This is a fundamental problem in sports. Baseball is going the same way. Players are incentivized to win, and the league is incentivized to entertain. Turns out these incentives are not aligned.
> Players are incentivized to win, and the league is incentivized to entertain.
Players are incentivized to win due to specific decisions made by the league.
In Bananaball the league says, "practice your choreographed dance number before batting practice." And those same athletes are like, "Wait, which choreographed dance number? The seventh inning stretch, the grand finale, or the one we do in the infield when the guy on stilts is pitching?"
Edit: the grand finale dance number I saw is both teams dancing together. That should be noted.
But that's a matter of scale. When I was a child, the Harlem Globetrotters were far more more famous than any 3-4 NBA teams combined. They were in multiple Scooby Doo movies/episodes. They failed tp scale the model, but wrestling didn't.
This isn't right - the league can change the rules. NFL has done a wonderful job over the years on this.
Baseball has done a terrible job, but at least seems to have turned the corner with the pitch clock. Maybe they'll move the mound back a couple feet, make the ball 5.5oz, reduce the field by a player and then we'll get more entertainment and the players can still try their hardest to win.
This is a fundamental problem in sports. Baseball is going the same way. Players are incentivized to win, and the league is incentivized to entertain. Turns out these incentives are not aligned.
> Players are incentivized to win, and the league is incentivized to entertain.
Players are incentivized to win due to specific decisions made by the league.
In Bananaball the league says, "practice your choreographed dance number before batting practice." And those same athletes are like, "Wait, which choreographed dance number? The seventh inning stretch, the grand finale, or the one we do in the infield when the guy on stilts is pitching?"
Edit: the grand finale dance number I saw is both teams dancing together. That should be noted.
Sure. There's a market for that. But the NBA sells a lot more tickets than the Harlem Globetrotters.
But that's a matter of scale. When I was a child, the Harlem Globetrotters were far more more famous than any 3-4 NBA teams combined. They were in multiple Scooby Doo movies/episodes. They failed tp scale the model, but wrestling didn't.
Would be very curious about, say, the worst MLB team's ticket sales vs. the Savannah Bananas.
This isn't right - the league can change the rules. NFL has done a wonderful job over the years on this.
Baseball has done a terrible job, but at least seems to have turned the corner with the pitch clock. Maybe they'll move the mound back a couple feet, make the ball 5.5oz, reduce the field by a player and then we'll get more entertainment and the players can still try their hardest to win.
I wonder if anyone has made an engine for simulating MLB play with various rule changes.
Personally, I think it'd be interesting to see how the game plays if you could only have two outfielders (but you could shift however you choose.)
It's a good thought.
I'd guess MLB The Show video game wouldn't be a bad place to start. They should have a decent simulator built in.
And the ongoing gambling scandal gives credence to a third incentive I've long suspected. Only half joking
Something Derek Thompson has written about https://archive.ph/uSgNd
Is it ? I, for one, enjoy watching the 3s raining down!