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Here is an article where the author (Richard Justice) listed 20 reasons why he thinks that MLB is the best sport of all.
I think the reasons he gives to back up his view are very lame to say the least!! They are based mostly on the beauty of stadiums and other silly people and things. I think overall his argument is extremely weak!
This is only my opinion as a sports fan and a spectator of sports but NO WAY in hell is MLB a better sport than its (college or pro) counterparts in football, basketball, or even golf for that matter...........NOT BY A LONG SHOT, Richard Justice!!!!
You are SO VERY WRONG and NAIVE!!!!
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/sports/ar...17130209990007..............this will be a dead link unless you are an AOL member. Therefore, I pasted the entire article below.
Sincerely,
Bennojd
p.s.> if you are not an AOL member.........you won't be able to see the AOL message board that resulted from people that read this article. Well, let's just say that my opinions about MLB are not in the minority!
I wish you could see the many negative posts about MLB and the other posts that bash the weakness of Justice's argument; it is really something!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At last, THE ARTICLE:
Updated: 02:42 PM EDT
Twenty Reasons Baseball Is Better Than Football
Fan Interaction, for Better or Worse Is Just One Reason
By RICHARD JUSTICE, AOL Exclusive
Life is good. Dick Vitale and Billy Packer have gone away for the summer. The flesh market known as the NFL Draft is over.
---------------------------------------------------
(This was a picture of Torre and Steinbrenner in celebration)
AP
Joe Torre and George Steinbrenner have been responsible for much of New York's success.
---------------------------------------------------
Other than five or six months of NHL and NBA playoffs, which no one pays any attention to anyway, we've got nothing except baseball on our plates for the next few months.
Which got me to thinking about why we like it so much. Why is baseball so much better than any other sport?
My friend Thomas Boswell was the first -- I think -- to come up with a list like this.
Here’s my version.
Welcome to 20 Reasons Baseball Is Better Than Football
1. Fenway Park -- Come on, Yankee fans, admit it. It's the best place on earth. You feel good from the moment you walk down Yawkey Way and smell the Italian sausages on the grill. You feel even better when you’re inside the old gates, when you sit there and soak in the atmosphere and the beauty. Perfect.
2. Billy Wagner -- He's 5-foot-10 and throws a baseball 100 mph. NFL scouts would laugh at him, but in baseball, a set of skills can make size and speed and weight and all those things NFL people obsess over seem silly.
3. Dodger Dogs -- Don't laugh until you have one. And don't have one unless you're sitting inside Dodger Stadium, where the cool Southern California air and the laidback atmosphere and the Dodger blue can turn a bad day pretty good in a hurry. Watch one game at Chavez Ravine and you won’t laugh when you hear Tommy Lasorda talk about "the big Dodger in the sky."
4. Sean Casey -- Baseball is played at a leisurely pace. Players get to know and like one another. And this is the perfect sport for the Reds first baseman, who strikes up a conversation with virtually every opposing player who comes by during a game. Sitting there watching Casey giving some guy from another team an earful makes you understand how baseball is different -- and better.
5. SBC Park -- In case you missed it, this place used to be called Pac Bell Park. By any name, it's wonderful. Walk along the concourse beyond the right-field wall and admire the bay view and the chilly night air. SBC is the park for the greatest city on earth, so beautiful and stately. Don’t leave without an order of garlic fries. If those don't sound like your cup of tea, they will after you sit there an inning or two and catch the odor driving through every section of the park.
6. Yankee Stadium -- For baseball people, this is hallowed ground. The fans can be obnoxious, but they're also louder and more appreciative of greatness than those at any other place. Yankee Stadium today is vastly different than it was in the days of DiMaggio and Ruth, but you still have a sense of history, from the short right-field porch, which was built for the Babe, to the monuments beyond the center-field fence.
-----------------------------------------------------
(This is a quote that was posted in bold print next to the article)
"He is, to be polite, not the nicest man on earth."
-Richard Justice on Yankees owner George Steinbrenner
-----------------------------------------------------
7. Joe Torre -- He has survived so long in New York, not just because he has won, but because he's so honest and so decent and such a role model for what all of us would like to be. His job has driven others to the edge of insanity. What it has done for Torre is bring out all his qualities of decency. More than even Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams, it’s Joe Torre who symbolizes this current generation of Yankees.
8. Minor Leagues -- You don't follow your team. You follow the kids in the minors. You track their progress and spend years awaiting their arrival. You feel you know them by the time they step on the field. If you're really lucky, you've already seen them play in one of those minor league ballparks that has close seats and cheap concessions, and reminds you why the game is so great.
9. Wrigley Field -- Superstar players come and go, but on the north side of Chicago, the true superstar is this baseball cathedral. Funny thing is, if you finally see it, you will think you’ve been there before. In your mind, you already see the brick and ivy, the bleachers and all the rest. It does not disappoint.
10. Red Sox Fans -- Okay, we get sick of their whining and their constant harping about the tragedy of being a Red Sox fan, but no other sport has anything like them. So devoted and so hopeful, they know how the plot will end even before it begins. If the Red Sox ever do win a World Series, these people will have no reason to continue.
------------------------------------------------------
(This was a picture of that infamous foul ball with Alou and Bartman both trying to catch it)
AP
Steve Bartman's interference is something that could never happen at a football game.
------------------------------------------------------
11. Doug Gassaway -- He's well into his 70s and has slowed down some, but for most of the last 40 years, he scouted high school baseball in Texas. Inside the industry, it’s believed he's discovered more great players than any man alive. Even now, he'll drive hours to watch a high school game. He loves to talk and remember. He's one of the people who are the game's lifeblood.
12. Barry Bonds -- I have no idea if he's the best player who ever lived. I can't even say he's the best I've ever seen. The people who saw Bo Jackson, Rickey Henderson and Ken Griffey Jr. in their prime might agree with me. But he's an incredible talent, a larger-than-life character with his monstrous home runs and I-don't-care-if-you-like-me personality. I can't help myself. I like the guy, warts and all.
13. Roger Clemens -- Retire? Why? He's as great now as ever. He represents everything that's good about the game in terms of excellence, work ethic and competitive fire. Opposing players are afraid even to make eye contact with him during a game for fear of getting one of those Hall of Fame heaters in their ribs.
14. St. Louis -- When designers installed green seats in the model of the new ballpark, Redbird fans almost rioted. They wanted their red seats, and they eventually got them. It’s unlike any place on earth in that fans truly love being at the game, don't boo very often and are appreciative simply for the chance to watch. Players love St. Louis.
15. Tony La Russa -- You don't see many people like this man in any sport. Not only has he won 2,000 games, but he remains a man with varied interests. He's a law-school grad, a voracious reader and an animal rights activist. A conversation with Tony La Russa is worth about 10 with anyone else.
16. Josh Beckett -- If you knocked about 15 years off Barry Bonds and made him a pitcher, you'd have Josh Beckett. He's supremely talented, cocky and occasionally abrasive. If you have a chance to see him pitch, don’t miss it. There’s a chance something spectacular will happen.
17. Steve Bartman -- Okay, maybe the other Cub fans treated this guy badly after he interfered with a pop fly that Moises Alou would have caught in Game 7 of the NLCS. But his saga made for wonderful theater and contributed to the notion that the Cubs are cursed. Football could never ever have a fan get involved in a huge game the way Bartman did.
------------------------------------------------------
(If you are an AOL member, you could have clicked on these two items)
More on Justice
· Discuss Justice's Column
· More Justice Columns
-------------------------------------------------------
18. George Steinbrenner -- He is, to be polite, not the nicest man on earth. However, he has been great for the Yankees and great for baseball. His team has more revenues than any other, but because of their owner, that money is used to get great players and make the Yankees better. If every owner had his commitment to winning, the sport would be better off.
19. Baltimore -- My favorite baseball city. Even at Camden Yards, where Jim Palmer never played and Earl Weaver never managed, there's a sense of the franchise's wonderful history. Baltimore is a large town, but it's got a small-town atmosphere. It's a great place to live, and players absolutely love the city, the ballpark and the uniform.
20. Super Bowl Halftime Shows -- You don't really need a comment on this one, do you?
04/27/04 23:02 EDT
I think the reasons he gives to back up his view are very lame to say the least!! They are based mostly on the beauty of stadiums and other silly people and things. I think overall his argument is extremely weak!
This is only my opinion as a sports fan and a spectator of sports but NO WAY in hell is MLB a better sport than its (college or pro) counterparts in football, basketball, or even golf for that matter...........NOT BY A LONG SHOT, Richard Justice!!!!
You are SO VERY WRONG and NAIVE!!!!
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/sports/ar...17130209990007..............this will be a dead link unless you are an AOL member. Therefore, I pasted the entire article below.
Sincerely,
Bennojd
p.s.> if you are not an AOL member.........you won't be able to see the AOL message board that resulted from people that read this article. Well, let's just say that my opinions about MLB are not in the minority!
I wish you could see the many negative posts about MLB and the other posts that bash the weakness of Justice's argument; it is really something!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At last, THE ARTICLE:
Updated: 02:42 PM EDT
Twenty Reasons Baseball Is Better Than Football
Fan Interaction, for Better or Worse Is Just One Reason
By RICHARD JUSTICE, AOL Exclusive
Life is good. Dick Vitale and Billy Packer have gone away for the summer. The flesh market known as the NFL Draft is over.
---------------------------------------------------
(This was a picture of Torre and Steinbrenner in celebration)
AP
Joe Torre and George Steinbrenner have been responsible for much of New York's success.
---------------------------------------------------
Other than five or six months of NHL and NBA playoffs, which no one pays any attention to anyway, we've got nothing except baseball on our plates for the next few months.
Which got me to thinking about why we like it so much. Why is baseball so much better than any other sport?
My friend Thomas Boswell was the first -- I think -- to come up with a list like this.
Here’s my version.
Welcome to 20 Reasons Baseball Is Better Than Football
1. Fenway Park -- Come on, Yankee fans, admit it. It's the best place on earth. You feel good from the moment you walk down Yawkey Way and smell the Italian sausages on the grill. You feel even better when you’re inside the old gates, when you sit there and soak in the atmosphere and the beauty. Perfect.
2. Billy Wagner -- He's 5-foot-10 and throws a baseball 100 mph. NFL scouts would laugh at him, but in baseball, a set of skills can make size and speed and weight and all those things NFL people obsess over seem silly.
3. Dodger Dogs -- Don't laugh until you have one. And don't have one unless you're sitting inside Dodger Stadium, where the cool Southern California air and the laidback atmosphere and the Dodger blue can turn a bad day pretty good in a hurry. Watch one game at Chavez Ravine and you won’t laugh when you hear Tommy Lasorda talk about "the big Dodger in the sky."
4. Sean Casey -- Baseball is played at a leisurely pace. Players get to know and like one another. And this is the perfect sport for the Reds first baseman, who strikes up a conversation with virtually every opposing player who comes by during a game. Sitting there watching Casey giving some guy from another team an earful makes you understand how baseball is different -- and better.
5. SBC Park -- In case you missed it, this place used to be called Pac Bell Park. By any name, it's wonderful. Walk along the concourse beyond the right-field wall and admire the bay view and the chilly night air. SBC is the park for the greatest city on earth, so beautiful and stately. Don’t leave without an order of garlic fries. If those don't sound like your cup of tea, they will after you sit there an inning or two and catch the odor driving through every section of the park.
6. Yankee Stadium -- For baseball people, this is hallowed ground. The fans can be obnoxious, but they're also louder and more appreciative of greatness than those at any other place. Yankee Stadium today is vastly different than it was in the days of DiMaggio and Ruth, but you still have a sense of history, from the short right-field porch, which was built for the Babe, to the monuments beyond the center-field fence.
-----------------------------------------------------
(This is a quote that was posted in bold print next to the article)
"He is, to be polite, not the nicest man on earth."
-Richard Justice on Yankees owner George Steinbrenner
-----------------------------------------------------
7. Joe Torre -- He has survived so long in New York, not just because he has won, but because he's so honest and so decent and such a role model for what all of us would like to be. His job has driven others to the edge of insanity. What it has done for Torre is bring out all his qualities of decency. More than even Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams, it’s Joe Torre who symbolizes this current generation of Yankees.
8. Minor Leagues -- You don't follow your team. You follow the kids in the minors. You track their progress and spend years awaiting their arrival. You feel you know them by the time they step on the field. If you're really lucky, you've already seen them play in one of those minor league ballparks that has close seats and cheap concessions, and reminds you why the game is so great.
9. Wrigley Field -- Superstar players come and go, but on the north side of Chicago, the true superstar is this baseball cathedral. Funny thing is, if you finally see it, you will think you’ve been there before. In your mind, you already see the brick and ivy, the bleachers and all the rest. It does not disappoint.
10. Red Sox Fans -- Okay, we get sick of their whining and their constant harping about the tragedy of being a Red Sox fan, but no other sport has anything like them. So devoted and so hopeful, they know how the plot will end even before it begins. If the Red Sox ever do win a World Series, these people will have no reason to continue.
------------------------------------------------------
(This was a picture of that infamous foul ball with Alou and Bartman both trying to catch it)
AP
Steve Bartman's interference is something that could never happen at a football game.
------------------------------------------------------
11. Doug Gassaway -- He's well into his 70s and has slowed down some, but for most of the last 40 years, he scouted high school baseball in Texas. Inside the industry, it’s believed he's discovered more great players than any man alive. Even now, he'll drive hours to watch a high school game. He loves to talk and remember. He's one of the people who are the game's lifeblood.
12. Barry Bonds -- I have no idea if he's the best player who ever lived. I can't even say he's the best I've ever seen. The people who saw Bo Jackson, Rickey Henderson and Ken Griffey Jr. in their prime might agree with me. But he's an incredible talent, a larger-than-life character with his monstrous home runs and I-don't-care-if-you-like-me personality. I can't help myself. I like the guy, warts and all.
13. Roger Clemens -- Retire? Why? He's as great now as ever. He represents everything that's good about the game in terms of excellence, work ethic and competitive fire. Opposing players are afraid even to make eye contact with him during a game for fear of getting one of those Hall of Fame heaters in their ribs.
14. St. Louis -- When designers installed green seats in the model of the new ballpark, Redbird fans almost rioted. They wanted their red seats, and they eventually got them. It’s unlike any place on earth in that fans truly love being at the game, don't boo very often and are appreciative simply for the chance to watch. Players love St. Louis.
15. Tony La Russa -- You don't see many people like this man in any sport. Not only has he won 2,000 games, but he remains a man with varied interests. He's a law-school grad, a voracious reader and an animal rights activist. A conversation with Tony La Russa is worth about 10 with anyone else.
16. Josh Beckett -- If you knocked about 15 years off Barry Bonds and made him a pitcher, you'd have Josh Beckett. He's supremely talented, cocky and occasionally abrasive. If you have a chance to see him pitch, don’t miss it. There’s a chance something spectacular will happen.
17. Steve Bartman -- Okay, maybe the other Cub fans treated this guy badly after he interfered with a pop fly that Moises Alou would have caught in Game 7 of the NLCS. But his saga made for wonderful theater and contributed to the notion that the Cubs are cursed. Football could never ever have a fan get involved in a huge game the way Bartman did.
------------------------------------------------------
(If you are an AOL member, you could have clicked on these two items)
More on Justice
· Discuss Justice's Column
· More Justice Columns
-------------------------------------------------------
18. George Steinbrenner -- He is, to be polite, not the nicest man on earth. However, he has been great for the Yankees and great for baseball. His team has more revenues than any other, but because of their owner, that money is used to get great players and make the Yankees better. If every owner had his commitment to winning, the sport would be better off.
19. Baltimore -- My favorite baseball city. Even at Camden Yards, where Jim Palmer never played and Earl Weaver never managed, there's a sense of the franchise's wonderful history. Baltimore is a large town, but it's got a small-town atmosphere. It's a great place to live, and players absolutely love the city, the ballpark and the uniform.
20. Super Bowl Halftime Shows -- You don't really need a comment on this one, do you?
04/27/04 23:02 EDT