If this is a playoff preview, this is going to be a fun October

So we have had one game where it was a 1-0 extra inning classic pitchers duel.

And we had a wild blown 6 run lead, gone into extra innings, big home runs and bizarre 9-5 double play to end it game.

Seriously if the ALCS is indeed going to between the Yankees and Rays and it is anything like THIS, then we could be looking at an awesome series... not awesome enough to have me not notice the Red Sox are not in the playoffs... but I wonder if TBS and MLB will be able to figure out how to market it.

Great players... competitive games... evenly matched teams.

Nope. No idea how to market it.

If this is a playoff preview, this is going to be a fun October

So we have had one game where it was a 1-0 extra inning classic pitchers duel.

And we had a wild blown 6 run lead, gone into extra innings, big home runs and bizarre 9-5 double play to end it game.

Seriously if the ALCS is indeed going to between the Yankees and Rays and it is anything like THIS, then we could be looking at an awesome series... not awesome enough to have me not notice the Red Sox are not in the playoffs... but I wonder if TBS and MLB will be able to figure out how to market it.

Great players... competitive games... evenly matched teams.

Nope. No idea how to market it.

Was tonight an ALCS preview? TBS is hoping not

The Rangers are playing the Rays at the Trop and game one of the series was a Cy Young match up of David Price versus Cliff Lee. The game itself was a thriller with the Rays coming back from behind and recapturing a portion of the AL East lead (and be tied for the best record in baseball.)

Both teams are filled with young exciting All Stars playing a brand of baseball that should be emulated across the land. And both are winning big despite financial constraints (the Rays and their microscopic payroll and the Rangers with bankruptcy and changing ownership.)

It could be a playoff preview, especially if the Rays capture the AL East crown, and a best of seven series between these teams (each in search of their first ever World Series title) would be filled with tension.

And it would the match up of TBS' nightmares.

Baseball has a hard enough time getting a national audience... with this series they will stuggle to get a LOCAL audience. The Dallas/Arlington/Fort Worth area would probably be wondering why the coverage of Cowboys practice has been preempted and 13 years and a pennant later, people in Tampa Bay still seem unaware that there is a baseball team in St. Pete.

If baseball had any promotions savvy they would be able to make these teams seem exciting and the antidote to big market teams bullying smaller markets.

Then again, people CLAIM they don't want to see the Yankees play a big market team in the World Series... then the Yankees vs the Phillies gets higher ratings than when smaller budget teams like the White Sox, Astros, Tigers, Cardinals or Rays are in the series.

Baseball will never be football in popularity, but why can't they at least make their product SEEN more? Football can turn a Super Bowl between New Orleans and Indianapolis into a national event.

You'd think that a series that features Evan Longoria, David Price, Carl Crawford, Josh Hamilton, Elvis Andrus, Cliff Lee and Vladimir Guerrero would at least catch some people's attention.

Maybe when Bud Selig steps down, someone who can MARKET a sport can take over.

(That's right, I had to find a way to blame Selig.)

Was tonight an ALCS preview? TBS is hoping not

The Rangers are playing the Rays at the Trop and game one of the series was a Cy Young match up of David Price versus Cliff Lee. The game itself was a thriller with the Rays coming back from behind and recapturing a portion of the AL East lead (and be tied for the best record in baseball.)

Both teams are filled with young exciting All Stars playing a brand of baseball that should be emulated across the land. And both are winning big despite financial constraints (the Rays and their microscopic payroll and the Rangers with bankruptcy and changing ownership.)

It could be a playoff preview, especially if the Rays capture the AL East crown, and a best of seven series between these teams (each in search of their first ever World Series title) would be filled with tension.

And it would the match up of TBS' nightmares.

Baseball has a hard enough time getting a national audience... with this series they will stuggle to get a LOCAL audience. The Dallas/Arlington/Fort Worth area would probably be wondering why the coverage of Cowboys practice has been preempted and 13 years and a pennant later, people in Tampa Bay still seem unaware that there is a baseball team in St. Pete.

If baseball had any promotions savvy they would be able to make these teams seem exciting and the antidote to big market teams bullying smaller markets.

Then again, people CLAIM they don't want to see the Yankees play a big market team in the World Series... then the Yankees vs the Phillies gets higher ratings than when smaller budget teams like the White Sox, Astros, Tigers, Cardinals or Rays are in the series.

Baseball will never be football in popularity, but why can't they at least make their product SEEN more? Football can turn a Super Bowl between New Orleans and Indianapolis into a national event.

You'd think that a series that features Evan Longoria, David Price, Carl Crawford, Josh Hamilton, Elvis Andrus, Cliff Lee and Vladimir Guerrero would at least catch some people's attention.

Maybe when Bud Selig steps down, someone who can MARKET a sport can take over.

(That's right, I had to find a way to blame Selig.)

Just when I was getting into this episode of The Steve Harvey Show...

OK fine... I'll watch the game.

(Oh man someone is getting fired at Turner!)

For those of you watching The Steve Harvey Show

Beckett has already let up a homer and a walk and he has recorded only one out.

All the while Jon Lester is on 4 days rest.

Thank GOD we're saving him for game 7.

Maybe I SHOULD watch the Steve Harvey Show

TBS!

I never thought TBS baseball's coverage could sink beneath those Dane Cook ads last year.

Well here we are...
The biggest ballgame of the year is on... an insanely anticipated game involving one of the biggest and most passionate fan bases of any sports...

AND YOU ARE HAVING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES???

Are you serious?

Anything short of The Joker taking over the airwaves is the biggest sports broadcasting bed wetting since The Heidi Bowl.

The Hell?

Now they are showing an episode of The Steve Harvey Show!!!

IS TBS SCREWING WITH ME???

Fox and TBS Can't Be Happy

Hey Fox! Hey TBS!
I got great news!

YOU'VE COMPLETELY LOST NEW YORK FOR THE BASEBALL PLAYOFFS!

Isn't that great?
The biggest media market, the best baseball city and the biggest stars in the game?

ALL GONE!

Poof!

And in exchange you get Milwaukee.
Isn't that great! You exchange New York for the second most passionate sports town in Wisconsin.

Can't you see the ratings go sky high?

Oh, you want more great news?

The dream NLCS of Los Angeles and Chicago?
That's now a first round series. Best of 5.

Better get that star studded media darling series out of the way early.

All because the Mets couldn't hold a 2 1/2 game lead with a week to go.

But you get the town that produced the Fonz!
That's cool, isn't it?

TBS and FOX are chanting LET'S GO METS!

The National League playoffs were setting up to put together some of the sexiest match ups in terms of TV ratings in years.

And the story lines were all no brainers and the markets themselves no doubt made ad salesmen drool.

You obviously have the Cubs... bringing in Chicago... plus the transplanted Chicagoans... plus all the people who follow them on WGN... plus the natural storyline of wanting to see them win for the first time in 100 years. Nice round number... it would have all the national interest of the Red Sox back in 2004, but the fan base isn't as obnoxious. (Sorry, me.)

You also have the Dodgers... LA... big stars in the stands... Joe Torre, the most famous manager in the game today getting his revenge on the Yankees... Manny Ramirez bringing his insanity to LA... Nomar going for his first ring... 50 years in LA (another nice round number.)

Then there are the Phillies... more of the Northeast bringing in Pennsylvania, Delaware and South Jersey... lots of transplants... a hungry fan base looking for a championship of any kind... the last two NL MVPs in Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins plus more stars like Cole Hamels and Chase Utley.

And finally the Mets... the lone reps of New York... more stars in the stands... the New York media machine would be running at full speed... David Wright and Jose Reyes hoping to be the next princes of the City.

Any combination of those teams would have been great.
They clearly would want the Cubs and Dodgers... winner goes to the World Series.
But there's nothing wrong with a Mets and Phillies series.

Hell, it would have venom that's for sure.

All seemed like it was lining up for this field of NL teams.
Then troubled started brewing... literally.

If the Brewers win the Wild Card it throws everything out of whack and leads to a reshuffling of playoff matchups that won't make the networks happy.

First of all you take New York out of the equation completely.
You don't want to take out New York when you are trying to hype a series.

Secondly because of the strange rule that says teams from the same division can't play each other in the first round, the Wild Card Brewers would face the Phillies... which would not be a big draw.

That means the marquee NLCS... the one with the great story lines, media markets and stars... the Dodgers and the Cubs... the two teams playing the best baseball in the NL... would now be a Division Series match up.

This reminds me of a few years ago in the NBA playoffs when the Spurs and the Suns were clearly the best two remaining teams... but they faced in the Conference Semi Finals... also known as "The Second Round."

The Spurs won that series and then beat inferior teams in the Conference Finals and NBA Finals for the crown that should have been awarded to them 2 round prior.

So you know the good folks at Turner and Fox are not exactly being subtle right now.

They are chanting "Let's Go Mets!"
They have too many half hour blocks to sell!

TBS can save money on blimps

With the Rays cruising to a playoff spot and the Twins only a game back, TBS could have a nightmarish Division Series match up... possibly even worse than their Rockies/Diamondbacks NLCS last year.

Picture a Twins/Rays Division Series.
Picture two domed stadiums... too horrifically ugly domed stadiums. (My defense of the Metrodome not withstanding)

Great blimp shots, eh?
"We're looking down on... well... a monstroscity and we can't even see the f---ing game!"

And while both teams play great fundemental baseball, how are they going to promote it? "GARZA VERSUS BAKER! Only ONE can win!"

I guess "Hey! Here are a pair of over achieving teams that just 7 years ago were threatened with contraction... now at least one of them will get to the ALCS. They play the game with heart, spirit and without spoiled stars! Come watch!"

Nahhhh.
No way THAT could work

And now the playoff nightmare for TBS is complete!

Congrats on covering the NLCS!

Here's the only people who won't be following it:

People on the East Coast
People on the West Coast
People in the Great Lakes region
People in the South
People in the Midwest
People who have followed baseball before 1993.

BUT you get the fertile markets of Denver and Phoenix wrapped up!

Hey! You'll get higher ratings than hockey!