The one thing I love most about doing sports talk is observing the way people communicate. There is no right or wrong comment about sports. Fans may be right or wrong about the facts, but when it comes to expressing their feelings, emotions and opinions, they say it.
One fan may feel the Chicago Bulls are the greatest basketball team ever, another disagrees and says it's the Larry Bird Celtics of the 80's. Interleague baseball is great, instant replay should be used in the NFL, players are overpaid, college athletes shouldn't be paid. Whatever it is, the fans and callers will speak their minds and hearts. This is the backbone and foundation of what makes sports special and an important part of our social fabric.
While pro sports acknowledges the importance of the fans and their commitment, they do little to nurture, build and maintain the fans' emotional attachment. The finger of blame is pointed at the leagues, the owners, the players, the networks and the corporations. Collectively, they take the fans' money, they give them the product and move on to the next event/game. They are the masters of manipulation. I have no problem with businesses making money, but the business of sports needs to learn they have to leave the fans with a "tingling feeling" if they want repeat and long-term fan support.
The Leagues. How is a baseball fan supposed to feel "tingly" when the league takes over a ballpark during the playoffs and World Series and the fan who's supported the team with a full or partial season ticket is shuttled from their favorite seat to the far reaches down the third or first baseline? Why? Because baseball needs the good seats for their out of town corporate clients. The NFL does the same with the Super Bowl and the NBA with their Finals. It leaves the fans with the feeling that their money is good enough during the regular season and during hard times, but when the team is "hot stuff," we'll put your name in the hat for a drawing for a chance to watch your team in the championship game. And, don't get me stared on Personal Seat Licenses. PSL's are nothing more than legalized extortion. They let you pay for the right to buy a ticket. Some fans may feel it's tolerable if their team wins, it's deplorable if the team is a loser.
The Owners. These men and women of substance request, beg or demand that cities build them stadiums and arenas. They also prey on the weak, mentally deficient and without a clue members of our society - the politicians. In essence, the owners want the fans/tax payers to build and pay for a stadium that they'll control and take all the money from. You've got to give them credit for requesting, begging or demanding. That's how they made the money to buy their teams in the first place. If owners want all the money, then let them spend their money for their arenas and stadiums. Cities can throw in the streets and land. I've never heard of cities paying to build owners their factories, shopping centers or hotels. I strongly suspect that most owners want to keep their options open. If it doesn't work out where they are now, it's easier to move when you're renting than when you own your stadium or arena.
The Players. It's not fair to characterize the players as greedy. Their agents can be greedy, but they're just taking advantage of the marketplace and the stupidity of the owners who collectively fall all over each other to give the players millions. What's not acceptable is the attitude too many pro athletes have. They were gifted with a particular talent and they worked hard to develop it, but just because they make a lot of money and are adored doesn't give them the right to cop an attitude. A knee injury, a bad elbow, bad luck, etc. could all lead to a permanent seat in the stands (if they can afford it) instead of on the bench. There aren't enough Tony Gwynns, Michael Jordans and Troy Aikmans in sports. The fans are tired of the Dennis Rodmans and Albert Belles. Also, athletes should clean up their acts. They should understand they're members of society first and ball players second.
The Networks. They complain that viewership is down for sports, but they still black out games. Television is the best promotional vehicle sports has; they dole out the viewing of games like it's a luxury. If fans want to watch their favorite team but they can't afford a ticket or won't support that team in person because they're stinking up the place, they miss out because the leagues won't let the networks show a game that isn't sold out. Now, that's really going to make the fan feel "tingly" about the sport and their local team.
The Corporations. In a sense, they may be the least culpable. They see sports as that emotional vehicle that everyone likes to talk about and watch and they want to hook their product-selling corporation to it. The problem is, the price they pay to be involved in sports is so high, they've bastardized it. Everything has a corporate name attached to it. Corporations can tie-in with sports, but pick and choose how and where they do it. They should work to maintain the integrity of sports and a sporting event. While there may be a number of things wrong with the Masters Golf Tournament, it's still a premier event because it has maintained the purity of golf. No sponsor name, no sponsor banners along the course, no high profile corporate hype.
Corporations are culpable to the pro leagues' addiction to money. The leagues find it easier to court and develop corporations who will fork over millions to have a pro sports tie-in than to develop the "in the trenches" effort to maintain the fans' loyalty. A 10 million dollar fix is a lot more satisfying than a 45 dollar fix.
Will we ever get back to that time when fans have that "tingling feeling" again? Probably not. But, at least with Sports Byline USA, fans will always have a place to air their frustrations, debate which team or player is the best and reminisce about the time when sports gave us all a "tingling feeling."
I feel better now.
I'm Ron Barr.
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