Read an Excerpt
Chapter 17
Keeping Up with the Show: Baseball Online, on the Air, and on the Newsstand
In This Chapter
- Surfing for baseball on the World Wide Web
- Finding baseball on TV
- Reading about baseball
The enormous amount of media coverage baseball receives reflects the sport's enduring popularity. And the coverage doesn't end with the regular major league baseball season. You can be lounging in front of the fire in the dead of winter and still enjoy plenty of baseball action -- without even leaving the comforts of your living room.
Baseball in Cyberspace
Back in the "old" days, you had to travel to your nearest newsstand to get the latest scores and news. Now you can get scores, news, and a wealth of other information at the click of a mouse. Thousands of baseball Web sites abound on the Internet. This section highlights some of the more popular ones.
MLB@Bat
In 1995, baseball became the first major league sport to go on the Internet (and the Seattle Mariners were the first team to have its own Web site). You can access the big league site, MLB@Bat, at www.majorleaguebaseball.com. Then get ready to dive into a treasure trove of baseball delights. During a recent tour of the Web site, we discovered a live conference call between all 30 major league managers, the latest results from the Arizona Fall League, trivia contests, the complete records for the 1997 season, and a bevy of highlight films. During the regular season, you can summon up the latest standings, league leaders, plays of the week, and live broadcasts of games you can't see anywhere else.
The Negro Baseball Leagues
James A. Riley, director of research for the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, is the editor of this Web site at www.blackbaseball.com. The site is an archival resource that acquaints you with the rich history of the various Negro leagues, their players, managers, owners, and teams. This site also serves as a clearinghouse for Negro League books (sold through a discount bookstore) and memorabilia, such as jackets, caps, and autographs.
The Baseball Server
Although it is chock-full of major league information, the Baseball Server at www.nando.net/sportsserver/baseball/mlb.html is also the site to visit if you want find out what is happening in the minor leagues, from AAA ball to the independents. The Baseball Server features standings, stats, records, players of the week, and new highlights.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame on the Web at www.baseballhalloffame.org cannot give you the same thrills as an actual visit to Cooperstown, but it's the next best thing. This site offers users an online tour of the Hall of Fame, its museum, and its library. The Fall Classic page presents the history of the World Series as told through audio and video clips.
Total Baseball Online
Who holds the record for home runs by a National League switch-hitter? How many games did Babe Ruth win as a pitcher? The best place to find out is this Web site (www.totalbaseball.com/), which is affiliated with Total Baseball, the official encyclopedia of the major leagues. You can download all the material found in that volume, including its illuminating articles on various aspects of baseball history. (By the way, the answers to our trivia questions are: Howard Johnson, who hit most of those homers as a third baseman with the New York Mets, and 96 pitching wins for Babe Ruth.)
Ballparks by Munsey & Suppes
Are you a ballpark buff? Does just a glimpse of Wrigley Field's near mythic ivy-covered walls set you to swooning? Have we got a Web site for you! Ballparks by Munsey & Suppes (www.ballparks.com/baseball/index.htm ) has all the information you could ever possibly want about major league ballparks present, past, and future -- including seating plans, field dimensions, interior and exterior photos, turf type (which tells you, for example, that the Orioles play on Maryland Bluegrass in Baltimore's Camden Yards), and historical summaries.
The Sports Network
This Canadian network's Web site at tsn.ca is one of the most creative in all sports. Besides the usual stats, standings, and records, it has featured interactive games, such as Diamondball, which allows the fans to perform as virtual managers. The Couch Master, fast becoming a Canadian Internet legend, runs a rollicking Chat Room. During the 1997 World Series, fans of this site had the opportunity to engage in lively chats with Blue Jays ace Roger Clemens and future Hall of Famer Dave Winfield.
Major league team sites
Many of major league baseball's 30 franchises now boast Web sites so you can keep up with your favorite team's latest doings with the click of a mouse (see Table 17-1).
Table 17-1 Major League Team Web Sites
Team | Site |
Arizona Diamondbacks | www.azdiamondbacks.com |
Atlanta Braves | www.atlantabraves.com |
Baltimore Orioles | www.theorioles.com |
Boston Red Sox | www.redsox.com |
Chicago Cubs | www.cubs.com |
Chicago White Sox | www.chisox.com |
Cincinnati Reds | www.cincinnatireds.com |
Cleveland Indians | www.indians.com |
Detroit Tigers | www.detroittigers.com |
Florida Marlins | www.flamarlins.com |
Houston Astros | www.astros.com |
Kansas City Royals | www.kcroyals.com |
Los Angeles Dodgers | www.dodgers.com |
Milwaukee Brewers | www.milwaukeebrewers.com |
Minnesota Twins | www.wcco.com/sports/twins |
Montreal Expos | www.montrealexpos.com |
New York Yankees | www.yankees.com |
Oakland Athletics | www.oaklandathletics.com |
Philadelphia Phillies | www.phillies.com |
Pittsburgh Pirates | www.piratesball.com |
San Diego Padres | www.padres.org |
San Francisco Giants | www.sfgiants.com |
Seattle Mariners | www.mariners.org |
St. Louis Cardinals | www.stlcardinals.com |
Tampa Bay Devil Rays | www.devilray.com |
Texas Rangers | www.texasrangers.com |
Toronto Blue Jays | www.bluejays.ca |
As we went to press, three teams still lacked official Web sites: The Anaheim Angels, Colorado Rockies, and New York Mets.
Baseball on the Tube
Who said that baseball on television was boring? This is your chance to prove them wrong. This section is a guide to get you pointed in the right direction -- toward baseball on the tube.
ESPN
This cable network, based in Bristol, Connecticut, begins its regular-season baseball coverage on Opening Day. ESPN broadcasts Sunday night games as well as two games each Wednesday for a total of 75+ regular-season exposures. It also carries divisional playoff games during the postseason. Fans can get the latest scores and game gossip on Baseball Tonight, which airs every evening throughout the baseball season.
ESPN also affords baseball-wide coverage all year round on its flagship news program, Sportscenter. The show appears at regular intervals throughout each day. ESPN2, the little brother of ESPN, does not offer live coverage of baseball. However, the ESPN2 sports ticker, which runs during its broadcasts of other sports, offers you up-to-the-minute game scores, transactions, and additional bits of news. ESPN2 also covers some off-field baseball events, such as the 1997 expansion draft and the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. Both stations broadcast college baseball games. Consult your schedule to find out who plays and when.
ESPN Sports Radio -- a network with 375 affiliates around the country -- broadcasts all postseason games (including the World Series), the All-Star Game, and a selection of regular season contests. Its All-Star coverage includes two events that take place the day before the game: the popular Home Run Derby and the All-Star Game Gala.
Fox Broadcasting
Ruppert Murdoch's Fox Network brings you 18 regular-season Saturday games starting in late May. Fox/Liberty, the network's cable arm, divides 52 national exposures between its Fox Sports Network and FX. As explained in the next section, Fox alternates its postseason coverage with NBC.
NBC
The network that made television history with Baseball's Game of the Week does not broadcast regular-season games under the current TV contract (which runs until the year 2000). However, it does alternate coverage with Fox Network for the All-Star Game, the League Championship Series, and World Series. In 1998, NBC covers the All-Star Game and the American League Championship Series, while Fox covers the World Series and National League Championship Series. The two networks will switch assignments in 1999 and trade back once more in 2000. ESPN also covers some League Championship Series games as part of this postseason trio.
The Sports Network
The Sports Network (TSN) is an independent cable network in Canada. In 1997, a typical broadcast year, TSN featured 80 Toronto Blue Jays games, 25 Montreal Expos games, assorted games from the Fox Network, and full coverage of the postseason.
The Classic Sports Network
Yes, the snow is piled up to your rooftop, but you can still watch baseball. Tuning in to the Classic Sports Network is like stepping into a time machine. The cable station doesn't carry any live baseball telecasts, but it does bring you some of the greatest games ever played in their entirety. You'll see the Brooklyn Dodgers win their first and only world championship, Nolan Ryan pitch a no-hitter, the storied sixth game of the 1975 World Series between the Red Sox and Reds, and much more. Check your cable listings to see if your carrier provides the station.
Caribbean League telecasts
Many Spanish-speaking networks carry baseball from the Caribbean leagues during the winter months. You can watch players like Juan Gonzalez, Bernie Williams, and Ivan Rodriguez strut their stuff while you wrap Christmas presents. Consult your local TV listings for times and schedules.
Baseball in Print
If you don't want to play or watch baseball (or look for it on the Web), why not read about it? This section describes some great starting points for you.
- USA Today (1-800-USA-0001) provides fans with excellent national baseball coverage daily. Unlike many local papers, it rarely brings a hometown slant to a game or story. USA Today Baseball Weekly is the best source of week-to-week coverage, particularly during the off-season.
- The Sporting News (800-777-6785) is an excellent weekly magazine/newspaper that covers all the major league teams throughout the year as well as other sports.
- For comprehensive coverage of a particular baseball news story or event, read Sports Illustrated (800-992-0196).
- Baseball America (800-845-2726) has a fortnightly publishing schedule; therefore, many of its major league stories are old news by the time a copy reaches your hands. However, no publication can surpass its coverage of minor league and college baseball. If you are in a fantasy league and want to chart the progress of an up-and-coming prospect, a subscription to this magazine is a shrewd investment. (See Chapter 18 for more information on fantasy leagues.)
Other publications for your baseball reading pleasure include
- Baseball Digest (800-877-5893). A monthly compendium of baseball articles written by leading sportswriters from around the country.
- Street & Smith's Baseball (212-880-8698). The most respected of the preseason baseball annuals.
- Who's Who In Baseball The complete records, minor and major league, of nearly every current major league player. It is updated annually.
- Beckett's Baseball Card Monthly (972-991-6657). A guide to the fluctuating baseball card market -- the Dow Jones often exhibits less volatility -- by the leaders in the industry.
