This is the reason I enjoy recording (or "tivo") my favorite shows and football. I can fast forward over the extra-loud commercials and watch the event in half the time.
And THAT is the primary concern driving the use of replay. Getting it right so the game is fairer? BS.
Follow the Benjamins.
As if watching some overpaid athlete adjust their package for 2-3 hours is watchable?
NFL games have too many commercial timeouts added in, in my opinion. There are natural breaks after scoring plays, which is fine to use for commercials. But too often, right after the kickoff, they stop play for no reason other than to squeeze in another commercial.
To be fair, I was listening to someone on the MLB Network yesterday who said Triple-A had been experimenting with this for some time with generally positive results, and no real game lengthening.
At first, wasn’t the NFL replay rule limited to 90 seconds to review the call? I believe the ref looked at the replay and after 90 seconds the camera shut off, something like that. It’s gotten out of hand, splitting hairs over getting the call perfect. Hope this doesn’t happen in baseball.
I thought $30billion in new stadiums “saved” baseball.
I thought the 1998 “home run race” between steroid junkies “saved” baseball (it certainly provided “look a squirrel” cover for Bill Clinton during Fornigate).
If it isn’t one thing, it’s another.
Better keep that foot on the bag during those routine 1st base outs.
The games are already too long.
Instant replay will save baseball...
only if:
- it lowers ticket prices
- it introduces players who love the game for the game
- it eliminates the use of PEDs
- it brings in owners who build new stadiums without public funding
Great, so now an already slow game can become even slower as challenges drag on forever and ever.
“Managers have one challenge for the first six innings, which they keep and are able to use once more if the challenge is successful. From the seventh inning on, the umpire crew chief is the sole arbiter of when replay is used. Thus, a new element of strategy has been introduced into the game. This is good for second-guessers. In other words: all of us.”
I’m not seeing too much of a problem. I guess we’ll have to see how long it takes. I wonder what the most common replay request will be in the first 6 innings, close plays at first with less than two outs?
Freegards
This is actually a surprise. I was sure that the bullying umpires union would have quashed it, as MLB seems to live in fear if it.
Really? I would have thought that there would be at least 2 challenges per game allowed for some of the ridiculous calls made on balls and strikes.
Some are so bad the batter is enraged to the point he could get thrown out of the game, and get fined. I hope they let the batter show in a replay how bad the call was before fining him. - Tom
As for saving the game, instant replay will do the opposite. The MLB game already lasts way too long, replay will make it worse. If they really want to save the game, I have a few suggestions. I start with the premise that the records of baseball’s history are now meaningless due to the steroid era, thus now is a good time to make a change for the future. First, make the game 7 innings instead of 9. This will speed the game for an easier watch for the casual fan. It will eliminate the need for middle relievers, who for the most part can’t throw strikes, that is why they’re middle relievers. I argue you would see a crisper, better played game. Second, end the regular season around Labor Day, and expand the playoffs, thus the playoffs will last two months. The bottom half of the league would not need to keep their stadiums open for meaningless games that probably lose more money for them. You could institute a round robin of the top half of teams for September, and then knock out stages in October.
I bet this will become an albatross around the umps’ neck and also the players’.
Human error was always a risk; just part of the game. But it remained the national pass-time just the same.