Coppola: I Remember When…

By William Coppola: Contributing Columnist For Bronx Chronicle

I am so tired of saying, “I remember when” about things in my life. It seems like I say that more and more about baseball than anything else. I know that it is my love for the game that drives me to say it.

Last nights All-Star game in Cleveland brought back memories of pitchers dominating and not home runs. So for many of us it was fun to see what is becoming not so common place in baseball today.

There were only two home runs in the game but when was the last time you can remember a game that did not have a home run? Also, I can not recall ever seeing a pitcher, host Cleveland’s own Shane Bieber, face only three batters, strike them all out and only pitching that one inning win the MVP in an All-Star game.  MVP Pedro Martinez at Fenway Park in the 1999 Classic went two innings.

Ok, I see where this is going. Looks like I’m headed for another rant about MLB’s need to change the game. We all know that it is all about the money with them, after all it is a business and they have a tremendous impact on the economy of our country. That being said, there are things that I wish they would just leave alone. 

The wild socks, hats and crazy color combinations for this game are funny and will sell in stores but do we need to see them do it for every invented weekend celebration during the season?

The cameras on the hats of the umpires, coaches and players were cool. So is having a player mic’d up while on the field. Hopefully we don’t see that when the season resumes. This is an exhibition game right? And why do they need to review a call back in New York? Give those guys a day off.

My “I remember when” part of the game now is about pitchers only going one inning. Koufax, Gibson and Ford would all go three innings. Then again what’s the big deal as we now see teams using the “Opener” concept in games now where they count outs and replace pitchers in a game not necessarily on how well they are pitching. 

I will never understand that thinking. Why take a pitcher out of a game when he is getting outs and baffling the other team? His replacement may not have his best stuff that day, it happens. Like that box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get. 

That is what our game was always base on, the excitement of possibly seeing something different every game. Today we sit back eating a $12 sandwich at a ballpark waiting for a player to hit a 480 foot bomb.

It is becoming a box of chocolates where everyone is a cherry cream.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Tags: