American Major League Baseball Playoffs - 2018

[Forty Two]

Oh, no, laklak. That's the "man's game," you know, like "speed skating." Nothing more manly than skating in circles quickly. They don't wear pads or wear gloves.



If only Americans could be good at the man's game, soccer. Oh, wait... our women are the best in the world .... https://www.fifa.com/fifa-world-ranking ... index.html

[pErvinalia]

What is the force imparted by the baseball on the outfielder's mitt when caught? Given the increased velocity and height of the ballistic arc I'm thinking it has a bit more force than a cricket ball.

There is a wide variance. It's easier to calculate the speed the pitcher throws, and the force off the bat. The speed hitting the mit depends on the angle of the ballistic trajectory of the ball. But, since the ball is generally moving faster, and is fielded often at a "line drive" I agree with you.

Check out some of the line drives here - and the plays by the infielders --

It's hard to tell, but watching that it doesn't look like the ball is moving much (if any) faster than a good shot in cricket. And remember, the cricket ball is heavier and harder, so the force it impacts will be more compared to a baseball travelling at a similar speed.

[Brian Peacock]

The cricket ball has a prominent seam as well. But this idea that one is better than the other, or that one is more difficult, or dangerous, or whatever, is silly. Both sports require focus, skill, strategy and athleticism. That they need them in different proportions and to different extents only highlights that they're, you know, different games. I quite like the TV highlights btw. I don't have time to devote myself to the entirety of a match. It's the best way to watch all sports - except darts.

[Hermit]

Why does every thread about an American sport get diverted into some discussion about how the American sport is for wimps and it's really the manly Europeans who are the toughest of all sportsmen? Is this something ya'll worry about a lot?

Of all the popular sports in the US, I like baseball the best. The fact that the stadia are not of the biscuit cutter type production line just adds to the attraction and charm. I could imagine myself watching a match from start to finish and not get bored.

Best of all, baseball is a clear indicator that the US has the potential to one day maybe almost become a civilised nation!

[Scot Dutchy]

Why does every thread about an American sport get diverted into some discussion about how the American sport is for wimps and it's really the manly Europeans who are the toughest of all sportsmen? Is this something ya'll worry about a lot?

Cause its fucking true mate. The yanks have change every game to make it easier haven't they. Fucking sissies thats wot they are; fucking sissies.

[pErvinalia]

I went through a baseball watching phase at one point. We used to go to watch the Australian league (whatever it was called). Some of the most fun I've ever had. Really great entertainment.

[Scot Dutchy]

Mind numbing I bet.

[Forty Two]

Why does every thread about an American sport get diverted into some discussion about how the American sport is for wimps and it's really the manly Europeans who are the toughest of all sportsmen? Is this something ya'll worry about a lot?

Cause its fucking true mate. The yanks have change every game to make it easier haven't they. Fucking sissies thats wot they are; fucking sissies.

Whatever makes you feel more manly, dude.

A fan asleep at your average cricket match:

[Forty Two]

Mind numbing I bet.

Your mind starts out numb.

[Forty Two]

Why does every thread about an American sport get diverted into some discussion about how the American sport is for wimps and it's really the manly Europeans who are the toughest of all sportsmen? Is this something ya'll worry about a lot?

Of all the popular sports in the US, I like baseball the best. The fact that the stadia are not of the biscuit cutter type production line just adds to the attraction and charm. I could imagine myself watching a match from start to finish and not get bored.

Best of all, baseball is a clear indicator that the US has the potential to one day maybe almost become a civilised nation!

The history of baseball is a supreme added bonus. If you have a few spare moments, watch the Ken Burns documentary about Baseball. I think it's available on Netflix. Or, pick up an large coffee table book about the history of baseball. The intricate and colorful history of the game is, I think, second to none, and the characters involved in the sport are timeless. I get that Dutchy needs to make points, but the sport is almost a religion in the US.

The Myth of Abner Doubleday
Ty Cobb
The Legends of the New York Yankees - the Bronx Bombers, Murderers Row, etc.
Babe Ruth, and the Curse of the Bambino
Kennesaw Mountain Landis
Honus Wagner

Mickey Mantle
Roger Maris
Joe Dimaggio
Yogi Berra
Ted Williams
Pet Rose and the Big Red Machine
Nolan Ryan
Sandy Koufax
Lou "The Iron Horse" Gehrig -
Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson
Dizzie Dean
Leo Durocher
Willie Mays "Say hey, Willie!"
"The Catch"
Hank Aaron
Shoeless Joe Jackson and the Chicago White Sox throwing the World Series in 1909 - The Black Sox Scandal. "Say it Ain't So, Joe! Say it ain't so!"
Wrigley Field
Fenway Park
Reggie Jackson "Mr. October"
Derek Jeter "Mr. November"
Curse of the Billy Goat
Curse of Rocky Colavito
Curse of Captain Eddie
The Curse of Donnie Baseball
Curse of the Cowbowy

Baseball is a different game than cricket. It's not a copy. There is nothing in cricket like game 7 of the World Series, bottom of the 9th, two outs, bases loaded, three balls, two strikes.... baseball is has suspense, and character.

The storied history of baseball is, I think, unmatched.

[Forty Two]

The cricket ball has a prominent seam as well. But this idea that one is better than the other, or that one is more difficult, or dangerous, or whatever, is silly. Both sports require focus, skill, strategy and athleticism. That they need them in different proportions and to different extents only highlights that they're, you know, different games. I quite like the TV highlights btw. I don't have time to devote myself to the entirety of a match. It's the best way to watch all sports - except darts.

I agre with this. Although, the ball in cricket is definitely moving slower. It's bowled slower than a baseball pitch, and it has to hit the ground which cannot speed it up (it can only slow it down). So, it's going fast enough to hurt people, which is why cricketers wear pads, helmets and cages over their faces (which seems reasonable - not sure why Dutchy wouldn't call them out for being big pussies, though). And, then when the ball is hit, it's with the flat bat, and very often is diverted into different directions. The ball is heavier, requiring the ball to be hit harder to go as fast as a baseball, and it's not hit harder.

The game is quite different, and I'm not criticizing cricket at all. I would imagine being raised on it, like kid in the US being raised on baseball or American football, you're going to appreciate the game and its moments and athleticism.

For example, I never followed basketball as a kid, and I find the game unwatchable. I cannot sit through it. I do not appreciate watching the athleticism, and none of the suspense exists in it for me. I have not favorite team, and the results don't matter. I am bored silly. That being said, basketball is a sport requiring massive athleticism. It requires monumental physical conditioning and endurance. Intellectually, I understand what basketball takes and it's amazing what they do. i just can't watch it. That doesn't make the sport suck, though. Well, in Dutchy's mind it would. If he doesn't appreciate something, then nobody should. His mind is closed. Not surprising, given the closed, homogeneous culture in which he is steeped. His world lacks color, charm and character. To him it's all about what seems to work in his small area. Nothing can extend beyond that. Everything else is wrong.

[laklak]

I quite like the TV highlights btw. I don't have time to devote myself to the entirety of a match. It's the best way to watch all sports - except darts.

And snooker.

[Forty Two]

[Hermit]

Best of all, baseball is a clear indicator that the US has the potential to one day maybe almost become a civilised nation!

The history of baseball is a supreme added bonus.

You were supposed to bite, you know.

If you have a few spare moments, watch the Ken Burns documentary about Baseball. I think it's available on Netflix.

Trigger Warning!!!1! :

Or, pick up an large coffee table book about the history of baseball. The intricate and colorful history of the game is, I think, second to none, and the characters involved in the sport are timeless. I get that Dutchy needs to make points, but the sport is almost a religion in the US.

The Myth of Abner Doubleday
Ty Cobb
The Legends of the New York Yankees - the Bronx Bombers, Murderers Row, etc.
Babe Ruth, and the Curse of the Bambino
Kennesaw Mountain Landis
Honus Wagner

Mickey Mantle
Roger Maris
Joe Dimaggio
Yogi Berra
Ted Williams
Pet Rose and the Big Red Machine
Nolan Ryan
Sandy Koufax
Lou "The Iron Horse" Gehrig -
Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson
Dizzie Dean
Leo Durocher
Willie Mays "Say hey, Willie!"
"The Catch"
Hank Aaron
Shoeless Joe Jackson and the Chicago White Sox throwing the World Series in 1909 - The Black Sox Scandal. "Say it Ain't So, Joe! Say it ain't so!"
Wrigley Field
Fenway Park
Reggie Jackson "Mr. October"
Derek Jeter "Mr. November"
Curse of the Billy Goat
Curse of Rocky Colavito
Curse of Captain Eddie
The Curse of Donnie Baseball
Curse of the Cowbowy

Baseball is a different game than cricket. It's not a copy. There is nothing in cricket like game 7 of the World Series, bottom of the 9th, two outs, bases loaded, three balls, two strikes.... baseball is has suspense, and character.

The storied history of baseball is, I think, unmatched.

A few spare moments? If it's the same length as Burns's series on your Civil War, it won't be a few moments. That was a top production, by the way. Aunty ABC broadcast it free to air soon after its release. I watched it whenever I wasn't working. A few months ago some cheeky bugger uploaded the lot on Youtube. I downloaded it from there and watched it again. If I'm lucky I'll find Burns's work on Baseball's history in a similar way.

I don't have any cable or streaming subscriptions and I don't intend to get one any time soon, so I'll make do with your selection of clips above for now. Bookmarked. That end of the game you linked to earlier, with the crippled Gibson pulling the coals out of the fire in a do or die situation was a scene to behold. Almost as epic as the 1970 VFL (Aussie Rules) Grand Final, where almost 122,000 spectators managed to cram into the 115,000 capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground to watch Carlton, hopelessly behind for most of the game, finished up coming out ahead of Collingwood in a cliffhanger.

[Hermit]

...the ball in cricket is definitely moving slower. It's bowled slower than a baseball pitch, and it has to hit the ground which cannot speed it up (it can only slow it down).

The speed difference is negligible. Crease to crease, that is including the bounce, the record for cricket is 100.2 mph (161.26 km/h). For baseball it is 105 mph (169.0 km/h). Given the facts that the cricket ball is somewhat heavier and considerably harder and that the bowler is allowed to aim for the batsman's head once per over (see bouncer) and attempt to break his toes, kneecap him or cave in his chest any time, I venture to say cricket is probably physically more intimidating than baseball, especially since the infamous Bodyline series. Though fatalities are very rare, they do occur. The last well known cricketer to die by being hit was Phillip Hughes, who was struck in the neck during a Sheffield Shield match in November 2014. A year earlier Darryn Randall, a South African first grade player was killed when he was hit in the head. The ball beats protective gear, including helmet and grille often enough.

Speed is only part of the danger. As in baseball, the delivery can be taking curious trajectories in the air, but added to this trickery is the bounce itself. Spinners especially know how to make the ball take off from there in radically unanticipated directions. Here is a famous delivery that did both:



To begin with the ball travels harmlessly enough straight towards the batsman. A few metres before the bounce it veers to the right and looks to pass outside the leg stump. That is also harmless. The batsman shapes up to pad the ball out of the way, just in case kind of thing. The ball bounces, rips to the right and out comes the off stump. The batsman is totally bamboozled. And yeah, wondering what the fuck happened as he trudges back to the pavilion. Had the ball hit him in the gut instead, he would have worn a lovely bruise for a few weeks, even though it was a slow delivery.