bobbob1313 Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 Would your average fan rather see news about the Yankees and Red Sox or Marlins and Royals? Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 I agree the coverage of BOS and NYY seems to dominate and I won't get into the "why" that is, but don't certain teams in other sports get the same treatment? The Lakers/Celtics in the late 70s-80s, the Bulls in the 90s, and the Spurs (and Lakers to an extent) from the late 90s-present. The Pats have been a dominant team in the NFL for awhile hence they get top Monday night and Sunday night game preferences. Do people want to see more coverage of the hapless 'Skins (I'm a "Skins fan)? Not for nothing, but the media created the "greatest rivalry in sports" hype with the Sox/Yankees, not the fans. I think it used to be, too. Not anymore. But, do people want deeper coverage of Tampa Bay or Texas? The fans in those areas, sure. But c'mon. The NYY and BOS fan-bases are also enormous. Not that this should necessarily equate to coverage all things NYY or BOS, but there are enormous markets for both of the teams and there is a long lineage in the sport from both franchises. Not that other teams are not as deserving of deeper coverage, mind you. Other teams do get covered but other teams are not in the NY/BOS market, either. I don't know. It is what it is. Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn_skurj Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 The NYY and BOS fan-bases are also enormous. Not that this should necessarily equate to coverage all things NYY or BOS, but there are enormous markets for both of the teams and there is a long lineage in the sport from both franchises.That's what drives it, guys. Ratings, and only ratings. Link to post Share on other sites
caliber66 Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Sheffield thinks that you're annoyinga racist. Link to post Share on other sites
MrRain422 Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I can understand why the Yankees and Red Sox get more coverage than other teams do. But I do not understand why they seem to get more coverage than all other teams combined. Feel free to give them a few extra minutes, but the amount of coverage that they get is still ridiculous. Link to post Share on other sites
Duck-Billed Catechist Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Apparenly my cousin worked on Rich Hill's Honda Pilot today. Nothing like the Jim Oberweis story, though. Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Gabbard! Complete game shut-out and upcoming overly-complete coverage on Sports Center (though truth be told, I don't watch a lot of SC or Baseball Tonight...but I hear, folks. I hear). Stay tuned for all your Red Sox and Yankees coverage.... Link to post Share on other sites
Duck-Billed Catechist Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Grady Sizemore made an incredible play. Called a catch, although it really was a rebound off the wall. Pretty crazy play, though. Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 These Cubs are starting to impress me. I watched most of these last two wins, and this is a team that's starting to get that look in their eyes. I last saw this with the '05 White Sox. I'm not saying they're going to win the Series, but those Brewers better watch out. Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn_skurj Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Here's a quote from my interview last week with noted baseball historian John Thorn. I will post the story later. Link to post Share on other sites
MrRain422 Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I'm interested in both, and in many instances, the stats tell the story in ways that antecdotes simply can't. Link to post Share on other sites
Chendizzle Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Obviously Sportscenter gives more coverage to BOS/NYY, but like other people have said, it's driven by ratings. I don't think it's that all-consuming either, especially on Baseball Tonight, they seem to cover a wide range of topics. In the end though of course we're gonna hear about the latest Barry Bonds/A-Rod saga. Those things are probably more interesting anyway. And you can always watch the local sports channel (do most markets have these? Something like YES or NESN?) for coverage of the home team. But I'm from Massachusetts, so my view might be skewered. Link to post Share on other sites
bobbob1313 Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 These Cubs are starting to impress me. I watched most of these last two wins, and this is a team that's starting to get that look in their eyes. I last saw this with the '05 White Sox. I'm not saying they're going to win the Series, but those Brewers better watch out. What look in their eyes did the White Sox have in 05? The one that made them have like the best pitching in the league by far, but were like 7th in the AL in runs scored and managed to win despite Ozzie's best attempts to stop them? They won because of their ridiculous pitching. The Cubs are winning mostly because they've been beating up on a bunch of crappy teams lately, including their own atrocious division. The Brewers were never that strong of a team to begin with, and their decline was pretty forseeable. Whether or not the Cubs will make the playoffs is extremely debatable, but I can't see any look in their eyes. Unless you are referring to the look you get when you look into the eyes of Koyie Hill and know that he's fully capable of killing a man. If that's the look you mean, then yeah, they are getting that look in their eyes. Link to post Share on other sites
jenbobblehead Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Grady Sizemore made an incredible play. Called a catch, although it really was a rebound off the wall. Pretty crazy play, though.at the doctors office yesterday was the Sports Illustrated with Grady on the cover and man is he cute! Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 What look in their eyes did the White Sox have in 05?The look that says they're never out of a game until the final out. There's some fight in these Cubs that I haven't seen in a while. Link to post Share on other sites
boywiththorninside Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 That's what drives it, guys. Ratings, and only ratings. I don't know if it's about ratings. I think ESPN has a core audience that watches Sportscenter no matter what they cover. In college, I used to instinctively turn on Sportscenter regardless of whether they were talking about the Bulls, the Cowboys, or whoever. It was sports, it was on, so I watched. I think a lot of people are like that. I don't think coverage of specific teams alters their ratings much at all. If there is excessive coverage of the Yanks and Sox, I think, as it has been noted, it is probably due to both team's histories coupled with their recent success. The Yanks have been in the playoffs 12 straight years and the Sox always contend. You notice during the NBA season, despite being in the same big market and having comparable fan bases, the NY/Boston teams do not dominate Sportscenter coverage. The difference: the Knicks and Celtics have been awful the last few years. You also can't discount journalistic laziness. The Yanks/Sox story has been told so many times. It's easy. Why not tell it again? I'd also like to blame regional bias. ESPN is based in Connecticut, right in the middle of Yankees and Red Sox country. However, this is probably not much of a factor because, as I said, despite their geography, the Knicks and Celtics get scant coverage (as they deserve). Also, Connecticut is not near Chicago and, in the 90's, I thought ESPN was the Bulls network. Finally, the Yankees will make the playoffs this year. 7 games back in the Wild Card, about 9 weeks to go, no problem. Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I was with you on so many of those points.... Link to post Share on other sites
Duck-Billed Catechist Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Only problem being that Cleveland is a better team, I think. Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Finally, the Yankees will make the playoffs this year. 7 games back in the Wild Card, about 9 weeks to go, no problem.I don't think they'll overtake the Indians, Mariners, and Twins. It's the Yankees, so of course it's possible, but I see them playing a lot of October golf this year. Link to post Share on other sites
PigSooie Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I know where he lost you, SS! Link to post Share on other sites
Duck-Billed Catechist Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 And you can always watch the local sports channelRight, I've turned off ESPN almost completely. Its replacement isn't the local sports channel for me, but the information and highlights available on the internet. The NBA coverage doesn't bother me as much because usually the teams they're devoting most of the coverage to are the best teams. It's not as if they had non-stop Bulls coverage in the early aughts. Link to post Share on other sites
boywiththorninside Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I apologize for the overconfidence. I'm just trying to stay positive. The Yanks have been playing better ball the last 3 series, and have a favorable schedule the next month. The Sox pitching is too good for them to be caught, but I do think the Wild Card is realistic. No disrespect to Indians and Twins fans, but I can see the Yanks being 7 games better then both of those teams the rest of the way. I think experience does count for something. Derek "ain't all the way black" Jeter and Joe "the Grand Wizard" Torre will find a way to get it done. Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 The NBA coverage doesn't bother me as much because usually the teams they're devoting most of the coverage to are the best teams. It's not as if they had non-stop Bulls coverage in the early aughts.Not for nothing, but BOS has had the best record in baseball pretty much all season. The NYY are based in NY. Hmmm..... Link to post Share on other sites
Duck-Billed Catechist Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Boston is definitely one of the top teams this year. Not so much last year. Also, the Yankees aren't so much at this point. Their success and failure seems to net equal coverage. Link to post Share on other sites
jenbobblehead Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 When Cleveland fans can FILL an away stadium then ESPN will cover them more. Granted the Orioles suck, but when i go to a Os/Sox game at Camden the place is full (and by full i would say at least 3/4ths full) of RED SOX FANS. Even out at a game in Oakland two weeks ago, where the As were playing Seattle, there were folks wearing red sox hats. I watch games on TV and when the camera pans the crowd, no matter where the sox are playing, the seats are full of red sox fans. Wherever I travel there are folks in red sox gear in restaurants, airports, on the street. I'm sure i see it more because i'm a sox fan, but the truth is that Red Sox Nation and to a degree Yankee Nation or whatever they call themselves, are all over the country in huge numbers. I am sure it has a lot to do with the start of baseball in the US coinciding with many of the immigrants coming to this country via the east coast and then moving west with their fan base and loyalties. If i wasn't a sox fan i bet i'd be annoyed too, but the Red Sox and the Yankees are what they are--money makers for everyone. Link to post Share on other sites
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