MLB

[Norah]

Somehow, Shark will probably be good for the Giants.

It's looking like Cueto will end up with the Dodgers and Leake will end up with the Cardinals. IMO, the Cards should really reach down and try to beat the Dodgers for Cueto. Cueto will get multiple rings if he goes to the Cards, not so sure about that if he goes to the Dodgers.

[The Argonaut]

Why do baseball players get paid so much? In my experience, baseball is the least popular vs. basketball and football. Those leagues use college as their minor leagues, while baseball has to run an entire amateur and international system of its own. Is it because there are so many more games? Where's all this money coming from?

[Norah]

tv deals

mlb is raking in money, and it keeps going up every year

don't let people fool you into thinking that baseball is dying

[The Argonaut]

But who is watching? Old people? I know so few people who watch (or even pay attention to) baseball in anything beyond a cursory way. Is that just because I live in Yankeeland and the Yanks aren't very exciting? I guess I saw more Mets stuff around, but that wasn't until they were in the WS, basically.

[Norah]

i'm pretty sure ratings are down, but not to the point where ad revenue is drying up. less people may be watching on tv consistently as they were in the late 90s, but enough are still watching that it's worth it to invest a lot of money in television deals.

and if i recall correctly, attendance numbers across the league are really strong

and if there's a solid base of viewers, and people are going to games in strong numbers, you could conclude that the interest is there and ratings could grow with better marketing of the game

[MattA75]

But who is watching? Old people? I know so few people who watch (or even pay attention to) baseball in anything beyond a cursory way. Is that just because I live in Yankeeland and the Yanks aren't very exciting? I guess I saw more Mets stuff around, but that wasn't until they were in the WS, basically.

it doesn't matter, sports is pretty much the only appointment viewing left (and pretty much the only reason Comcast etc are still alive), so they're going to continue to pay these insanely exorbitant amounts

[numbers]

Also, NFL players SHOULD be making that kind of money, but their union is a joke.

[Norah]

for sure

[MadTIGERmaN]

Why do baseball players get paid so much? In my experience, baseball is the least popular vs. basketball and football. Those leagues use college as their minor leagues, while baseball has to run an entire amateur and international system of its own. Is it because there are so many more games? Where's all this money coming from?

162 games, in less than 185 days, where your, 20 or so days off, are generally spent flying to another city, is not something to over look.

and I know almost no one follows basketball around here. Its all Packers/Badgers/Brewers and almost no one talking Bucks, unless youre talking about deer hunting season

[verb_to_trust]

I talk Bucks. Fuck the greek freak.

[The Argonaut]

Why do baseball players get paid so much? In my experience, baseball is the least popular vs. basketball and football. Those leagues use college as their minor leagues, while baseball has to run an entire amateur and international system of its own. Is it because there are so many more games? Where's all this money coming from?

162 games, in less than 185 days, where your, 20 or so days off, are generally spent flying to another city, is not something to over look.

and I know almost no one follows basketball around here. Its all Packers/Badgers/Brewers and almost no one talking Bucks, unless youre talking about deer hunting season

Baseball players aren't getting paid more because the season is harder. It's not like they're going to take a job with the NBA because the benefits are better.

[verb_to_trust]

More injury risk in the other sports though. A lot of baseball players get away with being fat all season.

[The Argonaut]

Maybe it's just harder to reach that elite level in baseball. Teams can't turn around and grab a college senior to immediately make a difference. If you've proved that you can make it in the majors, that's more impressive than doing the same in the NBA or NFL. Not that those sports are easier, just that it's harder to reach that elite level in baseball. ?

[verb_to_trust]

Yeah the draft is more of a crapshoot without many immediate impact players.

[PHATJ]

When a baseball team is popular they can sell 40-50 thousand tickets for a game 81 times a season. The stadiums are much larger than NBA and NHL arenas which top out at about 20,000 seats. And in the NBA and NHL they have half the home games in which to sell tickets. If the average ticket for an MLB game is $35, those additional dates and seats would generate and additional $68,162,500 in ticket revenue yearly. Not to mention the 162 game TV deals, and increased opportunity for ad revenue. That's a lot of extra money to invest into contracts or whatever else they choose to do. Obviously the NFL generates massive amounts of money on a game by game basis (far more than any other sport) but it's limited schedule keeps teams from owning literally everything.

[philpritchard]

A huge part of it is the number of games. The highest attendance for an NFL team last year was just under 600,000. In baseball, the highest was 3.75 million, and even the Rays were over 1.2 million. Obviously expenses were much higher as well, but being able to run people through the gate on a consistent basis is huge.

But, really, it's all about the lack of a salary cap.

[Chris_H_2]

the tigers are putting together quite a formidable softball team

[Coach]

Wow. Like.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/14314 ... enis-elias

Red Sox trade Wade Miley to Mariners for Carson Smith, Roenis Elias

The Seattle Mariners, moving quickly to replace Hisashi Iwakuma in their rotation, have acquired left-hander Wade Miley in a trade with the Boston Red Sox, according to sources.

Boston will receive right-handed reliever Carson Smith and left-hander Roenis Elias in the deal, sources confirmed.

Miley, 29, went 11-11 with a 4.46 ERA for Boston last season, pitching better as the year progressed. He had become surplus for Boston after the Red Sox signed David Price to a seven-year, $217 million contract last week.

Miley will be reunited with new Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto, who knows Miley well from the days when both were with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Miley is guaranteed $15 million over the next two seasons, with a club option for 2018.

[MattA75]

I would've much rather traded Buchholz, even if the return would've been virtually nothing

Miley wasn't great by any stretch but I at least got the feeling that he gave a shit every time out

[Norah]

That's a great move. Pretty much a wash on on Miley for Elias and Smith is a great bullpen addition.