Monday, February 2, 2009

Baseball > Football?

Still buried at work but I wanted to share these 10 reasons why baseball is better than football, from Richard Justice. Some are true, some are profoundly silly (ballparks, for example. He omitted the tailgate, which makes ANY event better). Have at it:

10 reasons baseball is better than football
  1. Parity
    MLB has more parity than the NFL. This wasn't always true. It is now. As the great Jayson Stark points out, since 2000, eight different MLB franchises have won the World Series. Meanwhile, seven NFL franchises have won the Super Bowl since 2000. Since 1970, 18 MLB franchises have won the World Series. Fifteen different NFL franchises have won championships in that span.
  2. Skill level
    Hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in sports. Throwing a baseball from 60 feet, 6 inches is the second-hardest thing. The NFL has some phenomenal athletes. None of them is as gifted as Albert Pujols, Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt.
  3. Diamonds
    It's still one of God's greatest creations. It's perfection on every level. Next time you walk into Minute Maid Park, take a moment to appreciate it. From the perfectly trimmed grass to the raked infield dirt to the chalked lines, it's about the base place on earth to spend a few hours. No matter how bad a day I've had, stress flows from me when I see a big league diamond.
  4. Ballparks
    Baseball's worst parks are better than football's best. If you've ever spent an evening at Dodger Stadium, you'd understand. It's both tranquil and energizing if one place can be both. If you're really lucky, you'll someday stand on the right-field concourse at AT&T Park and admire the view of the bay, the odor of garlic fries, the majesty of the place.
  5. Home runs
    Ever see Will Clark launch one? Or Junior Griffey? Lance Berkman? The home run is the greatest thing in sports. It combines a high skill level with amazing power. That instant when the ball is soaring out of the park is indescribable. Have you ever enjoyed anything more than Jeff Kent's game-ending home run in Game 5 of the 2004 NLCS? Or Chris Burke's 18th-inning shot that ended a 2005 NLDS series against the Braves?
  6. Season
    A baseball season is perfect. As Bart Giamatti wrote, ''
    It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come out, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.''
  7. Cheerleaders
    Football has 'em. Baseball doesn't.
  8. All-Star Game
    Baseball's mid-summer classic is a celebration. Of great players. Of the game itself. Football has nothing even close. The Pro Bowl? Do they still have that?
  9. MLBPA
    Baseball players have a union that has represented its members better than any other on earth. Baseball is better for having a strong, independent union. Pity the poor retired NFL players that have trouble having their gruesome conditions cared for.
  10. Labor peace
    Thanks to Commissioner Selig, baseball has it. Football is headed for a shutdown in 2011.

4 comments:

Ron Rollins said...

Albert's jack in the top of the 9the game 5 in 2005. I don't think any further description is required.

Jason @ IIATMS said...

Yes, but saying football is worse than baseball BECAUSE of cheerleaders should be an offense punishable by beaning (by Joba).

Anonymous said...

You could always root for the Marlins.

Rory The Great said...

I actually like tailgating at a baseball game more than a football game. Football games start at 1 on Sunday which requires me to wake up early AND be hung over for work Monday. I can tailgate a Saturday baseball game from 2-7 in nice WARM weather. Fans who tailgate baseball games are almost always real fans too. Wiffle ball in the parking lot at Yankee Stadium by the river is always a great time.

A few other reasons baseball is better than football:

Hot Stove League
Trading deadline
Umps are much better at there job and have less impact on a season.
Pace of play. (TD, Com, Kick, Com, Kick, Com, 3 and out, Com, Punt, Com, Kill me now)
Dollar Dog Day
Price of tickets
NO PSL, at least yet at the Stadium
The Subway
Guaranteed Contracts
No John Madden, but we do have to deal with Joe Buck.