Dear Joe West,
I find it troubling and disappointing (you might say "a disgrace to baseball") that an umpire crew chief would make the kind of pace of game remarks that you did regarding the first Red Sox/Yankees series of the 2010 season. A more productive use of your time would be making sure that you and your crew are getting calls right, rather than worrying about the pace of the game or denying batters on both teams brief timeouts.
You wonder why "two of the best teams in baseball" are also "playing the slowest." Have you considered the possibility that a correlation exists there? Perhaps being the best means concentrating more on playing a great game than worrying about how long it takes. Besides the fact that these were just the first 3 games of the year and everyone is just getting back into the groove of the long season.
I realize that pace of game issues are typically related to getting more fans due to the misguided notion that more people don't watch because games take too long. This is certainly a fallacy. Were the 3 games of the Red Sox/Yankees series in question not sold out? Do those fans not matter? Do fans like I who just enjoy a good game not matter? Do the people who've been a part of Fenway selling out for over 500 games in a row not matter?
I find your remarks particularly concerning as more than once in extra innings situations, I've seen umpires seemingly expand or contract strike zones just in order to finish games and go home. Given your comments, I feel as if you're confirming that umpires care more about pace than the integrity of this great sport. How completely disappointing, especially since bad or hasty umping can completely affect the outcome of a game. Do you think that's going to garner more fans? All that will accomplish is disheartening die hard fans and discouraging new fans.
I wonder if you or anyone else in baseball really thinks that someone who can't sit through a 4 hour game would be willing to stick it out for a 7 month (plus) long season or hang on for 86 years between championships. Being a baseball fan takes heart, endurance, and patience. Being an umpire takes nothing less.
I greatly appreciate that you've dedicated over 30 years of your life to umpire our national pastime, but if you can no longer appreciate the game, the players, or the avid fans perhaps it's time to retire.
Sincerely,
Azina
I find it troubling and disappointing (you might say "a disgrace to baseball") that an umpire crew chief would make the kind of pace of game remarks that you did regarding the first Red Sox/Yankees series of the 2010 season. A more productive use of your time would be making sure that you and your crew are getting calls right, rather than worrying about the pace of the game or denying batters on both teams brief timeouts.
You wonder why "two of the best teams in baseball" are also "playing the slowest." Have you considered the possibility that a correlation exists there? Perhaps being the best means concentrating more on playing a great game than worrying about how long it takes. Besides the fact that these were just the first 3 games of the year and everyone is just getting back into the groove of the long season.
I realize that pace of game issues are typically related to getting more fans due to the misguided notion that more people don't watch because games take too long. This is certainly a fallacy. Were the 3 games of the Red Sox/Yankees series in question not sold out? Do those fans not matter? Do fans like I who just enjoy a good game not matter? Do the people who've been a part of Fenway selling out for over 500 games in a row not matter?
I find your remarks particularly concerning as more than once in extra innings situations, I've seen umpires seemingly expand or contract strike zones just in order to finish games and go home. Given your comments, I feel as if you're confirming that umpires care more about pace than the integrity of this great sport. How completely disappointing, especially since bad or hasty umping can completely affect the outcome of a game. Do you think that's going to garner more fans? All that will accomplish is disheartening die hard fans and discouraging new fans.
I wonder if you or anyone else in baseball really thinks that someone who can't sit through a 4 hour game would be willing to stick it out for a 7 month (plus) long season or hang on for 86 years between championships. Being a baseball fan takes heart, endurance, and patience. Being an umpire takes nothing less.
I greatly appreciate that you've dedicated over 30 years of your life to umpire our national pastime, but if you can no longer appreciate the game, the players, or the avid fans perhaps it's time to retire.
Sincerely,
Azina
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