The World Baseball Classic began with public sentiment towards the event being largely neutral, even amongst ardent baseball fans. Now that the WBC has crowned its winner, many more baseball fans are beginning to see some of the appeal.
The U.S. team making a run deep into the World Baseball Classic and eventually winning the whole thing likely has a lot to do with the recent uptick in enthusiasm regarding the WBC, but I’d wager that many baseball fans had other teams that they were rooting for as well. In any tournament, you have the team that you’re rooting for against everyone else, but there are also teams that you’d pull for in a pinch.
In this year’s tourney, Team Israel was an early favorite for baseball fans with their improbable run out of the first round and the Mensch on a Bench mascot that they brought along with them. Regardless of what Ian Kinsler says, teams showing that they’re enjoying themselves is actually good for the WBC. In an exhibition tournament like the World Baseball Classic, where the only reason for playing is pride in your country or passion for the sport, different teams, and therefore different cultures, are going to react to plays differently.
Many within the U.S. see this as a chance for Major League Baseball to grow the game internationally, which is certainly one of the goals of the tournament, but couldn’t it also be true that seeing the blonde unity of Puerto Rico, the flair of Javier Baez, or the crowds in different ballparks around the world and how they go about enjoying the same game is also growing the sport in America? My wife is always trying to get me to go somewhere like Puerto Rico. Now I am much more inclined to do so, especially if I may be able to see some baseball–regardless of skill level–that involves that much energy and excitement.
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The ratings over at MLB Network appear to have been positive as well, as the U.S./Japan game from Tuesday night is the 7th-most watched program the network has ever had. The U.S./Dominican Republic game from pool play ranked tenth.
Growing the WBC in America is essential to the tournament’s survival, because without American support in the ratings, MLB teams may be even less inclined to allow their players to participate, which would lead to the same tired argument about the best players not wanting to play, so how can we take this thing seriously, blah, blah, blah.
The large caveat with that argument is that even without Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw or players of similar abilities, the U.S. has an extremely deep talent pool to choose from. All of their players are going to be MLB caliber, if not perennial all-stars. To grow, the World Baseball Classic must be competitive, and if the U.S. roster is too loaded, the rest of the countries involved may not be as interested in seeing their team get a beat down. While the Dream Team was cool in the Olympics at one time, now it’s headline news if the U.S. team loses a game at this point, which isn’t compelling television.
There are definitely some things that those in charge of the WBC will have to work on, like how the hell their tiebreaker works. If you’re going to have a tiebreaker determined by runs allowed, then there can’t be a mercy rule, because logic.
I’d also like to see the championship be determined in the three game series. I know that may be a little rougher with spring schedules and pitch limitations and everything, but the Puerto Rican team having one loss, their loss in the final game against the U.S. team, while being one of the best stories and most exciting teams to watch, just feels more fair. I mean, it is more baseball after all. The teams in warm weather/roofed ballpark cities will likely be on board with this idea, with a chance to host the WBC and therefore early money at the ticket stand, while the cold weather teams would oppose.
The extra inning rule that has runners at first and second to start the 11th is something I really enjoyed, but it seemed like it gave an advantage to the visiting team since they got first crack at it. It’s rough to tweak that one however, since the teams can’t bat simultaneously. I could get behind a runner just starting at first base as a compromise, but the ultimate goal here is more likely the health of the participants heading into the regular season than the fairness of the game at that point. I’m not quite ready for this rule change to make its way into regular season baseball action, however.
All in all, this was the most enjoyable of the World Baseball Classics that I have witnessed, and it’s largely due to the fact that I paid more attention this time around. The baseball itself was compelling and the pitch limits added a sense of drama since the bullpens can’t be managed like they are in the big leagues. I’m looking forward to the next one already.
What would you like to see the WBC do for the next go-around? Let us know in the comments below!