Fangraphs...and the future of Minor League Baseball
Feb 18, 2021 13:53:34 GMT -5
Cubbies and Whitesox like this
Post by Pirates GM on Feb 18, 2021 13:53:34 GMT -5
Took the plunge and joined Fangraphs with a $20.00 membership today. I'm not up to the level of Sean's $50.00 ad free membership, but it's a start.
I think it's important to start supporting these sites that are still around. With a number of sites gone, John Sickels off writing horror novels now, and 90% of local prospect articles I find buried behind paywalls, this has really become an invaluable site to me.
A good friend of mine is very high up in the Altoona Curve (AA Pirates) and he said that this minor league "restructuring" basically amounts to a corporate takeover by MLB of the minor league system. He believes that someday, minor league sites will only exist in Florida and Arizona, and possibly run opposite the MLB season in winter.
I'm blown away. Minor league baseball means so much to countless small- to mid-sized cities across the country, and is a significant source of revenue for these communities. Unfortunately, it feels like MLB views them simply as sunk costs. But I think they are making a huge mistake.
1. The failure rate in professional baseball is so high that, by eliminating dozens and dozens of teams, they're also curtailing the number of roster spots where prospects have a chance to surprise and contribute. Over time, I think this has to dilute the MLB talent base.
2. They make an assumption that if they kill a minor league club, residents will continue to support the MLB club. And that's not always the case. For example, outside of Allegheny County (Pittsburgh), the Pirates' next highest-attending county to games at PNC Park is way over in Blair (Altoona). If you remove the Curve, there's a good chance the Pirates lose a lot of their grassroots support for the MLB club as well.
This is a sad trend to an industry I thought was very safe,
JIm
I think it's important to start supporting these sites that are still around. With a number of sites gone, John Sickels off writing horror novels now, and 90% of local prospect articles I find buried behind paywalls, this has really become an invaluable site to me.
A good friend of mine is very high up in the Altoona Curve (AA Pirates) and he said that this minor league "restructuring" basically amounts to a corporate takeover by MLB of the minor league system. He believes that someday, minor league sites will only exist in Florida and Arizona, and possibly run opposite the MLB season in winter.
I'm blown away. Minor league baseball means so much to countless small- to mid-sized cities across the country, and is a significant source of revenue for these communities. Unfortunately, it feels like MLB views them simply as sunk costs. But I think they are making a huge mistake.
1. The failure rate in professional baseball is so high that, by eliminating dozens and dozens of teams, they're also curtailing the number of roster spots where prospects have a chance to surprise and contribute. Over time, I think this has to dilute the MLB talent base.
2. They make an assumption that if they kill a minor league club, residents will continue to support the MLB club. And that's not always the case. For example, outside of Allegheny County (Pittsburgh), the Pirates' next highest-attending county to games at PNC Park is way over in Blair (Altoona). If you remove the Curve, there's a good chance the Pirates lose a lot of their grassroots support for the MLB club as well.
This is a sad trend to an industry I thought was very safe,
JIm
