The Lunatic Fringe

Okay, time to piss off a few of our readers.

This isn’t just about cheerleaders.  It’s about the game itself, and how it’s marketed.

Football really is like a town event.  Every game televised (except Raiders home games on Sundays, apparently).  Bands come out.  Special events.  There’s parties outside the stadium.  People are dressed up and taking part in festivities inside the stadium.  Video packages.  And yes, cheerleaders.

Not that baseball doesn’t have some of that.  There are theme days and celebrations.  Fans dress up like crazy.  But it isn’t the same.

Maybe it’s the long season compared to football’s 16 games.  But even in the playoffs…

Baseball is baseball.  It doesn’t need all the hype, or all the fashion.  It doesn’t need it…

But is it wrong to want it?

At least in 2010, I remember some dramatic video intros to the games done by Fox.  Celebrities did the monologues.  Dramatic city and beauty shots in slow motion of everything.  It was more like a movie trailer.

This year?  We got Joe Buck standing at a podium before Game 1.  Brief analysis, and fluff packages that were more appropriate for a weekday morning ‘news’ show than pre-game festivities.  Sure, it’s about having fun before the game…but Fox didn’t make it feel important.

The last three years have been some of the lower-rated World Series in a long time.  Some will blame it on ‘small markets’ like San Francisco, Detroit, St. Louis and Dallas.  For a couple of those years, there wasn’t much suspense.

But can’t we make it feel a little more important?

And yes, beautiful women dancing wearing somewhat comely clothes…yes, it’s just a piece of the environment that would help, but it would help.

Some baseball teams already have cheerleaders.  Maybe they haven’t helped.  Miami’s had them for years.  Hell, this year they had night club dancers.  But the other cities are cities that are supposed to be traditional cities.  Philadelphia.  St. Louis.  Cincinnati.  If they are doing it, why can’t the Giants?

I have a friend who’s trying out for the Gold Rush next year.  She’s excited about it.  It’s not demeaning, it’s not degrading, not to her.  She’s celebrating a sport she loves.

Well, it would be fun.  Just a little bit.  That’s my opinion anyway.

Also, what the heck else am I supposed to talk about this offseason?