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| Eric Wedge's club left Japan with a 1-1 record. |
All that aside, it was an exciting two days for a baseball die-hard like me. However, MLB opening their season in Japan is riddled with all sorts of problems. First of all, why is America's National Pastime opening in Japan? The first time this was done was back in 2000, when the Cubs and Mets opened the season there, and really, I had no problem with the decision at the time, believing it was just a one-time, novelty gimmick. However, MLB has done this a couple of more times since then, the most recent coming in 2008 featuring the Red Sox and A's.
What makes this so awkward is that both participants in these games have to report to Spring Training earlier than other teams, and they have to fly back to play exhibition games in the States after playing two regular-season contests. Plus, if you are going to open the season in Japan, why send the two worst teams in baseball over there? I know Ichiro is wildly popular there, and the Mariners owner resides in the country. Nonetheless, you are not going to drum up much interest among fans in the States if you are showcasing two terrible teams during baseball's opening week.
Perhaps the biggest travesty in all of this is the way the first game was televised. Unless you resided in the greater Seattle area, or had access to MLB.TV outside of the Seattle and Oakland markets, you did not get the chance to watch the game live. Why MLB Network decided not to broadcast the first game live is beyond me. What is even worse is that if you were an A's fan living in Northern California, you were actually blacked out from watching the game on MLB.TV, despite the fact that the A's didn't televise the game on CSN California! They had to actually watch their team's first game on tape delay. Mercy....
Again, as a die-hard fan, I enjoyed it. Not everybody who watches baseball is a die-hard though. You have to cater to the "casual" fan, and this was a terrible way to go about it. MLB just needs to stick with what they have been doing for the last few years: showcasing the defending World Champion in the season's first game on national television. Everybody is happier that way. If I had my way, I would go back to making sure the Reds get the first game, but unless they win the World Series this year, I wouldn't hold my breath.
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Group including Magic Johnson to purchase the Dodgers
Seriously, how cool is that? After a tumultuous ownership reign by Frank McCourt that left him as popular as Barry Bonds in L.A., a group that includes basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson have bought the Dodgers for a staggering $2 billion! This ownership group also includes longtime baseball executive Stan Kasten, who will make many of the baseball-related decisions. Magic will not be making any baseball decisions, and he has already stated as much. However, he will definitely be a great recruiting tool for potential free agents around the league. He will not be the kind of recruiting tool that Nolan Ryan is in Texas, but he will be the embodiment of what the city of Los Angeles represents: celebrity and star-power.
The last time the Dodgers celebrated a World Championship, Magic was still wearing a Lakers uniform, Tommy Lasorda was still in the Dodgers dugout, Mike Scioscia was their catcher, and Kirk Gibson won the league MVP for them. The prestige the Dodgers once carried around baseball is slowly eroding, as 1988 fades more into the past (For example, 1988 is closer to 1966 and Sandy Koufax than it is to 2012. Chew on that one). Since then, the team has gone through two disastrous ownerships, and even worse, have witnessed the Angels take a significant chunk of the L.A. fanbase from them. Adding insult to injury, Mike Scioscia is managing the crosstown Angels, and he has been responsible for that team's rise to relevance in not only L.A., but around all of baseball. It is safe to say that the Dodgers and their fans are desperate for another championship. Could Magic, along with the ownership group he is a part of bring home a long-awaited title to Chavez Ravine? Even more, can this ownership group provide the kind of stability the O'Malley family brought during their tenure as owners, when they won six championships and 11 pennants? Time will only tell.
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More stories around MLB...
Great piece in Sports Illustrated about the Mariners broadcasters calling the Japan games from a studio in Seattle (Sports Illustrated)
MLB considering London's Olympic Stadium for World Baseball Classic games (Sports Illustrated)
Scary Stuff: Twins pitcher Carl Pavano target of extortion (Meriden Record-Journal)
This season could be Omar Vizquel's final one (Toronto Sun)
One-hour special featuring former Reds broadcaster Waite Hoyt to air on Cincinnati Radio Sunday (Cincinnati.com)
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More on Dick Allen...
In addition to "Dick Allen Day" at U.S. Cellular Field, there will be a fundraising dinner held in Allen's honor, courtesy of the Chicago Baseball Muesum. More info regarding this event can be found here (Chicago Baseball Museum)
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Today's blast from the past...1983 White Sox clinch AL West
It was the franchise's first postseason appearance in 24 years, and only their second since the infamous "Black Sox" scandal of 1919. The late Don Drysdale has the call. Look for the awkward camera shot of team co-owner Eddie Einhorn at the 17 second mark. Also, Hawk Harrelson comes in at 1:19, and his hideous technicolor sweater comes in at the 1:59 mark (believe me, it is ugly). Also, manager Tony LaRussa comes in at 2:32 and Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk enters at 6:57. Enjoy!
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