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Earlier this morning, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic published an article entitled “It’s not baseball, it’s Bludgeon Ball. And the frequency of home runs is nothing short of numbing.” Within the post, Rosenthal decries the state of the modern game, suggesting that the “juiced” ball is cheapening the game’s old home run records much in the same fashion that “The Steroid Era” did for many fans of the game. Rosenthal goes on to quote a “promininent baseball executive” who believes that today’s Major League ballgames are “painful to watch.”
Ken’s post got me wondering: when articles like this are written by national media outlets, do the authors ever seek quotes from younger people and more youthful fans of the game? It feels like all I ever see are posts and quotes from people who grew up watching a different era of baseball telling us how something is wrong with today’s version of the game. Even Commisioner Rob Manfred doesn’t appear to be a fan of baseball in 2019, implementing seemingly inane rules to slow the analytic revolution and harken the game back to a day when “the pitcher finished what he started” and players were more willing to put the ball in play rather than constantly swing for the fences.
I am under the age of 30 and by birth year, I am classified as a millenial. And I love watching the game of baseball today. I love the long home runs, the bat flips, the fist pumps, and especially the oustanding pitching performances, seeing multiple players throwing at max output while racking up strikeouts. I’d like to think that most fans of baseball today agree with me and my love for the modern game, but I don’t know if that is the actual case or not.
So I have decided to create some polls to see what you all think! Jump into the comments after voting to give your takes.
Poll
What age group do you fall under?
This poll is closed
-
2%
17-and-under
(37 votes) -
40%
18-35
(539 votes) -
34%
36-49
(452 votes) -
15%
50-64
(212 votes) -
6%
65+
(88 votes)
Poll
How would you describe yourself as a fan?
This poll is closed
-
13%
Casual: I generally know how my team is doing
(175 votes) -
63%
In-depth: I watch most games and can have an intelligent conversation about my team
(842 votes) -
23%
Hardcore: I watch every pitch, know all the stats for my team, and keep up with the rest of the league
(316 votes)
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