Okay, let me start out by admitting I am both old and “old school” – particularly it comes to the opening of the MLB season. I fondly recall the days when there were two leagues of eight teams and, year-after-year, Opening Day featured two games – the NL in Cincinnati and the AL in Washington D.C.. Day Two then featured a full slate of games, anticipation was served, and the season was off and running. That’s not how it happened this year, when Seattle and Oakland opened the season March 20 in Tokyo. No surprise, BBRT some opinions on that. But first some background.
Baseball Was Beautiful in Black and White
Baseball Was Beautiful in Black and White
Now, we’ve come a long way since the days of 16 teams, regular one-admission doubleheaders, the black and white “Game of the Week” on our small-screen televisions and the radio as our primary source of live MLB coverage. Sometimes, I miss those days.
Still, I am not a total curmudgeon. I appreciate the progress our national pastime has made. I can now get a baseball “fix,” live and in color, every day of the week – usually with multiple choices. There is baseball news (and views) year-round and the internet makes the exchange of info and insight on our national past time both immediate and (usually) interesting. (How I love MLB At Bat and Baseball-Reference.com.) More fans, in more cities, have access to major league baseball. There are more players from more places – and we know more about them – than ever. I like all of that.
Ball park food and beverage has gotten better – and sometimes it comes in the same glass. Photo: Bob King
I also am okay with defensive shifts (earn to hit to the opposite field); limiting mound visits; and a single trade deadline. I, however, am not fond of the “wave-em-to-first” intentional walk (too much like slow-pitch softball) or a pitch clock (although I would support requiring pitcher to keep one foot on the mound and batters to keep on foot in the batters’ box). I don’t care for the challenge system and oppose robot umpires (discussion and debate are part of the fans’ game and adjusting to the umpire’s strike zone part of the players’ game) and requiring a reliever to face three batters or end a half-inning.
I also like the improved amenities at the ballpark – better food choices (Thankfully, gone are the days when the menu was beer, hot dogs, peanuts and licorice ropes); more informative scoreboards; improved sight lines; and more colorful uniforms (The old “whites and grays” were only good for black-and-white TV.). I could use fewer between innings diversions (that’s the time for the discussion and debate I mentioned earlier).
The March 20 “Opening”
But, I digress – and, perhaps, protest a little too much. Let’s get back to this year’s March 20 Opening Day in Japan.
The fact is, no matter how much the game changes (and it must continue to change), on Opening Day, I traditionally yearn for tradition. This year, MLB chose to have the Seattle Mariners and Oakland A’s open the regular-season play March 20 in the Tokyo Dome. Turns out, there was very little “regular” about it. (Note: It was not the first time MLB choose to open the season early and abroad. In 2012, for example, these same two teams opened the MLB season on March 28 in Japan; while the rest of MLB opened on April 4.)
Don’t get me wrong. The March 20-21 Seattle/Oakland contests were a good idea, driven by good intentions.
First, it was – at its foundation – a good idea:
- A tribute to Ichiro Suzuki, owner of more than 3,000 major league hits and nearly 1,300 safeties in his native Japan – a sure (and likely first-ballot) Hall of Famer; and
- Recognition of the increasing international flavor of the game, as well of Japan’s particular passion for love the game and increasing presence in and impact on MLB.
Ichiro, a well-deserved tribute. Photo by Matt McGee 
The games, by the way, were a great success, drawing large (45,000+) and enthusiastic crowds – and providing an emotional and fitting tribute to Ichiro Suzuki’s accomplishments and contributions to baseball at home and abroad. BBRT’s opinion is that the although games in Japan were a good idea and the tribute to Ichiro well-deserved, the effort would have been equally successful in serving its purpose and less disruptive if the games had been part of the Spring Training season. But as the MLB’s season “opener,” MLB’s pitch was high and outside.
From a timing perspective, few American fans were up to watch or listen to game coverage. The games also interrupted (rather than signaled the end of) the exhibition season – Spring Training games continued and even the Mariners and A’s came back to play additional games that didn’t count. So, other than some rather weird AL standings that will remain stagnant for a while, it hardly seems the season is underway.
Finally, the exhibition nature of the contest was further cemented in my mind by the fact that Ichiro, who hadn’t played a major league regular-season contest since May 2 of last year, officially announced his retirement right after the two-game opening series concluded.
Again, in the don’t get me wrong column. I am fine with international games. I welcomed the expansion into Canada, as well as past and ongoing efforts to recognize (and expand) the more global nature and recognition of today’s game. This season, we’ll see the Red Sox and Yankees in London in late June; Reds and Cardinals in Monterrey, Mexico, in mid-April; and the Angeles and Astros in Monterrey in early May. I just maintain that there is a time and place for those efforts (as preseason exhibitions or during the normal course of the season) – and, for me, that’s not Opening Day.
Ultimately, the 2019 MLB season opener seemed like a non-event and I am anticipating the March 28 slate of games, my true season opener(s). Oh, yes, the Seattle Mariners are currently on top of the American League West with a 2-0 record. Final thoughts: It’s done. It gave me something to write about. Ichiro is a well-deserving recipient of this recognition. And, I can just hope we don’t have another early opener. Now, a few more Spring Training games and on to the season.
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Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
