11/05/24
May 19, 2003
Is there a correlation between ballpark dimensions and success? : (NYT, registration required.) Via Off Wing Opinion.
posted by Mookieproof to baseball at 09:49 AM - 5 comments
Haha I'll bet the idea of making the goals bigger has at least flashed across the minds of MLS executives, if only for an instant...
posted by Mookieproof at 10:51 AM on May 19, 2003
Really, they don't need to architect the playing area for that. All they have to do is require goalkeepers who have no arms.
posted by worldcup2002 at 11:28 AM on May 19, 2003
I think the baseball executives talking make quite a bit of sense. Pitching generally does win out, and so if you build a park that puts a premium on pitching (and consequently, defense and team speed), you really put a slugging-minded team at a severe disadvantage. The best example of this I can come up with is the 1982 Cardinals. Because nearly the whole squad was brought in with stealing bases and manufacturing runs in mind, when other more powerful clubs came to the vast Busch outfield with its quick turf, they struggled. Here's hoping more stadiums are built to promote that sort of baseball, and not the home-run derbies the architects seem to think we relish.
posted by wfrazerjr at 08:04 PM on May 19, 2003
I just wonder how long football is going to be established in the USA before "soccer-bashing" is a thing of the past. I've already demolished the "soccer is low-scoring" canard in a previous message.
posted by salmacis at 09:28 AM on May 20, 2003
Hmmm, I wonder when they will design a soccer stadium that is engineered to be goal friendly ....