Tag: MLB

Exploring why the NBA regular season has lost its luster

The In-Season Tournament provides a boost, but a lull between the conclusion and the playoffs loom large

More than ever, the regular season in many of the world’s major sports leagues have decreased in terms of importance. From the players to the fans, the priority is to make it to playoff action, and let the chips fall where they may. The decaying value may not be any more prevalent than it is in the NBA, where it’s almost considered a crime if a player (let alone a star player) comes close to playing in all 82 regular season games. That, combined with a style of play that has made defense optional, and a product that is close to unwatchable becomes the result. It’s become so bad, commissioner Adam Silver knew he had to do something in an attempt to remedy the problem, and alas, the In-Season Tournament (won by the Los Angeles Lakers) is born. After assessing the results, it’s time to look into why this point was reached, the after effects of the tournament and where things go from here.

When it comes to the league’s devalued regular season, one of the main reasons people love to point the finger at is load management. This isn’t to say resting players wasn’t happening before this, but the San Antonio Spurs started a trend when they chose selected games to sit aging starts like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili in the early to mid-2010s. The goal was to make sure they were healthy for the playoff run, and the action resulted in the Spurs making back-to-back runs to the NBA Finals in 2013 and ’14 (winning it all in the latter year). Since then, many other teams have adapted the strategy for numerous reasons, even if it means shutting down players for trade and draft considerations. Nowadays, 65 or 70 games played for a star player is considered a miracle, and there’s no indication of that trend changing anytime soon. It’s never a good sign when the competitive balance of a league is in question, and the problem is particularly glaring in the NBA. Yes, MLB and the NHL have equally long seasons (in terms of months played), but the star players are likely to play more often than not. The NFL has less games to play, but you can count on them to be in action unless injuries keep them out. The opposite has become the norm in basketball.

Along with load management, the quality and style of play is mentioned as a reason why the league’s regular season isn’t as pleasant on the eyes and ears. At the risk of sounding like the old head, the days of tough defense seem to be long gone, and players get thrown out if there’s even a hint of a hard foul. The combination of rule changes and the want by many to see more offense equals point totals that are astronomic. Final scores of 130 to 120 are now the normal instead of the exception, and it’s surprising if a team, or both, don’t have 100 points after three quarters of action. In other words, the games in the regular season aren’t too much better than glorified scrimmages and shoot arounds, and the product has become close to cringeworthy. This isn’t to take away from the skill these players have on offense, but the defense is more about getting the points back on the other end than taking the challenge and actually stopping somebody.

It’s one thing to point out problems, but what are the solutions? We knew there were (and still are) issues with tanking, and the NBA decided to introduce the Play-In Tournament in response. Like anything else in life, the playoff tease has its detractors, but it has worked to generate more excitement and more importantly, lessen the amount of giving up on the season. Viewership in the regular season is the next issue, which is a problem simply because football (both the NFL and college) is clearly the elephant that blocks the sight for everything else. At the earliest, the league’s Christmas showcase, when there are five nationally televised games in a row, is when any bit of interest in the season begins. By bringing the IST into existence, they can at least take advantage of the nights football isn’t on as much, and give incentive for the players to hold off (for a little bit) on load management. From all indications, the tournament checked all of the boxes for success, and if the way some of the courts looked is the most fans can complain about, it’s safe to say good reviews are aplenty.

So what happens next? There are reports the NBA is looking at ways to improve upon the first IST. Maybe the league can start the tournament a little later, with the final potentially taking place on Christmas Day. The first month of the season is used by many players to start getting into playing shape, and for that reason, it’s understood why the NBA wanted to have the dates they chose to hold the invitational. Maybe they could hold another one before the All-Star Break, with the trade deadline looming. Some people say the IST is a gimmick , but in the soccer world, the tournaments during the season have been a rousing success. It’s good to see the NBA is willing to try something new. They saw a problem, and they’re trying to solve it. Best believe, the other leagues in North America are watching, and if the success continues for basketball, don’t be surprised if there are copycats that follow.

Defense is still king, no matter what changes in sports

Advertising and marketing tells us it’s all about the offense, but defense is still the key if championships are to be won

Most of us know what it’s like to open up a print newspaper and see all of the different sections within it. There’s sports, entertainment, metro, business, politics and life (among others topics) being covered up by the main page introducing the name of the paper. As time has moved on, the printed newspaper became smaller, and the sections have been combined to cut down on the cost of printing. In a way, the newspaper reflects how life is today, and when it comes to sports and entertainment, those two sections are about as joined at the hip as it gets. Because of the partnership, leagues and broadcast stations prioritize getting as many eyes on their product as possible, and promoting offense has become the chief way to do so. As offense has become engrained in the DNA of the viewer, defense is almost an afterthought, but even after all of these years, defending is still the most important item if titles are going to be won. Don’t take my word for it, just look at history.

Let’s start with the NFL. If a person went on YouTube right now, they could find many videos that showed the league’s greatest hits from back in the day. In other words, defense was promoted almost as much as the offense, but as we know, that’s not the case anymore. Now, rules that make the big hit almost non-existent are in-place (flags fly if a quarterback is even touched), and everything that’s been legislated into the game gives the offense all kinds of advantages. Even with these changes, no team wins a Super Bowl without making at least a few big plays on defense. The Kansas City Chiefs just won this year’s title, and of course, QB Patrick Mahomes was the one who got all of the accolades. No one is trying to take away from the greatness of Mahomes, but he didn’t even reach 200 yards passing in the game. The Chiefs were outplayed by the Philadelphia Eagles for a huge part of the contest, but a defensive touchdown, in the form of a fumble return by linebacker Nick Bolton, kept Kansas City within striking distance until the offense got on track. It definitely helps to score points, but if a team can’t stop anybody, that will come back to haunt a squad at the wrong moment.

Next, the NBA is on the list. In a sports world where offense has become everything, this league might be the biggest example of that. It’s not uncommon to see teams score around 130 points in a game these days. Compare that to games played in the 90s, where scoring 100 points was considered an offensive explosion. Remember when the hard foul was allowed to make players who dared to come into the lane for a layup pay for their efforts? Not anymore. Now, it’s an automatic ejection if a foul is deemed too aggressive. Hand-checking has been taken out, and overall, defense is optional. With that said, the defense (magically) makes a difference between winning a title and getting close to that status. Games start to slow down in the playoffs, and they’re not as wide-open as they were earlier in the season. Things get a little tighter, and it’s not enough to be good offensively. Take a look at the Golden State Warriors when they defeated the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals in 2022. We know about Steph Curry and his shooting ability, but they were third in points allowed per game through the season. The Warriors probably don’t win if the defense wasn’t as good as it was. Just because defense has become optional at times doesn’t mean it can’t be played at a high level. Golden State, and the other teams that have won in the last decade, prove this theory.

Finally, lets take a look at MLB. The analytics bug is part of the driving force behind the offensive craze, but it might be the biggest part in baseball. All we hear about is launch angle, upper-cut swing and power numbers. Rules to get rid of the shift (overloading fielders to one side), along with smaller dimensions in MLB’s stadiums, have combined to allow home runs at record rates. Yes, power numbers are way up, but teams have become dependent on the long ball, leading to more strikeouts. What happens in the playoffs is pitching staffs make adjustments to keep the ball out of the sweet spots the hitters love, and if a squad can’t manufacture runs with singles, doubles and sacrifice bunts, runs don’t get scored. Pitching and defense is still the way to go. An example of this is the Houston Astros, who won the World Series in 2022. In defeating the Philadelphia Phillies to win the title, the Astros only gave up three runs in the final three games, including a combined no-hitter in Game 4. A catch at the wall by centerfielder Chas McCormick preserved the win in Game 5, and a young pitching staff came of age throughout the journey. It goes to show winning 10-9 every game isn’t sustainable if a team wants to win a championship.

There’s a phrase that says offense sells tickets, but defense wins championships. No matter how much people want to say that isn’t true anymore, too many cases say otherwise. Maybe this is the way to think about today’s times in sports: Offense can get you to the hill, but defense gets you over the top. Media and leagues encourage offense, which provides the entertainment value. When it’s winning time, it’s a good thing these games aren’t played on a ratings chart.

Maybe one day, the NFL will be honest with us, and themselves

A lot has happened since March 11, 2020, when the world literally changed forever. It was then when the COVID pandemic really start to grip everything and everyone, and the sports world was not spared from its outreach. The NBA and NHL postponed their respective seasons, and the NCAA cancelled March Madness altogether. MLB didn’t have a clue on how to deal with the pandemic, and their season was shortened to 60 games, more than half of the 162-game campaign we’re accustomed to. Even the English Premier League and other soccer organizations in numerous countries were forced to stop their seasons due to the virus. In other words, the world as we knew it stopped before our eyes.

The one league that was able to escaped the wrath of COVID (at least initially) was the NFL, that was only because they were in their offseason. Eventually, even they would have to adapt to change. The draft would be held virtually, and so would training camps. The preseason was cancelled, and the first game action came with the season-opener between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs Sept. 10 of that year. The season was largely playing out in empty stadiums, and there would be at least one game held each day of the week due to postponements caused by the pandemic.

As the world attempted to return to normal, the NFL was determined to do the same. They wanted to be strict as far as COVID protocols went, pinning the responsibility on the franchises to make sure coaches and players adhere to the rules as the 2021 regular season loomed. No longer would games be postponed due to spikes or outbreaks, they would be forfeited and handed to the team that was supposed to play the infected one. The league wanted to stay on schedule, perhaps thinking (and it’s not out of the norm for the NFL to act this way) they can do so because they are “The Shield.” It would be logical to think this stance was premature when considering a pandemic is still going on, but when has the NFL listened to anybody going against their vision?

With everything I just said, here we are, almost two years after having our lives turn upside down, and there’s a harsh truth staring at us and the league. COVID (and all of its variants) is still very much a factor, and because of that, the NFL is doing what they vowed not to do a few months ago, postponing three games on Friday. The Las Vegas Raiders–Cleveland Browns matchup has been moved from Saturday to Monday, and two more games (The Washington Football Team–Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks–Los Angeles Rams) were pushed back from Sunday to Tuesday. While the move shows a sign of basically being in the same place we were with the pandemic at this point last year, it also shows what the league, and many others, are ultimately about when push comes to shove. Anyone with a little intellect can see money is always the priority when it comes to the decision making in the NFL.

Bottom line, a forfeited result means a loss of revenue for everyone involved, and the NFL knows this better than anyone. What this means is they’ll do anything to protect their profit, even if it means going back on their original word. The funny thing is many people would understand if money is the first motivating factor, as long as the organization is honest about it. Instead, the NFL continues to hide behind other reasons while conducting their business, and attempts to tell us so as if we can’t see through them. Postponing the three games shows exactly why someone can not (and should not) take what the league says seriously, because eventually, the truth comes to life, and it’ll likely involve lots of dollar signs. Then again, nobody can expect the NFL to be honest with them if they can be honest with themselves first.

Coaching is killing a dynasty before it starts for the Dodgers

When looking for the ingredients to build a championship team, what comes to mind? Of course, talented players would help, but even the biggest talent pool won’t win a title without a coach who can put everything together. It’s no secret the coach’s primary job is to put the players in the best possible position to win games. Part of that process is understanding all of the analytics (fancy word for statistics) and translating the data into something the players can use against the opponents. Sometimes, the coach, or manager in this case, can get too engulfed in the numbers, and it ultimately comes back to hurt the team on the field.

This is the reality the Los Angeles Dodgers have sitting on their laps as of today. If someone was to say the Dodgers have the deepest and most talented roster in Major League Baseball, there probably wouldn’t be much pushback. The problem is they have a manager whose decisions regarding the pitching staff leaves a team loaded with talent coming up short of their championship goals, with the exception of 2020. The latest blunders from L.A. head man Dave Roberts resulted in his squad being eliminated by the Atlanta Braves, with the final blow coming in the form of a 4-2 loss in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series Saturday night in Atlanta. With the win, the Braves move on to face the Houston Astros in the World Series, with Game 1 set for Tuesday night in Houston. As for the Dodgers, they head into an offseason left to wonder what could have been once again.

While Atlanta was the team that ultimately knocked L.A. out of the playoffs, the battle with the San Francisco Giants set the tone for a move the Dodgers wouldn’t be able to overcome in the long run. In Game 5 of the NL Division series, Roberts decided to go with the opener, an analytic-driven strategy where a pitcher from the bullpen starts the game instead of a normal starter. The starting pitcher would have been Julio Urias, who was a 20-game winner during the regular season, won Game 2 of the series and would have been on a normal rotation. Instead, Roberts used two bullpen guys, and Urias didn’t see the mound until the third inning. While that move was perplexing, the choice that really put L.A.’s pitching staff in a bind going forward was bringing ace Max Scherzer in to close out the game. Everything worked out for the Dodgers to advance to the NLCS, but the moves caused Scherzer to come out early in Game 2, and miss his scheduled Game 6 start because his arm was still fatigued. In the NLCS, Roberts had two “bullpen games,” using eight pitchers in Game 1 (the first one) and nine in Game 3 (Game 5 was the other bullpen game). With a starting rotation already without Trevor Bauer (legal issues) and Clayton Kershaw (arm trouble), the last thing L.A. needed was to strain an already-short starting rotation even more with bad decisions.

As horrible as that sounds, the history of Roberts overworking the pitching staff goes back a few years. In 2017, the Dodgers probably should have defeated the Astros, sign-stealing scandal not withstanding, but the skipper continued to let analytics drive his decision-making, and the pitchers didn’t have much left when Game 7 came around. In 2018, L.A. was down 2-1 in the World Series against the Boston Red Sox, and Rich Hill (now with the New York Mets) was pitching a gem in Game 4, to the tune of allowing just one hit over 6 1/3 innings. Back in the day, numbers like that says Hill would stay in until his arm falls off, but in the analytics world, stats say it’s time to pull him due to the vaunted third time through the batting order. So Roberts decided to pull Hill, and the bullpen would get shelled for nine runs in the final three innings. The Dodgers lost Game 4 9-6, and would lose the series in five games. In 2019, it was the eventual-champion Washington Nationals who would take advantage of curious usage of the bullpen by Roberts.

Over the years, the Dodgers have developed a roster with an embarrassment of riches. The batting lineup is beyond potent when healthy, and the pitching staff is loaded with electric arms. They have both big pockets to sign high-priced free agents, and a farm system popping with talented prospects. All of the bookmarks of a dynasty are in place, but coaching can kill any vision of that before it starts. This is what’s happening in L.A., because the decisions made by Roberts between the lines (the front office is probably complicit in what drives this line of thinking) have turned the Dodgers into an organization that has underachieved. Even in 2020, the pitching staff moves seemed over-the-top, but they just happened to work out. Nine times out of 10, they have not, and even though the big picture has L.A. being a successful organization over the past few seasons, one can’t help but think there’s a lot of meat left on the bone. If the Dodgers want to salvage what could be a run of titles, their best chance is probably with someone other than Roberts as the manager. If the decision is to keep him, get ready for more disappointment in the City of Angels.