Would you attend a Silent Sporting Event?

[Fitzy0220]

58 minutes ago, BringBackTheVet said:

 

Perhaps if you put more words in all caps it'd help me see your point.  Remember, it's he who types loudest that wins.

Think of Those words as Distractions seeing that you NEED those types of things to Enjoy a sporting event

 

[CaliforniaGlowin]

You REALLY want silent?  Lesley University showed their baseball games online without sound.  That was not enjoyable and was weird.  At least give the sounds of the game.

 

They play cool old school music at Dodgers games, so I like that.  At Rams games the music is a bit much.

[The_Admiral]

That's Dieter from the Kings on the Dodgers organ, right? He's gotta be one of the best out there. Dodger Stadium should always have a classic feel to the presentation, I feel.

[mjrbaseball]

Would I attend a silent sporting event? Absolutely, and I've done so many times. Old Yankee Stadium in the mid-1960s was a fantastic experience. (Too bad the team sucked.) 

[Fitzy0220]

55 minutes ago, CaliforniaGlowin said:

You REALLY want silent?  Lesley University showed their baseball games online without sound.  That was not enjoyable and was weird.  At least give the sounds of the game.

 

They play cool old school music at Dodgers games, so I like that.  At Rams games the music is a bit much.

Talking more of being in attendance than watching on TV but Yeah Sports on TV without sound is kinda weird

[Red Wolf]

Do old people still bring radios and headphones to live sporting events? My grandpa used to do that at football games, where he'd listen to the team's radio broadcast while in the crowd for the actual game. Is that still a thing at all?

[DG_ThenNowForever]

When I was at Summer League last weekend, the loudest cheers I heard all day were for the baby race.

[TheRicSlick]

The Knicks tried it a while back.

 

https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2017/03/06/knicks-warriors-no-music/

 

Truly a trailblazing franchise.

[dont care]

I don’t see what the problem is with having distractions for a orioles vs. giants game where it’s completely meaningless. The distractions give you a reason to be there when the teams don’t. Now if it’s the Yankees or Red Sox, cards ect they don’t need the distractions especially late in the season and playoffs. They still have their own things like sweet Caroline ect, but if a fan got tickets to a game and decide they would rather spend it at the bar there is nothing wrong with that. Now spilling beer on people is completely obnoxious and shouldn’t be tolerated but if they aren’t doing that there is nothing wrong with what they are doing.

[BBTV]

The thing is, they're not even 'distractions.  What are you supposed to do when there's a pitching change?  Sit there debating the merits of bringing in a lefty or watching his warmup pitches to see if you can pick up on how his stuff looks that day?  Someone said "that's what the ticket is for".  Bull crap.  The ticket is for whatever I bought it for.  If it's to gain entrance into the beer garden, or to catch up with friends and BS with each other about life, or to watch the game, or just to eat 32 $1 dogs, then so be it.  

[Fitzy0220]

3 minutes ago, BringBackTheVet said:

The thing is, they're not even 'distractions.  What are you supposed to do when there's a pitching change?  Sit there debating the merits of bringing in a lefty or watching his warmup pitches to see if you can pick up on how his stuff looks that day?  Someone said "that's what the ticket is for".  Bull crap.  The ticket is for whatever I bought it for.  If it's to gain entrance into the beer garden, or to catch up with friends and BS with each other about life, or to watch the game, or just to eat 32 $1 dogs, then so be it.  

Yes, it's what I've done my whole life when I have gone To Pens, Steelers, Pirates, Pittsburgh Phantoms (Roller Hockey International), Wheeling Nailers, Hampton Roads Admirals (multiple times while I was in the Navy) and Baltimore Orioles (1x while I was in the Navy) Games. The SOCIAL INTERACTION comes by siting my ass in my seat and TALKING to people around me (during the game, during intermission, etc) that's how it was done before Attention Spans became so short!  

[Quillz]

2 hours ago, Fitzy0220 said:

IS the Game NO LONGER the Main Attraction

For some people, has it ever been?

 

Baseball, to me, is as much about being at the stadium as is the actual game. I've been to plenty of Dodger and Angel games where neither team was going to be in the playoffs and thus, all the games after the All-Star Break were somewhat meaningless. But going to Dodger Stadium is fun. Chance to spent an evening away from home, get a few Dodger dogs, just listen to the crowd. I don't even remember the actual game and who won or lost, and it wasn't really important. But if I went to Dodger Stadium right now? I'd be much more focused on the game because the team is contending. So I think it's also situational.

[Ferdinand Cesarano]

On 7/12/2019 at 4:57 PM, alxy8s said:

I'd go for a silent broadcast of most sports as well. The commentary does nothing for me

 

Oh, man, no way! Speaking as someone who grew up loving baseball on the radio (and who still listens to old broadcasts for fun), I can honestly say that commentary makes the game for me.

 

For example, the best thing amongst the many good aspects of the AAF was the outstanding quality of every one of its announ ing teams. They made me love watching those games.

 

Also, I took to watching the games of the Nebraska Danger of the IFL solely on account of their announcer Steve Stein, who is one of the best I have ever heard. (Check him out here.)

 

Recently I caught a few MLL games on Stadium. Joe Beninati was in the booth for one of these games, and it was a delight. And then in the next game he was teamed with Quint Kessenich. The dream team was back!

 

A soccer match called by Martin Tyler is a sublime pleasure; he's the Vin Scully of football. And MLS made a superb choice in Jon Champion; let's call him the Ernie Harwell of football.

 

Of course, bad announcing is painful. Mark Jackson (like his bad-announcing baseball equivalent, Joe Morgan, a truly great player) is atrocious. And Net fans knew this before anyone else. But watch a Net game called by Ian Eagle (teamed with Richard Jefferson or Sarah Kustok or Jim Spanarkel or anyone else), and you will experience how a great announcer improves the experience.

 

So, while I would like to attend a live game with no recorded music or sound effects (and, while we're at it, no patriotic rituals imposed on me), I say no to a broadcast without announcers. It would not be a stretch to say that I tend to get more enjoyment from the announcers than from the players.

[The_Admiral]

32 minutes ago, BringBackTheVet said:

Someone said "that's what the ticket is for".  Bull crap.  The ticket is for whatever I bought it for.

 

Let's not see Booksmart together.

[BBTV]

8 minutes ago, the admiral said:

 

Let's not see Booksmart together.

 

Imma download it and watch on my ipad next time I'm at a game.

[Fitzy0220]

17 minutes ago, Quillz said:

For some people, has it ever been?

 

Baseball, to me, is as much about being at the stadium as is the actual game. I've been to plenty of Dodger and Angel games where neither team was going to be in the playoffs and thus, all the games after the All-Star Break were somewhat meaningless. But going to Dodger Stadium is fun. Chance to spent an evening away from home, get a few Dodger dogs, just listen to the crowd. I don't even remember the actual game and who won or lost, and it wasn't really important. But if I went to Dodger Stadium right now? I'd be much more focused on the game because the team is contending. So I think it's also situational.

That's what Pirates games have become, warm night out, PNC Park has that Gorgeous view of Downtown, the Rivers Casino is within walking Distance from the Ball park. Dinner in town, arrive at Pirate game by the 3rd inning, leave the game by the 8th inning, go to the Casino, Boom perfect night on the town. The Actual Game has become Secondary 

The Pirates use that FLUFF to put butts in seats because the On Field Product sucks ass. 

[Quillz]

Just now, Fitzy0220 said:

The Pirates use that FLUFF to put butts in seats because the On Field Product sucks ass. 

None of that would change if the Pirates were good, though. And that's kind of my point. There is no "right" or "wrong" answer to a question like this. Some people want to go to PNC Park for the actual game, some people want to go because it's in a good location with many other things to do. Consider a team like the Rays: they were having attendance issues even back when the team was making the World Series. They had no fewer amenities then as they do now, but the ballpark itself is in a bad location. The actual on-field success of the team has had little to do with their many problems (although it probably doesn't help when the team is bad).

[BBTV]

The only 'distraction' that I'll agree needs to die is the wave.  It's one think if it's a 10-0 game and your team blows, it's another when people actually are trying to watch the game and it becomes about people looking for the wave to come around.  It was kinda not terrible in the donut stadiums, but in the neo-retro parks it's freaking dumb.

[Red Wolf]

26 minutes ago, BringBackTheVet said:

The only 'distraction' that I'll agree needs to die is the wave.  It's one think if it's a 10-0 game and your team blows, it's another when people actually are trying to watch the game and it becomes about people looking for the wave to come around.  It was kinda not terrible in the donut stadiums, but in the neo-retro parks it's freaking dumb.

 

I was at a Cardinals game where they did the wave. Best fans my ass.

[chrysleraspen08]

I do agree that a "silent game" would be cool, however I don't find all the extra things at games a nuisance at all. If they are done right or if the team running the promotion does it properly, it is a nice addition to the game and the fan experience as a whole. Something like the Freeze races in Atlanta are an example of a promotion that is done right. It's different from what most teams do and it adds a bit more excitement in a lull later in the game (as much as I love baseball, it sometimes needs something extra like that to add to the whole experience).

 

What I do find more of a nuisance are when the sponsor is crammed into a part of the game where it doesn't need to be. Like I've been to hockey games where they throw a commercial for a sponsor after a whistle that isn't connected to anything at all. Or how every power play or penalty kill is sponsored by someone. I don't care that it's "the Little Caesars Pizza Pizza Power Play!" or it's "the BK PK!" or something like that. I get why it's done since you need to maximize your profits, but there's a much more natural way that it can be done.

 

As far as people going to the game and watching their phone more than the game or spending most of it in the bar, I personally don't get it, but it doesn't really bother me as long as their not being disruptive and they know the risks associated with what they're doing and admit fault if something happens (getting hit with a ball while looking at their screen for example).

As for all the extra stuff at games, it's what teams have to do now to get fans to keep coming to games. If you strip it down it sounds kind of stupid, but it's true. When I go to a baseball game for example, the main reason I go is for the game on the field since I'm a fan of the sport. However the whole reason I go to games is for the full experience. I want to be with the crowd on a warm summer day. I want to see what cool things that some of the ballparks have to offer, or see what else I can do at the park for an inning if the game is going slow or if it's really hot outside. As much as I love watching an analyzing sports, why would I spend $100 to watch every second of a 3 hour regular season baseball game in person (especially if neither of the teams are contending), when I could do the same with a better vantage point and decent analysis at home for free?

It was different like 30-40 years ago when most games weren't televised, and the entertainment dollar wasn't competitive as it is now, plus games were cheaper. But now the extra stuff and fan experience is what's keeping people coming to the games, and when a single game for a family of 4 costs the same as a one year Netflix subscription just to get into the park, you want to make that experience worthwhile so people will want to keep coming back to the park and spending their money there, as opposed to just watching the game at home. While I do like the games, I do think the extra stuff is necessary nowadays. The only way I can see a silent game happening is as a gimmick, or if they did a night dedicated to people with sensory issues coming to a game.