MLB 2019

[-Jrabbit]

Pitchers and catchers report!

[rah]

And what will the Cubs bullpen end up looking like. But YES, the official first day of spring.

[Demonbinder]

Tom Ricketts said Cubs have no extra money. It is all tied up on current roster.

What are thoughts on new proposed rules. I don't want NL to have designated hitter. Leave in in American league! Minimum 3 pitchers is too much. Maybe two and after 7th inning would be OK.

[rah]

I assume you mean 3 batter minimum? I'm against both. I've always liked the pitcher batting just so if he hit someone, he has to face the possible retaliation if it was deemed blatant.

[Demonbinder]

Yes, I was. I agree with you on the retaliation factor, though I also believe even if you are a pitcher you should know how to hit or bunt, at least.

[rah]

Well Machado signed for 300 mil for 10 years, so at least maybe the players will stop whining about how FA is broken. While I'm all for them making what the can, to hear people saying the system was broken because nobody offering the big money seemed a bit weird. It's not like they weren't getting offers. Machado was offered 240 for 8 years. AND HE DIDN"T ACCEPT IT. It's call the free market. Geeze. And it's not like Harper didn't get any offers, he was just greedy and wanted more so HE DIDN"T ACCEPT THEM. God, I wish there was a hard cap. Then at least their whining would be justified.

[SlowwHand]

There needs to be.

[-Jrabbit]

Yes, baseball has been slowly dying due to competitive imbalance -- for about 150 years so far.

[rah]

Well bigger markets have had the advantage and the interest in baseball is heading in the wrong direction among those that can't pay attention for any extended period of time.

[-Jrabbit]

And yet revenues remain pointed solidly upward. And MLB counts dollars, not attention span. Per Forbes:

For the 16th consecutive year, MLB saw record gross revenues. For 2018, baseball-related revenues were $10.3 billion, according to industry sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The revenues do not include the $2.58 billion sale of BAMTech to Disney that is reported as capital.

The league passed the $10 billion threshold in 2017, but growth slowed from the highly accelerated rate seen in years prior.

The league saw gate revenues flat for 2018, but because of a 4% drop in attendance attributed largely to bad weather in the spring and a change in how the Miami Marlins and the Toronto Blue Jays accounted for sales, ancillary revenues tied to attendance, such as concessions and parking, sagged.

While growth slowed in 2018, don’t expect that to continue heading into the 2019 season. More than one lucrative sponsorship deal is on the horizon, as are new revenues from a streaming media rights deal with DAZN. In 2022, a new extension reached with FOX will kick in; it totals $5.1 billion and runs through 2028. Talks to determine whether ESPN and TBS continue to carry MLB nationally are ongoing, and those deals could kick in then as well.

Since 1992, when Bud Selig took over as commissioner on a full-time basis, league gross revenues have grown 377% when accounting for inflation.

[rah]

I think a hard salary cap would increase the gates. More so in smaller markets. In the larger markets it's hard to increase it when you're already selling out most of the time.
I could even go with a slightly softer cap, especially when contracts are all guaranteed .

[-Jrabbit]

I agree that competitive balance is desirable, but I just don't see MLB's motivation. As long as they can keep failing franchises afloat with ever-increasing corporate and broadcast revenue streams, there's no reason to rock the boat. Sad but true.

[pchang]

The motivation would be more money. MLB has the chance to catch up to the NFL thanks to the whole concussion thing.

[rah]

And what about that 20 second clock. Did we just turn into the NBA.

[rah]

how about the other rules changes they're looking at.

I kinda of like the 3 batter min rule except for those times where the relief pitcher comes in and obviously doesn't have it that day. (walks the first two batters) I guess we'll see a few Opps, looks like he's hurt.

I like the change in the minimum of days down from 10 to 15. Teams were starting to abuse this so this is a good response to it.

No issues with the trading dates or roster numbers.