After their first World Series title in 108 years, the built-to-last Cubs appeared on the brink of a dynasty. This year it’s been back to black in WrigleyvilleThe Cubs are back. After flipping 107 years of history a season ago by winning the organization’s first World Series title since 1908, disappointment and losing have returned to the North Side of Chicago. Entering this season, the reigning champs had 4-to-1 odds to repeat as champs according to Las Vegas sports books and were consensus favorites to take the National League’s Central Division. They were the reigning champs, young and had their entire core returning. While anything can happen in the postseason – just ask the Nationals – and it may be...
David Lengel puts MLB’s 30 local telecasts to the test as he takes a tour round baseball’s broadcast boothsWith baseball’s lengthy regular season stretching from April to October, it’s not uncommon for fans to have the game on every night. Naturally, with 162 games, the broadcasters themselves become an enormous part of the fan experience.The hyper-local model which defines Major League Baseball also means that most fans have little idea what other local broadcasts are like outside their baseball bubble. Luckily MLB Advanced Media are the owners of what is probably the most comprehensive live streaming service on the planet, and I took a tour of all 30 commentary teams. Related: What's wrong with the Cubs? A backslide to mediocrity...
The Miami Marlins owner is an ode to everything that’s distasteful about US sports. He is the least palatable host for baseball’s showcaseFor most owners in Major League Baseball, hosting the All-Star festivities this week would be a source of immense pride and a chance to show off their organization and city to a watching nation.But for the Miami Marlins owner, Jeffrey Loria, the mid-season showcase of baseball’s best talent is little more than a lucrative open house as he looks to secure a billion dollar profit on his $158.2m purchase of the team in 2002. Many in the city will see any sale as a merciful ending to his tenure in Miami. Related: Beckham's Miami soccer dream inches closer...
Players are hitting the ball out of the park at a record setting pace in 2017, yet their achievements are not receiving the attention some would have expectedBaseball is in the midst of a power explosion the likes of which historically has filled stadiums, driven ratings and created a new crop of home run-bashing American sports legends, yet the reaction this time around has been a little more ambivalent. Yankees rightfielder Roger Maris led the original power explosion in 1961 when he slugged a then-record 61 home runs to pass Babe Ruth’s long-time single season mark. There were 2,717 home runs in baseball that season, which set an all-time MLB mark for 0.95 home runs per game. There was some...
For a non-contact sport, baseball appears to involve plenty of fights. What is it about the game that produces confrontations?In 1986 I had the privilege of sitting next to the great Scottish sportswriter Hugh McIlvanney during the NFL’s first American Bowl at Wembley Stadium. One of the topics we discussed was the fascination that British fans have with baseball brawls, highlights of which seemed to occupy an unusual amount of time on British television – more, it seemed to me, than on American TV. “It’s just refreshing to us,” McIlvanney explained, “to see most of the violence happening on the field instead of in the stands.” Continue reading...