MLB Playoffs 2009

[sportsguy2315]

How in the world do you take the defending World Series Champions and make them play two home games that start at 2:37 in the afternoon and then follow that by two away games that start at 10PM??!??!??!?

Look, I can almost swallow a Saturday night game in Colorado starting at 10PM on the East Coast, but a Sunday night game??? I'm supposed to stay up until 1AM to see what could be the clinching game for the Phillies??

First off, let me address your first point with a simple math equation:
Red Sox+Yankees+Dodgers (To an extent)=$ and Ratings for TBS and MLB
No offense to the Phillie fans, but it's pretty easy to see why their series against Colorado is getting the short stick in the NLDS. 3 of baseball's most recognized teams are in the playoffs this season. If you Bud Selig and were wearing the money goggles (As I'm sure he is), you'd see that you'd want the big names in primetime. It's also the basis behind your second point. The Eagles host Tampa Sunday at 1 ET, while the Broncos host the Patriots at 4:15 ET, so a 4 PM start in the East is out of the question as the Broncos are in town. The Twins and Yankees start at 7:07 ET, so by process of elimination that's why you're looking at a IMHO insane 10:07 ET first pitch Sunday night in Denver.

P.S. If my kid was in a similar situation and there was school the next day, I'd let them sleep in and just go in a couple hours late. No need to completely erase a day of school over a ballgame that gets done at 1 AM.

[PirateLover]

I'm more upset over the night games rather than the day games. Colorado is the coldest climate left, with freezing temps and snow predicted. Wouldn't you want to play that game during the day with the SUN so the players don't freeze??? Baseball isn't meant to be played in 21 degree wind chills. But because no one cares about the Rockies on a national level, we get the short end of the stick.

[Scar]

But because no one cares about the Rockies on a national level, we get the short end of the stick.

Only the Rockies huh.

[PirateLover]

Only the Rockies huh.

Philadelphia is right behind New York and Boston in terms of the broadness of our market. The Phillies...in fact almost all of our teams consistently draw fans across the country.

[Ian]

The NFL doesn't run 2 playoff games at once.

Yeah, you are right ... even on wildcard weekend they play four separate games.

Of course, none of them start at 10PM, but hey ...

Philadelphia is right behind New York and Boston in terms of the broadness of our market. The Phillies...in fact almost all of our teams consistently draw fans across the country.

Yeah, but Maryanne you know as well as I do that the national media hates Philly, for whatever reason. We get zero respect.

Even if we were playing the Dodgers or Cards I still think our series would be buried. I just hope the team uses this for motivation ... that "us against the world" stuff actually tends to work.

[gueli]

Yeah, but Maryanne you know as well as I do that the national media hates Philly, for whatever reason. We get zero respect.

The national media does not hate the phillies Ian, they just don't like YOU
(sorry it reminded me of a line out of band of brothers- "Lt sobell doesn't hate easy company private randelman, he hates you")

It does seem wrong to start a game so late- on a saturday...why not an afternoon game ? Oh yeah, because they don't want to interfere with NCAA football ...Sunday I can understand

[Hammer]

Philadelphia is right behind New York and Boston in terms of the broadness of our market. The Phillies...in fact almost all of our teams consistently draw fans across the country.

But other teams do not draw anywhere near to the level of the Red Sox and Yankees. Yes, there were many Phillies fans in Tampa for the World Series and the games there this season, but that has more to do with the fact the Phillies have held Spring Training in that area (Clearwater) since 1948. There are a pocket of fans there who grew up with the Phillies.

Yeah, you are right ... even on wildcard weekend they play four separate games.

Of course, none of them start at 10PM, but hey ...

That is because football has always been 1 and done and baseball, since its inception, has always been a "best of" series. I don't want them to spread out the games like basketball or hockey.

Yeah, but Maryanne you know as well as I do that the national media hates Philly, for whatever reason. We get zero respect.

Even if we were playing the Dodgers or Cards I still think our series would be buried. I just hope the team uses this for motivation ... that "us against the world" stuff actually tends to work.

I have to disagree with that a little.

A Sunday night game between the Phils and Mets ain't drawing much in say North Carolina. But a Yankees-Red Sox game is.

Outside of the Philadelphia area, not many people care about the Phillies, unless they grew up in the area and moved. But there are Yankees fans who have only seen the city of NY on TV.
The Phillies don't draw alot of national interest, even as reigning world champs. And their current playoff schedule shows that pretty clearly.

Go to the NY area, and their ain't too many Phillies fans. However, in the Philly area there is a fair amount of Yankee fans.

I just don't see the Phillies as a team of "national" interest. Heck, they won the WS last season, and all off-season the talk was about who the Yankees signed. And the Yankees didn't even make the playoffs.

DING, DING,DING!! Barnaby has the answer! The Yankees have drawn national media interest since the 1920's. Watch any Yankee game in an opposing ballpark on the opposing team's TV broadcast (I was able to do this with the MLB Extra Innings package) and you could not hide the fact that there was a large Yankee presence in those ballparks. Even the Red Sox aren't getting as favorable a schedule as the Yankees. Game 3 on Sunday in Boston is starting at noon! Angel fans can watch the team play while having breakfast!

Look, I am a huge Phillies fan, but I am also a realist and know that MLB and TV are going to choose what will make the most money for them. As you like to point out, Ian, we live in a capitalist country where the primary goal is to make the most profit possible.

[barnaby]

Philadelphia is right behind New York and Boston in terms of the broadness of our market. The Phillies...in fact almost all of our teams consistently draw fans across the country.

I have to disagree with that a little.

A Sunday night game between the Phils and Mets ain't drawing much in say North Carolina. But a Yankees-Red Sox game is.

Outside of the Philadelphia area, not many people care about the Phillies, unless they grew up in the area and moved. But there are Yankees fans who have only seen the city of NY on TV.
The Phillies don't draw alot of national interest, even as reigining world champs. And their current playoff schedule shows that pretty clearly.

Go to the NY area, and their ain't too many Phillies fans. However, in the Philly area there is a fair amount of Yankee fans.

I just don't see the Phillies as a team of "national" interest. Heck, they won the WS last season, and all off-season the talk was about who the Yankees signed. And the Yankees didn't even make the playoffs.

[barnaby]

The MLB playoff schedule is the DUMBEST of all pro sports.

The times are weak, they used to have overlap in the games.
And come LCS, the games start around 8:30PM guaranteeing that any young fan can't watch all the games without being tired the next day at school.

And the fact that if a team plays all games in their respective series, they only play 19 games in 32 days!!
The least amount of games in a one month during the regular season is 25, and thats during the All-Star break month.
Every other month a team plays 27-28 games in a month. Thats 3 off days in a month during the regular season.
But in the playoffs a team that plays the max amount of games will 3 times that many off.