How about a round of applause for Heath Bell

[ctcf]

http://rumorsandrants.com/2009/04/heath-bell-does-not-care-for-your-coverage-espn.html#more-6506

 

“I truly believe ESPN only cares about promoting the Red Sox and Yankees and Mets - and nobody else,” said the closer, a former Met. “That’s why I like the MLB Network, because they promote everybody. I’m really turned off by ESPN and ‘Baseball Tonight.’ When Jake Peavy threw 8 1/3 innings on Saturday, they showed one pitch in the third inning and that was it. It’s all about the Red Sox, Yankees and Mets.”

 

Nice to see a player say what everyone's thinking. =D>

[OleMissCub]

Absolutely. He hit the nail on the head.

[Electron Blue]

Jake Peavy just needs a bigger market maybe . . . . .

[Roast]

Jake Peavy just needs a bigger market maybe . . . . .

I hear the cubs would love to have him. They get decent exposure....

[UMFan83]

I hate the bias, but I understand why ESPN does it. They spend the most time covering the most popular teams because that is who is watching their programs.

 

At the same time, true baseball fans don't only want to hear about their team, they want coverage of the entire league. This is why I am glad that the MLB Network exists as competition now. They still do have an east coast lean to their coverage, but its night and day compared to Baseball Tonight.

[javy knows my name]

Yay for telling us what we already know and coming off bitter and unprofessional in the process!

[Electron Blue]

Yay for telling us what we already know and coming off bitter and unprofessional in the process!

 

Why is he bitter and unprofessional, and where are you seeing it in that quote?

 

And how can he, like you say, agree with everyone and still come off bad by saying it?

[javy knows my name]

Yay for telling us what we already know and coming off bitter and unprofessional in the process!

 

Why is he bitter and unprofessional, and where are you seeing it in that quote?

 

And how can he, like you say, agree with everyone and still come off bad by saying it?

 

Are you asking me the difference between Heath Bell saying this and me or you saying this? That's what it sounds like.

 

He needs to shut up and play baseball, not publicly criticize his crappy team's coverage in the national media.

 

And he comes off sounding bad when voicing a popular opinion because that opinion doesn't need to be stated by a professional athlete. It's just an attention grab, and it sounds bitter and unprofessional

[BigbadB1679666149]

Who is Heath Bell?

 

The prosecution rests.

[Tracer Bullet]

Yay for telling us what we already know and coming off bitter and unprofessional in the process!

 

Why is he bitter and unprofessional, and where are you seeing it in that quote?

 

And how can he, like you say, agree with everyone and still come off bad by saying it?

 

Are you asking me the difference between Heath Bell saying this and me or you saying this? That's what it sounds like.

 

He needs to shut up and play baseball, not publicly criticize his crappy team's coverage in the national media.

 

And he comes off sounding bad when voicing a popular opinion because that opinion doesn't need to be stated by a professional athlete. It's just an attention grab, and it sounds bitter and unprofessional

 

unprofessional? He's not a doctor, he's a baseball player. They chew tobacco and play with themselves on national tv. You think saying a sports network is biased in favor of New York makes him unprofessional? b/c he plays in the league, he's not allowed to express his opinion about media attention?

[CubbieBum]

Jeeez someone has issues with professional athletes. He should be rewarded and respected for speaking up on something that is wrong even though that something has huge contracts with the league you pay in. Just because everyone knows it doesn't mean it doesn't help immensely for an actual athlete to come out in say it. Fans can complain about it all they want but one of the athletes doing so only helps the situation and adds credibility. He's not doing it for attention. If you truly think he's only doing it so his name can get in the paper then all hope is lost because that is ignorant.

[Electron Blue]

Yay for telling us what we already know and coming off bitter and unprofessional in the process!

 

Why is he bitter and unprofessional, and where are you seeing it in that quote?

 

And how can he, like you say, agree with everyone and still come off bad by saying it?

 

Are you asking me the difference between Heath Bell saying this and me or you saying this? That's what it sounds like.

 

He needs to shut up and play baseball, not publicly criticize his crappy team's coverage in the national media.

 

And he comes off sounding bad when voicing a popular opinion because that opinion doesn't need to be stated by a professional athlete. It's just an attention grab, and it sounds bitter and unprofessional

 

First of all, my point with the bolded was to say that he is correct, which is an important place to start when judging what he says. Even if you think it was tactless, let's at least acknowledge that SOMEONE, anyone, in the spotlight is echoing this annoyance of ESPN.

 

Secondly, I still don't see what's bitter or unprofessional about it. He is an entertainer in an entertainment industry (as is Kruk/others). The performance of Kruk/others is really bad (at least in this regard), another entertainer publicly disagrees with them. BBTN is nothing more than highlights, and giving attention (aka marketing) baseball. When Jake Peavy's great game is hardly highlighted/marketed at all, in comparison to the Sox/Yankees, it sounds to me like a fair criticism -- and why the heck not one brought up by Heath Bell?

[Shilzzz]

I am all for what Bell said, and he is right in saying that. Think about the accolades Peavy would get were he on the Red Sox. That said, it doesn't/won't change anything. We all know that ESPN is generated by ad revenue, and in order for ESPN to make the most money possible they have to have the largest audience possible. By talking about large market teams more often, they make more revenue. This is capitalism, pure and simple.

 

With that said, probably the best thing people can do is just not watch ESPN, nor listen to their radio stations, visit their websites, or subscribe to their magazines. In fact, we would all be better off by simply ingoring/not talking about this cancer on sports altogether. However, ESPN is also largely responsible for the current popularity of sports, which I suppose is both good and bad. In the end, the viewer makes a decision of product purchase, or co-signing their broadcasting tactics, by watching the channel. The solution is simple.

 

Besides, local coverage (like comcast) is more exclusive, thusly bringing better coverage to what you care about. For the rest of the teams/games, that information is available widely. ESPN is a mock monopoly at best, and the more we buy into their product the more their obnoxiousness persists in the culture of sports (one could make the argument that translates over to a culture of news, in general, but alas).