker while he was pitching, but we also didn’t hear much about anyone else from Melvin because the half-inning was over so fast.
Korach said Milone’s changeup looked good, if that matters.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Let me know next time you have a board of “LEPENRF” or “KRIVICA”
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
For non-radio people: Ray was just saying that his daughter Nikki is in Moneyball — in actual crowd footage, not extras; she is seen standing up with her boyfriend (now husband) at the end of Game 19.
Same old Coors Light poetry corner ads. If they were still analog the tape would’ve snapped in those carts by now. I welcomed the vintage “BART, and you’re there” ads with a bit more fondness.
No one watching me watch a big Carolina game would describe me as enjoying myself. Two hours of angst and curses, which end either in demoralizing defeat, or perhaps with a relieved exhalation of breath, like a driver who white knuckles his way through a cascade of car wrecks in a fog bank to reach the other side unscathed.
I wouldn’t have it any other way. Fuck Duke. Go Heels.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
Meanwhile, predictably, those Duke fucks have oozed their way back into possible contention, of course, like a cheaper dirtier Jason Voorhees who simply will not die.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
Duke made its first two shots, then missed like 12 in a row, at which point Carolina’s lead was like 15 points and they never looked back. Carolina played much better perimeter D, and the good looks Duke did get weren’t falling for them.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
This NY Daily News story seems to be claiming that MLB is going to nix the move to San Jose, although the lede is so hopelessly buried that there is no way to tell for sure what the author is trying to say or whether he is even claiming to have sources on the matter.
Also, monkeyball bait:
Or, if everyone concludes the A’s financial survival anywhere in their own territory is untenable, there is the final solution: Contraction. In noting the similar plight of the Tampa Bay Rays, whose ironclad lease with Tropicana Field holds them hostage in St. Petersburg until 2027, one baseball official said darkly: “The A’s and Rays are both in hopeless situations, and there’s no place to move these teams. Hard as this might be to swallow for a lot of us, it would be in the best interests of baseball to contract both of them. You’d have a better game, and it would be two less teams we all have to subsidize.â€
Quite the strong headline to append to a cobbled-together theory and no real understanding of our Bay Area ballpark landscape. He even spells it “Wolf” on the second page.
Reads like he talked to one NYC MLB legal source, the kind of guy who gets comped Legends level tickets at Yankee Stadium, who most certainly would just as soon be rid of riff raff like the A’s. “Clubs would realize what a terrible ‘there but for the grace of God go us’…” Yeah, all zero of those other clubs who have internally partitioned media markets…
If I see 6 more stories like this, that would mean something, but this one is just a NY Daily News house guy writing stuff some guy in a nice suit told him.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
The lousy writing strongly implies lousy sourcing, for sure. The source for the contraction quote, however, seems to be different than the lawyer you reference. Given the article’s TAMPA dateline, my concern would be that he’s getting some of this from someone with the last name Steinbrenner.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
There’s really no reason at this point to believe Bill Madden knows anything about the situation, especially no reason to believe he’s got some sort of inside info nobody else does. It’s pure speculation at this point. Bob Nightengale didn’t have much of anything behind his claim that San Jose was a go either, to be fair, but of course these things gain traction when people apply their desires to things read without any proof to the claims.
In other words, I’ll believe the A’s are moving or not moving to San Jose when MLB announces it.
I think you’re right. I don’t doubt that both Madden and Nightengale had well-informed sources who gave them their respective lines of argument, and that these are representative samples of the arguments that have been made to Selig. But I don’t think anyone knows what he’s going to decide, or if, indeed, he is continuing to decide not to decide in hopes that someone else gets bored with this staring contest.
Add to all the anti-likelihood of contraction: 1) Fucking up their new wild card system. 2) Having to move at least one more team to the AL. Honestly, it’s just foolish to think that contraction wouldn’t be significantly more expense than to simply subsidizing both teams. If it’s a no to SJ, odds are it becomes a wait until the economy rebounds and another city takes it’s place. But even that has the potential of fucking them if SJ sues MLB to remove the anti-trust.
Lew & SJ should sue ’em all and let the courts sort it out.
Maybe it’ll give ol’ Bud a heart attack.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
I believe owners are forbidden from suing the league as part of the franchise agreement, and I don’t think the city would have standing. But I am not one of the resident lawyers here.
Never happen. Would be throwing away a truckload of lawyer money on a quixotic hope, which the electorate would take out of the sue-happy incumbents’ hides.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
(evil evil SPWC-ian laugh… if you’ve heard it before, you know what I’m talking about. It sounds like fresh blood tastes.)
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
They’ve already offered in the past, not much more than a few months ago. I don’t see it being all that quixotic either. As for expense, while GM jokes, I could very well see someone stepping up to play (if not fund that game) that game. Lots of folks aren’t particularly fond of the anti-trust outside of MLB anyway. It’s certainly no slam dunk, but it’s hardly crazy to think it would happen either.
A lot of it depends on Wolff (or more Fischer). If they decide the payout for selling the team back to MLB isn’t good enough compared to the boost in franchise value from a move to SJ, they’d push and force MLB’s hand. I seriously doubt the lawsuit makes it to the courts, but it’s a lawsuit that if made, would beg for some sort of settlement. Where it falls (more money or approval of the move) just depends on the overall dollars and fall out.
Possibly. But they aren’t the only payment for that to work out. MLB will have quite a major financial burden on their hands if they go that route. Either through the enormous contraction attempt or from running the team themselves, in Oakland, until years (decades?) later when they can find a suitable home, since no one’s buying them to keep them where they are. Hell, they may be forced to build a stadium themselves (here or somewhere) just to sell the team, forget about the loss.
Tomorrow’s Opening Day for the Bay Area Vintage Base Ball League. 12:30 pm at Mosswood Park, the Oakland Colonels host the expansion Berkeley Monarchs. Kind of sounds like fun, though more likely I’ll be busy doing breeder kid and chore things.
"Kraut will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no kraut."
I’m planning to go, partly to mine the crowd for A’s fans who aren’t friends of mine for a story I’m working on about the stadium standoff. It should be fun, too. I understand there’s going to be a 1920’s jazz band, not quite the correct period but nice. I’m just sorry that the Colonels aren’t playing the Dukes and our own oblique Snow Cone.
Thanks for the plug! That happens next week, March 11 at 12:30. It’d be really sweet to see some FKers in the crowd.
The New Almaden Cinnabars have forfeited their first game, so for the first time in 2 years, the Dukes will have a winning record. But, we’ve also brought in a couple of guys who can really hit, so hopefully we can actually win a few this season.
I highly recommend going and checking out a game – the Colonels are great; their captain Chops is one of the heads of the league and they have some guys who can really play. Gloves with no webbing, no helmets, 7 balls, 3 strikes. Good times!
Nice. Given the forecast, it seems Ernie Banks’ famous line might be appropriate for tomorrow, and depending on how the day goes I might make it to the second game of Cal’s doubleheader, scheduled for 2:30. With the possible inclusion of Andeux.
If anyone follows/cares about women’s college basketball: my Baylor Lady Bears have completed their undefeated regular season and are now 31-0, following today’s game. They’re awesome. Brittney Griner skateboards around campus, which makes her even more noticeable than she already is. EA Sports was doing a photo shoot on campus this week for Robert Griffin III’s NCAA football video game cover, and as Brittney walked past, she yelled out, “Marry me, RG3!” He said she was too tall for him. (He also could have pointed out that he’s already engaged.) I am really enjoying Baylor sports these days.
I just went to my first women’s college basketball game this week (the extremely good Stanford Cardinal vs. the less distinguished but scrappy team from Seattle University). Actually, my first basketball game of any kind. I liked it a lot.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
I don’t think she’s violent like that, although I sure wouldn’t want to go up against her in the paint…
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
She did punch a girl during her freshman year, but a) she was provoked (or so I’m told; I didn’t actually watch that game), and b) she’s much more calm and collected now. She hardly ever gets in foul trouble (had 4 against Texas A&M last week, but that was unusual — and also the refs were calling fouls every 10 seconds), and in all the games I’ve watched the last 2 years, I haven’t seen her get in any sort of altercation with players from the other team. I heart her.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Insane work week. 10p-12a is my freekrautin’ time, and on days I wasn’t tooling away at work-related stuff at that time I was crashed out and sleeping already.
But crappy work stuff making me focus, then stuck in jail for too long, then more crappy work stuff, then Saturday activities including going to see lorax. NOw I am trying to catch up.
When you point a finger at someone, you’ve got three pointing back at you.
Now, when you point two fingers at someone, you’ve got six pointing back at you… unless you’re Dave Dravecky, of course.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
Boston College played ’em pretty close in the radio game, although they only played 6 innings.
\"Weren\'t you already aware the Kay is already writing everyone\'s story? We\'re all just characters who believe we are real. Things make more sense now, don\'t they. Be honest.\"- DMOAS
So take the challenge, or apologize for lying, Ed. $1000.00 to the RNC the moment you can show me where she discussed her sex life, you lying sack of shit.
"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want"
The alternate (rejected) title for this post was:
G(u)rilla(u)methreadmagundi.
Somehow, methinks the “Rally Guillaume” trend isn’t gonna catch on…
That picture looks perfect for a seeing-eye, run scoring Swingle.
it’s just not as catchy a name as “guilly ball.”
this may be a sign i’m getting softer, but this year i’m actually considering checking the options on buying legal ways of viewing baseball. so i guess, first question, what are the options and how much do they cost? i don’t suppose there’s single a super-cheap way to watch all the games on my computer without blackout dates, is there? (it’s have to be on computer btw, we don’t have “television” at home.)
You’re FKd if you want to follow the A’s legally in the bay area on a computer only.
Yep, Comcast pays lots of money to prevent you from watching the A’s or Giants on your computer. Now if you want to be a Colorado Rockies fan, MLB.TV would be great, except when the Rockies were playing the Giants or A’s you’d be blacked out.
See and that doesn’t make sense to me. It should be easy as all get out to tweak the deal so that those in the “black out” area can only access the “local” feed (including commercials) for all games they broadcast and can only get any alternate feed if they’re not broadcasting. I mean, the stations/networks would have to be complete idiots not to do that deal. It would increase their ad revenue streams with the increased viewership. MLB would do it because more people would be willing to pay for the thing. It’s mutually beneficial all around.
not if the regional cable networks are vastly overpaying for rights contracts out of the idea that “live sports are the only shows on TV where people sit through the commercials”
Not sure that makes much of a difference if the MLB.tv feed also has the same set of commercials playing.
i just thought they were blacked out to get fans to go to the stadium. i’m so naive.
Nope.
no yes. i am.
People who don’t even watch baseball pay for baseball as part of their basic cable package.
MLB.tv can’t make any money off of people who don’t watch baseball because they aren’t forced to subscribe to it as a part of a package deal.
Not sure what your point is. Baseball will remain apart of the basic cable package. It’s not like MLB.tv would take the place of the current broadcast setup. It would only expand the network’s viewership. Someone like myself who already pays for cable and gets the regular broadcast would never bother with mlb.tv since I’d be blacked out. But without the blackout, I wouldn’t ditch cable, but I might consider mlb.tv for games that weren’t broadcasted that are currently blacked out anyway. Add in those who’s cable networks don’t carry the channel, anyone signing up for mlb.tv benefits the network by since they’d be forced to view the network’s broadcast and commercials.
Without the blackout(s), many if not most people who only buy cable for sports would not be buying cable.
Therefore, the ratings would sink and cable contracts with baseball would be for a much lower value, and it’s possible the difference wouldn’t be completely made up with the league internet sports packages. Maybe it’s more profitable right now for the sports leagues to black out games and treat their internet products as a secondary product behind the more lucrative cable packages.
The cable companies (IMO) are currently overpaying for sports rights. When that inefficiency goes away, the motivation to black out games and protect the ability to be overpaid for rights goes away, and the blackouts will end.
Meh, i think you’re confusing cable & networks. While certainly cable companies do own a number of networks, a lot of teams are owning them now along with non-cable owned networks. If baseball were the ONLY thing bringing these people in, they might have to worry, but there are other sports and other draws to watch. It’s certainly not a deal breaker. The biggest banking for the networks is ad revenue and the increase in viewership (probably even nation-wise) would up the ante quite a bit. A lose of cable subscribers isn’t the issue here. Hell, they can’t even control you watching on their cable system when there are alternatives.
The other thing is that the cable companies smartly realize that the world is moving to ala carte media and that there are really very few things that people are unwilling to get from a source like netflix or hulu, even if it is delayed. Live sports you have to watch live (for the most part) and you cant get them from a streaming service unless the league offers one or you go through the effort to find a pirate stream. Its going to be the only reason people in my generation buy cable.
so this is something i don’t have my head wrapped around… the MLBTV blackout dates don’t affect TV (comcast) at all?
It’s because of the TV that they have blackouts.
Here are the monthly/yearly prices for MLB.tv. If you have a smartphone, you can get MLB at bat for free with a subscription. At bat has news, highlights, Gameday, and lets you stream the radio feed for games. You can stream the video broadcast too if you have MLB.tv.
You can still circumvent the blackouts on MLB.tv if you use an IP changer/masker or if you use free, but tedious to use, proxies. But of course, that’s not exactly legal.
“Cespedes esta aqui!â€
Also, I’m starting to like Manny, Part I:
And, part II:
You beat me to posting about the white shoes. I think he was aiming his comments directly to FK, knowing that if he wins us over he’s got it made in this town.
Well, if Manny being Manny means he’s being new Manny not old Manny, then I say he deserves another chance.
Maybe he really did grow up a little bit…
question. by himself? or through human growth-up-a-little-bit hormones?
I think that the possibility of losing his wife and kids scared him the FK straight, at least for a while.
I would guess he’s clean right now, and I also think he won’t hit for shit because of it.
He would have to grow up a LOT to be a worthwhile human being.
Or become Bloom.
Where is that goofy bastard anyway?
Don’t know.
“Yoenis Cespedes…accompanied by a friend” – SS
SS going with just one N in Yoenis.
From an e-mail I just sent to monkeyball …
A little context about my friend’s background in all this: he says he doesn’t read ANY blogs … just the Economist. He gets his sports news, I think, from yahoo.
Anywhoo, shortly after sending the e-mail, I find myself reading Sully’s piece on Breitbart. About how Breitbart might be viewed as a casualty of the 24-7 news cycle, about the near mania required to participate in that cycle. I can identify with it–I feel manically inclined to participate myself at times. I find it to be a dramatic tension: how do I awaken to the relationships around me and to my own individual destiny–to whatever it is I’m supposed to accomplish as an indivdual–when I can stay busy 24-7 online chattering about the accomplishments and failings of others? I mean, I have sh*t to do, constantly, but yet I constantly find myself veering away from that to-do list and toward the Internet to read Sully, Ratto, Monkeyball, and … YOU!
So like I said, there’s a tension. I think there is value in this online communication, but I have a lot of difficulty in putting it in its proper place.To tie this back to my e-mail at the top–I think there is value in this online communication, and I understand my friend’s desire to dive into it, to make it a vocation, or a more-serious avocation. But at the same time, I find the nonstop nature of all this communication to be so addictive–and the degree to which I no longer think of it as a potential vocation makes me feel like I’ve grown up a little. (As I should have–after all, I was probably about 25 when I started posting on AN and I’m 34 now–WTF!?) Still, the addiction continues, and yet it’s valuable, and, well, how much should I allow myself to feed it? Interested in hearing how all y’all strike this balance.I didn’t which was the problem with **. Here the great thing is I actually care about almost everything that people have to say because of the quality of folks here. Does it distract from other things? Absolutely, but here I see it more as getting a beer with friends rather than wasting time.
Agreed.
Doing it for the money with random “customers” sounds like a recipe for success… in 2007! Too late now… that ship has sailed…
Well it was just more that getting a beer with a complete stranger isn’t as interesting. I don’t care about what they care about.
Well, we were all strangers once. And cared about the A’s.
Maybe there are enough potential unrepresented affinity groups to rip off SBN’s model and make community interaction-based blogs about other topics/hobbies/interests…
This is fair. But back then there was smart A’s talk.
Back then, sabermetrics was still open enough of a field that breakthroughs happened often enough to be worth discussing.
there were shithead trolls back then too, of course.
Especially that SPWC asshole… with his pro-beanball essays and baseball-as-a-religion fetish…
i have no problem with “baseball-as-religion”
They admit they’re the Devil(s). They’re heels all the way, easily hatable, and it’s ironic that their rivals are called the “Heels” even though they’re faces.
(sunny day, hauls chaise lounge and pad out of garage, sets up table and speaker, prepares to listen to Ken Korach describe the playing of base ball)
My wife’s taking her allergy meds so I can open up all the windows and turn the whole house fan on…
70 degrees in Sacto at 11:30…
I don’t know if I have said this before, but in my heart it is an almost annual tradition to think of this around this time of year:
IT IS AN UTTER JOKE THAT THE CLOSEST MLB TEAM TO FOLKS IN FRESNO CANT BE HEARD ON LOCAL RADIO!!! I can listen to anything on Earth for the Dudgers or the Gnats, but it is a challenge for the A’s. I think one year we actually had them on a station out of like 5-6. Pa-thetic
Charter Cable still hasn’t agreed with Comcast about carriage of CSN California so in Reno/Carson/Tahoe you continue to need a dish to watch the A’s (except limited availability of AT&T U-Verse in Reno only). They haven’t had a radio station up here in years. The Giants continue to be on Charter both on CSN Bay Area and a local station for the “NBC Bay Area” telecasts and they do have a Reno radio station.
This would be a good time of year for you both to complain to the relevant stations. Find out who the general manager is and send him or her an email. It may not help, but it can’t hurt. Most broadcasters/cablecasters get way less feedback than you’d expect.
Ahhhhhh, Ken/Vince/Ray sound GREAT.
Tyson Ross sounds not so great. One more baserunner and it’s “UNFRIEND” for you, Tyson!!!
heh
just finished a long day in which I made an L-shaped desk for my wife, and six containers (two with drawers and four without). I’m completely exhausted (a bit unhealthy again, so that helped for sure).
however, I love the way our study looks now. checking out, sending love and hugs to all who care for them
It’s pleasant to be exhausted in a good cause and with visible results. Not like the exhaustion of just keeping up with the things that you don’t enjoy and that just maintain the status quo.
Too many justs in that post. My prose is suffering today because I have been lazing in bed and reading Sei Shonagon; and since I can’t write about exchanging poetry with Heian court gentlemen in six layers of brilliantly colored robes, I can’t really emulate her.
Whoo hoo, I’ve been Korached! It’s truly, finally 2012 now!
Meh. It won’t truly be 2012 until the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man shows up.
Korached, Fossified, Cotroneod, Melvinned, and Beaned. And Tittled a bit at the top, with more Tittling to come.
Did anyone else catch Fosse’s anecdote about being in the clubhouse with Sal Bando, and them getting excited when Jerry Blevins walked by with a giant plate of spaghetti and meatballs? For some reason that cracked me up.
That was funny.
Fosse is a primal being.
He probably grunts a lot too. Good thing he does it (mostly) off-air.
Winning is an unfortunate but necessary byproduct of a game that cannot end in a tie.
Way to go, Jonny! I love that he took off his cap to show off the Mohawk.
Parker with 4K in his two innings? That sounds pretty nice to me. Radio people — did Korach & Co say much about how his stuff was looking?
One of the two innings was the designated chat-with-the-manager time, so we didn’t hear very much about Parker while he was pitching, but we also didn’t hear much about anyone else from Melvin because the half-inning was over so fast.
Korach said Milone’s changeup looked good, if that matters.
just watching on gameday, his stuff seemed pretty great. A bunch of swinging strikes on his changeup, a couple on his slider, and his fastball hit 98.
Behold the Power of Keebs!
WOOOOOOO! :D
I want to make a banner for him this year (3 x 6, of course) with SOGARD’S SPEC-TATORS.
n, that is an AWESOME IDEA! love, love, love!!!!! :D
YES
I like that.
Looking for an open M on my next turn.
Nice.
Let me know next time you have a board of “LEPENRF” or “KRIVICA”
If that JAG weren’t in the way, it would be a great 221-point triple-triple bingo.
For non-radio people: Ray was just saying that his daughter Nikki is in Moneyball — in actual crowd footage, not extras; she is seen standing up with her boyfriend (now husband) at the end of Game 19.
Am I the only one who when hearing the name “Timmons” immediately thinks of the 1980s USA Volleyball player?
I am? Oh, OK.
STEVE TIMMONS! KARCH KIRALY! KENT STEFFES! BOB SAMUELSON! 1992 Olympic bronze medalists!
I think of Timmy and Tommy.
Small but Mighty!
Vince just said that during the offseason Sogard “moved the body around in all the right spots.”
TW his new wife S…
More substantively, Vince just said that someone clocked Parker’s fastball at 96 and his change at 81. That sounds impressive, maybe even excessive.
I wonder if the latter reading is inaccurate; that’s too big of a spread.
Unless he changes his arm action.
Same old Coors Light poetry corner ads. If they were still analog the tape would’ve snapped in those carts by now. I welcomed the vintage “BART, and you’re there” ads with a bit more fondness.
He might be the Keebler elf to all of you, but he’ll always be Trotsky to me.
Sabermetric Orthodox: Glasses Are Nerdy is my nickname of choice.
Love it
No one watching me watch a big Carolina game would describe me as enjoying myself. Two hours of angst and curses, which end either in demoralizing defeat, or perhaps with a relieved exhalation of breath, like a driver who white knuckles his way through a cascade of car wrecks in a fog bank to reach the other side unscathed.
I wouldn’t have it any other way. Fuck Duke. Go Heels.
Wow. I take it back; I thoroughly enjoyed that first half, at least.
I dunno if Carolina’s gonna win the national title this year, but I know Duke won’t.
Meanwhile, predictably, those Duke fucks have oozed their way back into possible contention, of course, like a cheaper dirtier Jason Voorhees who simply will not die.
Cuse all the way
Ahhhhhh….that actually was enjoyable.
I can see how it would be.
Checked in at quarterly or so intervals. That seemed … terrible.
Duke made its first two shots, then missed like 12 in a row, at which point Carolina’s lead was like 15 points and they never looked back. Carolina played much better perimeter D, and the good looks Duke did get weren’t falling for them.
This NY Daily News story seems to be claiming that MLB is going to nix the move to San Jose, although the lede is so hopelessly buried that there is no way to tell for sure what the author is trying to say or whether he is even claiming to have sources on the matter.
Also, monkeyball bait:
Quite the strong headline to append to a cobbled-together theory and no real understanding of our Bay Area ballpark landscape. He even spells it “Wolf” on the second page.
Reads like he talked to one NYC MLB legal source, the kind of guy who gets comped Legends level tickets at Yankee Stadium, who most certainly would just as soon be rid of riff raff like the A’s. “Clubs would realize what a terrible ‘there but for the grace of God go us’…” Yeah, all zero of those other clubs who have internally partitioned media markets…
If I see 6 more stories like this, that would mean something, but this one is just a NY Daily News house guy writing stuff some guy in a nice suit told him.
The lousy writing strongly implies lousy sourcing, for sure. The source for the contraction quote, however, seems to be different than the lawyer you reference. Given the article’s TAMPA dateline, my concern would be that he’s getting some of this from someone with the last name Steinbrenner.
Ding!
There’s really no reason at this point to believe Bill Madden knows anything about the situation, especially no reason to believe he’s got some sort of inside info nobody else does. It’s pure speculation at this point. Bob Nightengale didn’t have much of anything behind his claim that San Jose was a go either, to be fair, but of course these things gain traction when people apply their desires to things read without any proof to the claims.
In other words, I’ll believe the A’s are moving or not moving to San Jose when MLB announces it.
What if MLB never announces anything?
Then we have a completely different problem.
I think you’re right. I don’t doubt that both Madden and Nightengale had well-informed sources who gave them their respective lines of argument, and that these are representative samples of the arguments that have been made to Selig. But I don’t think anyone knows what he’s going to decide, or if, indeed, he is continuing to decide not to decide in hopes that someone else gets bored with this staring contest.
Add to all the anti-likelihood of contraction: 1) Fucking up their new wild card system. 2) Having to move at least one more team to the AL. Honestly, it’s just foolish to think that contraction wouldn’t be significantly more expense than to simply subsidizing both teams. If it’s a no to SJ, odds are it becomes a wait until the economy rebounds and another city takes it’s place. But even that has the potential of fucking them if SJ sues MLB to remove the anti-trust.
The union drama alone would be more of a headache than just subsidizing the teams.
Yup. They’d have to be willing to suffer through another lock out/strike just to even get started. They’d be looking at a loss of multiple billions.
Lew & SJ should sue ’em all and let the courts sort it out.
Maybe it’ll give ol’ Bud a heart attack.
I believe owners are forbidden from suing the league as part of the franchise agreement, and I don’t think the city would have standing. But I am not one of the resident lawyers here.
Wolff himself, no. But SJ would be able (and willing) to fight the anti-trust on his behalf since they’d have a team willing to move.
Never happen. Would be throwing away a truckload of lawyer money on a quixotic hope, which the electorate would take out of the sue-happy incumbents’ hides.
Sounds like the perfect pro bono project for the mini law firm we’ve got going here.
heh…
double heh…
(evil evil SPWC-ian laugh… if you’ve heard it before, you know what I’m talking about. It sounds like fresh blood tastes.)
Salty?
They’ve already offered in the past, not much more than a few months ago. I don’t see it being all that quixotic either. As for expense, while GM jokes, I could very well see someone stepping up to play (if not fund that game) that game. Lots of folks aren’t particularly fond of the anti-trust outside of MLB anyway. It’s certainly no slam dunk, but it’s hardly crazy to think it would happen either.
It makes perfect sense as a veiled, empty threat before a decision is made. But that’s the only way it makes sense.
A lot of it depends on Wolff (or more Fischer). If they decide the payout for selling the team back to MLB isn’t good enough compared to the boost in franchise value from a move to SJ, they’d push and force MLB’s hand. I seriously doubt the lawsuit makes it to the courts, but it’s a lawsuit that if made, would beg for some sort of settlement. Where it falls (more money or approval of the move) just depends on the overall dollars and fall out.
The way Crywolffisher run the team, they’ll get more from a payout than any stadium deal.
Possibly. But they aren’t the only payment for that to work out. MLB will have quite a major financial burden on their hands if they go that route. Either through the enormous contraction attempt or from running the team themselves, in Oakland, until years (decades?) later when they can find a suitable home, since no one’s buying them to keep them where they are. Hell, they may be forced to build a stadium themselves (here or somewhere) just to sell the team, forget about the loss.
Tomorrow’s Opening Day for the Bay Area Vintage Base Ball League. 12:30 pm at Mosswood Park, the Oakland Colonels host the expansion Berkeley Monarchs. Kind of sounds like fun, though more likely I’ll be busy doing breeder kid and chore things.
I’m planning to go, partly to mine the crowd for A’s fans who aren’t friends of mine for a story I’m working on about the stadium standoff. It should be fun, too. I understand there’s going to be a 1920’s jazz band, not quite the correct period but nice. I’m just sorry that the Colonels aren’t playing the Dukes and our own oblique Snow Cone.
Thanks for the plug! That happens next week, March 11 at 12:30. It’d be really sweet to see some FKers in the crowd.
The New Almaden Cinnabars have forfeited their first game, so for the first time in 2 years, the Dukes will have a winning record. But, we’ve also brought in a couple of guys who can really hit, so hopefully we can actually win a few this season.
I highly recommend going and checking out a game – the Colonels are great; their captain Chops is one of the heads of the league and they have some guys who can really play. Gloves with no webbing, no helmets, 7 balls, 3 strikes. Good times!
Yes, I heard that you & Wade (whose nickname I can’t remember) have not retired after all… :)
Nice. Given the forecast, it seems Ernie Banks’ famous line might be appropriate for tomorrow, and depending on how the day goes I might make it to the second game of Cal’s doubleheader, scheduled for 2:30. With the possible inclusion of Andeux.
Facebook event
I plan on some Top Dogs there as well. Possibly some FREE KRAUT!
If anyone follows/cares about women’s college basketball: my Baylor Lady Bears have completed their undefeated regular season and are now 31-0, following today’s game. They’re awesome. Brittney Griner skateboards around campus, which makes her even more noticeable than she already is. EA Sports was doing a photo shoot on campus this week for Robert Griffin III’s NCAA football video game cover, and as Brittney walked past, she yelled out, “Marry me, RG3!” He said she was too tall for him. (He also could have pointed out that he’s already engaged.) I am really enjoying Baylor sports these days.
I just went to my first women’s college basketball game this week (the extremely good Stanford Cardinal vs. the less distinguished but scrappy team from Seattle University). Actually, my first basketball game of any kind. I liked it a lot.
Yeah, Stanford is good. I don’t know how the brackets will break down, but maybe Baylor will play Stanford in the Final Four — that’d be fun.
Then you and I throw down!!!
Bring it.
Rowr!
i’ll supply the jello
Thanks, and go As.
Brackets set. See you in the Final Four!
Woot!
I heart Britney Griner!
You better, or she’ll punch your face in.
I don’t think she’s violent like that, although I sure wouldn’t want to go up against her in the paint…
She did punch a girl during her freshman year, but a) she was provoked (or so I’m told; I didn’t actually watch that game), and b) she’s much more calm and collected now. She hardly ever gets in foul trouble (had 4 against Texas A&M last week, but that was unusual — and also the refs were calling fouls every 10 seconds), and in all the games I’ve watched the last 2 years, I haven’t seen her get in any sort of altercation with players from the other team. I heart her.
I just nuked 1500 comments. Sigh.
um, how the hell did ya do that, doc?
So many short jokes lost in the ether, never to needle their intended butt.
Wait, what?
Not like that. I “Y U NO TRY”ed them.
Ah. Got it.
Y U NO TRY?
Insane work week. 10p-12a is my freekrautin’ time, and on days I wasn’t tooling away at work-related stuff at that time I was crashed out and sleeping already.
Bummer. Those weeks suck.
When I’m working that late I feel little compunction mixing in some FK
As the unreadccouncount grew, I could no longer kill 5 min at a time, so I stopped checking, which made the problem much much worse.
I had a weekend like that. NOt quite as bad.
But crappy work stuff making me focus, then stuck in jail for too long, then more crappy work stuff, then Saturday activities including going to see lorax. NOw I am trying to catch up.
Comment 2 = wins the internet
Grace is gone.
When you point a finger at someone, you’ve got three pointing back at you.
Now, when you point two fingers at someone, you’ve got six pointing back at you… unless you’re Dave Dravecky, of course.
I like to point four fingers at people, that way one finger is pointing towards god.
Christ, what assholes
Boston College played ’em pretty close in the radio game, although they only played 6 innings.
They don’t mention it in that article, but Swingles went deep for the Red Sox too.
good. maybe they will be expecting it
Highest and best use of Balloon Juice
http://blog.sfgate.com/giants/2012/03/04/seligs-office-denies-he-has-rejected-as-san-jose-move/