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How the fuck does the MLB think pulling out of Atlanta helps anything?

It just polarizes the sport and hurts the small businesses and employees who were relying on that event for the income.

Fuck off MLB, absolutely retarded decision.
Being cynical as I tend to be, I think part of it is to try to pander to blacks because the sport in general is having problems attracting younger fans. With black culture/causes pretty much being American culture at this point MLB probably just wants a big PR victory. For awhile now MLB has been big on trying to be more 'diverse' and trying to specifically attract more young black kids to get into the sport so this just ties into the larger picture.

For MLB, the people who were already watching still will for the most part. They get to look good in the eyes of the press, they get look good especially with the big Chauvin trial going on right now and probably into the summer when Mostly Peaceful Protests would be scheduled to break out.

I wouldn't be surprised if it gets moved to where the Texas Rangers' new stadium is. Texas gets a game in their new park (and they haven't hosted since 1995 so plenty of time has passed), and both the Rangers and MLB would benefit from being able to get a big crowd because the state (Houston, who hasn't hosted in 17 years, also being a possibility) isn't locked down. Or maybe they could even have it in Miami. DeSantis would probably be all over that (although the Marlins had an ASG fairly recently, in 2017.) I'd suggest Tampa, but they might get filtered due to having a dome.
 
Being cynical as I tend to be, I think part of it is to try to pander to blacks because the sport in general is having problems attracting younger fans. With black culture/causes pretty much being American culture at this point MLB probably just wants a big PR victory. For awhile now MLB has been big on trying to be more 'diverse' and trying to specifically attract more young black kids to get into the sport so this just ties into the larger picture.

For MLB, the people who were already watching still will for the most part. They get to look good in the eyes of the press, they get look good especially with the big Chauvin trial going on right now and probably into the summer when Mostly Peaceful Protests would be scheduled to break out.

I wouldn't be surprised if it gets moved to where the Texas Rangers' new stadium is. Texas gets a game in their new park (and they haven't hosted since 1995 so plenty of time has passed), and both the Rangers and MLB would benefit from being able to get a big crowd because the state (Houston, who hasn't hosted in 17 years, also being a possibility) isn't locked down. Or maybe they could even have it in Miami. DeSantis would probably be all over that (although the Marlins had an ASG fairly recently, in 2017.) I'd suggest Tampa, but they might get filtered due to having a dome.
Oddly enough, Texas and Florida are the two states I’d think are most likely to follow Georgia’s footsteps. I also would like to see MLB end writing themselves into a corner over this stunt, but that’s just me.
 
For MLB, the people who were already watching still will for the most part.
I don't know. 18 months ago I would have agreed with this. I still, to this day, don't think for example that when Kaepernick first started kneeling that East Coast fans really gave a shit, but that was also if you can believe it in a time when kneeling was still controversal. That switch didn't flip until ironically Drew Brees got backlash for saying people shouldn't kneel.

But in the last 15 months, I think they've pushed the wokeness too far. Ratings are plummetting despite the fact that people are locked up with nothing to do. And as you said, baseball is whiter and more "Republican" than basketball. If basketball ratings are plummeting due to wokeness, I expect baseball to fall off a cliff.
 
The idea that black people don't have IDs is patently false.

Even if it was true, notice how no Democrat has ever introduced legislation to GET black people IDs.
You can get a free one in Georgia if you don't have a driver's liscense.

I don't know. 18 months ago I would have agreed with this. I still, to this day, don't think for example that when Kaepernick first started kneeling that East Coast fans really gave a shit, but that was also if you can believe it in a time when kneeling was still controversal. That switch didn't flip until ironically Drew Brees got backlash for saying people shouldn't kneel.

But in the last 15 months, I think they've pushed the wokeness too far. Ratings are plummetting despite the fact that people are locked up with nothing to do. And as you said, baseball is whiter and more "Republican" than basketball. If basketball ratings are plummeting due to wokeness, I expect baseball to fall off a cliff.
Sports in general depends upon older conservative fans to bring eyeballs and spend money. Even NBA. But that goes double for baseball.

Pulling the All Star game out of Georgia isn't going to hurt the state but it is going to REALLY hurt the MLB.

This woke stuff is so damaging to the bottom line but corporate suits just can't help themselves. When the press starts ringing their phones they get scared and fold immediately.
 
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Braves are already hitting back at MLB because they know this is gonna kill their bottom line:

Ex_lPrmXEAkWOIs.jpg


You know who doesn't seem to be jumping into the culture war breach at all this time? ESPN.

They have the most to lose. MLB will still get their TV money and they're locked in for 10 years regardless. ESPN will suffer the consequences of lower ratings.
 
Braves are already hitting back at MLB because they know this is gonna kill their bottom line:

View attachment 2053596

You know who doesn't seem to be jumping into the culture war breach at all this time? ESPN.

They have the most to lose. MLB will still get their TV money and they're locked in for 10 years regardless. ESPN will suffer the consequences of lower ratings.
If this woke move somehow causes ESPN to abandon its godawful Sunday Night Baseball coverage, I could be in favor of it.

Edit: I'll find a clip on twitter in a sec when one gets posted, but Altuve just scored from third on a routine infield popup to Andrus. Andrus was definitely taken by surprise, but I didn't see him obviously screw anything up. Insane.

Here it is. Andrus definitely had a shitty throw, but what a ballsy move. Tucker owes him dinner tonight.
 
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Being cynical as I tend to be, I think part of it is to try to pander to blacks because the sport in general is having problems attracting younger fans. With black culture/causes pretty much being American culture at this point MLB probably just wants a big PR victory. For awhile now MLB has been big on trying to be more 'diverse' and trying to specifically attract more young black kids to get into the sport so this just ties into the larger picture.

The issue with that is MLB players that are black tend to not even be from the US. So they're pandering to a culture that doesn't give two fucks about pandering. Just look at the black players on the Braves.. which of them are from the US? How many active MLB players can legally vote in the US?
 
It's interesting that so many people are terrified at the idea of verifying someone's identity when they vote.
It's more the other shit that the law does, like make early voting harder and reduces voting locations

Plus, voter ID laws are unconstitutional via the "no poll tax" part of the constitution (unless the ID is 100% free, which they aren't)
 
It's more the other shit that the law does, like make early voting harder and reduces voting locations

Plus, voter ID laws are unconstitutional via the "no poll tax" part of the constitution (unless the ID is 100% free, which they aren't)
It actually makes it easier to vote early, it expands the early voting period.

And the second part is you talking utter shit. No court has struck down an ID verification law for being a poll tax, and yes you can get one for free.
 
Sports in general depends upon older conservative fans to bring eyeballs and spend money. Even NBA. But that goes double for baseball.

Pulling the All Star game out of Georgia isn't going to hurt the state but it is going to REALLY hurt the MLB.

This woke stuff is so damaging to the bottom line but corporate suits just can't help themselves. When the press starts ringing their phones they get scared and fold immediately.
MLB was in a bad spot either way. There are a lot of star players who are left-leaning, the last thing you need is players boycotting the All-Star game and blowing up the issue even further. The last thing the sport needs is Mookie Betts, Tim Anderson, Jack Flaherty, etc. becoming the baseball version of Kaepernick, because then not only does it become a huge media circus that really makes the boomers stop watching, but it also deters zoomers from ever getting into the sport. The conservative players, on the other hand, generally keep their mouths shut about this stuff (except Bauer).
 
MLB was in a bad spot either way. There are a lot of star players who are left-leaning, the last thing you need is players boycotting the All-Star game and blowing up the issue even further. The last thing the sport needs is Mookie Betts, Tim Anderson, Jack Flaherty, etc. becoming the baseball version of Kaepernick, because then not only does it become a huge media circus that really makes the boomers stop watching, but it also deters zoomers from ever getting into the sport. The conservative players, on the other hand, generally keep their mouths shut about this stuff (except Bauer).
No it's an easy decision. Now that the MLB has done this they are on the hook forever. Activists and journalists will be banging on their door to denounce whatever the fake outrage of the day is, in perpetuity. At some point they will be compelled to maintain silence of an issue and take the heat from the twitterati.

And all of those players have to go to Georgia to play regular games, what are they going to do, skip the trip to go play the Braves and miss out on their paycheck? Not a chance. They can boycott the All Star game but it would be an empty gesture and you just pick a few guys to take their place. Ultimately they have a team in the state so they can't avoid it, their boycott is meaningless and will only cost them tons of money in the long term. Continuously saying "no comment" or telling the press they won't get involved in state level politics would have cost them nothing in the long term.

They tried to do the minimum thing so they could say they "did something". Check the box and move on. But it spared them absolutely no pain now or in the future.
 
At the risk of sounding like a baby, I was almost visibly annoyed when I saw the MLB Network outright trying their damndest to praise the MLB for moving the ASG out of Georgia - which was a city that is heavily populated with black people ironically enough.

But nothing really sets the icing on the cake when I see my favorite basketball player LeEstablishmemt James tweeting this out the other day:

DF64C625-4674-492B-A78C-3F039A30A9C9.jpeg

This is the same guy who tried to follow the hype train by calling out the Houston Astros for blatant cheating, despite the fact that everyone knew before him that it was wrong:

ABF924DE-0BC1-4F4B-BD86-EBBF974FB204.jpeg 42DC0F98-547F-4E43-A861-1A8113375CCB.jpeg

Are we really going to believe that this guy is supposed to be a part-time owner for the Boston Red Sox now? It’s always me hearing about him in the news adding his two cents on things that have nothing to do with sports, when no one even asked for his opinion in the first place.

It's interesting that so many people are terrified at the idea of verifying someone's identity when they vote.

998D086D-D8CD-4ED8-A38A-FDAD378CC1F4.jpeg


Imagine my shock. - Sir Lolcow Paul Joseph Watson
 
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That would be too good to be true if they really do it. But removing the antitrust exemption would shake things a bit at the MLB. As Nike once said: Do it!
Yesterday, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced they were moving the All-Star game out of Atlanta.

They didn’t like the election integrity laws passed in Georgia.


Biden supported this move.

Now, GOP lawmakers are threatening MLB’s antitrust exemption.

GOP Rep. Jeff Duncan (SC-R) announced that he ordered his staff to introduce legislation to strip them of their antitrust exception.
 
What's this?

MLB requires photo ID to pick up tickets from Will Call, but boycotts Georgia for voter ID law​

Major League Baseball responded to calls to boycott the state of Georgia over a controversial new voter-ID law by moving the All-Star game out of the Peach State.

But teams still requires fans to show photo ID to pick up their tickets from the Will Call booth.

South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace called the league out on Twitter.

"Hey @MLB, this you?" she wrote, along with a screenshot of the Will Call policy at mlb.com

The league did not respond to multiple requests for an explanation of its photo ID policy for ticket retrieval.

Proponents of the move to abandon Atlanta’s Truist Park for this year’s All-Star Game have argued that Georgia’s new GOP-backed election integrity law is a form of voter suppression and is racist. President Biden even called it "Jim Crow in the 21st Century."

Georgia’s new law comes after Democrats swept both Senate races in runoff votes and President Biden edged out former President Trump on Election Day.

The Georgia election reform bill expands the number of early voting days, allows the observation of ballot counting, prohibits ballot harvesting and continues to allow voters to cast absentee ballots without an excuse, but requires proof of identification, among other measures.

It also gives the State Election Board more authority over counties.

Another feature would block anyone from handing out food and drink to people waiting in line to vote.

The move garnered national attention, with praise from the left and criticism from the right.

Former President Donald Trump called for a boycott of the national pastime and other 'woke' corporations – while former President Barack Obama praised it as a way to honor the Atlanta Braves’ most famous Hall of Famer.

"There’s no better way for America’s pastime to honor the great Hank Aaron, who always led by example," Obama tweeted Saturday.

Gov. Brian Kemp wrote in a Fox News op-ed Wednesday that Democrats have falsely characterized the bill he signed.

"These reforms have nothing to do with ‘voter suppression' or ‘Jim Crow’," he argued. "The Election Integrity Act makes it easy to vote by expanding access to the polls and harder to cheat by ensuring the security of the ballot box."
 
Why does everyone keep parroting the narrative of not being able to give water and food to people in line? I've seen it stated as only third parties aren't allowed to and that they must be a little over 100 meters away from a polling place. Nobody is preventing you from stocking up before you get in line. The only thing I see getting suppressed are people's common sense and reading comprehension skills.

Anyways, Braves looked like absolute garbage today and Snitker is rightfully pissy about Marietta getting fucked out of revenue.
 
No it's an easy decision. Now that the MLB has done this they are on the hook forever. Activists and journalists will be banging on their door to denounce whatever the fake outrage of the day is, in perpetuity. At some point they will be compelled to maintain silence of an issue and take the heat from the twitterati.

And all of those players have to go to Georgia to play regular games, what are they going to do, skip the trip to go play the Braves and miss out on their paycheck? Not a chance. They can boycott the All Star game but it would be an empty gesture and you just pick a few guys to take their place. Ultimately they have a team in the state so they can't avoid it, their boycott is meaningless and will only cost them tons of money in the long term. Continuously saying "no comment" or telling the press they won't get involved in state level politics would have cost them nothing in the long term.

They tried to do the minimum thing so they could say they "did something". Check the box and move on. But it spared them absolutely no pain now or in the future.
Even the most zealous woke people recognize that there's a difference between rescheduling a single, special event, and cancelling a team's entire season. There's not a movement to prevent the Braves from playing at all. Also, the idea that "you just pick a few guys to take their place"....we're talking about some of the best and most famous players in the league, their absence would instantly become the story. Getting out ahead of this now and moving the game avoids all that.

At the risk of sounding like a baby, I was almost visibly annoyed when I saw the MLB Network outright trying their damndest to praise the MLB for moving the ASG out of Georgia - which was a city that is heavily populated with black people ironically enough.

But nothing really sets the icing on the cake when I see my favorite basketball player LeEstablishmemt James tweeting this out the other day:

View attachment 2056018

This is the same guy who tried to follow the hype train by calling out the Houston Astros for blatant cheating, despite the fact that everyone knew before him that it was wrong:

View attachment 2056039View attachment 2056038

Are we really going to believe that this guy is supposed to be a part-time owner for the Boston Red Sox now? It’s always me hearing about him in the news adding his two cents on things that have nothing to do with sports, when no one even asked for his opinion in the first place.



View attachment 2056059


Imagine my shock. - Sir Lolcow Paul Joseph Watson
Technically the Braves play in (majority white) Cobb County, not Atlanta itself. But yeah it is ironic, these kinds of events are great for local workers/business owners (plenty of hotels and restaurants in Atlanta would have seen a ton of new customers) and it sucks that they get fucked over because of some petty political bullshit that spirals into a national controversy. Same thing that happened to Charlotte with the NBA All-Star Game like 5 years ago. But I think it's totally out of their control at this point, I generally think Manfred is an incompetent greedy moron, but moving the game is the right call. Not worth the headache, and now that the league took a stance on the issue the national media will lose steam and forget about this by next week.
 
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Well we had our first benches-clearing incident today involving Nick Castellanos and the Cardinals' battery to start. Castellanos was the only player ejected, which was pretty weak shit in my opinion since there was no violence at all by anyone. The best part is when the bullpens started to get into it a bit at the end. Idk why but the bullpens getting super heated is usually my favorite part of these things, because they have literally nothing to do with anything that preceded the bench clearing. Jomboy did a pretty quick rundown on it even though nothing really happened.
 
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