Talking Points From the MLB Season so far
The Major League Baseball season is about halfway through, so things are starting to really take shape.
The pre-season optimism of the lower placed, ambitious teams has all but ran out. The bold predictions made by pundits back in January and February are starting to look somewhat foolish and fans of the Dodgers, Yankees and Phillies are starting to dream of the World Series.
It’s the perfect time, hence, to look back at the first half of the season and pinpoint some of the major talking points of the campaign so far. Read on to find out what the first 80 games of MLB 2024 have taught us.
The Offense Is Flagging
Cricket, the world’s most popular bat and ball sport, has never really taken off here in the United States, but it could gain a foothold this year. That’s not just because the hugely exciting T20 World Cup is being jointly staged in the USA, it’s also because of the falling appeal of baseball this season.
At the halfway point of the season, one thing we can say for sure is that top level baseball just hasn’t been as fun to watch this year. Readers tuning in to catch the latest MLB picks today have been left regularly disappointed by the offensive outputs of almost every team in the league.
If this current trend of underperforming offense is to continue for the remainder of the campaign, we will see:
- 1400 less hits than last season
- 1300 fewer runs
- 800 less homers
- 600 fewer doubles
If that were to happen it would see the league record the fewest doubles since 1993, the least hits per game since 1968, and the lowest batting average since 1992. It’s not a good picture for fans and, while we could spend the rest of this article debating the reasons why offensive stats are down, all that’s really left to say is: things need to improve.
(The 2024 compilation could be a lot shorter…)
Sports Is a Vehicle for Change
When sportsmen and women use their position of privilege to highlight social injustices or global issues, the retort from critics is that sport is no place for politics. A cursory look back through the history books will reveal that not to be the case (for both good and bad reasons.)
Earlier this week, we were served up a reminder of just how sports can be used as a vehicle for change when Reggie Jackson shared his experiences of playing in Birmingham, Alabama in 1967 under Jim Crow.
There to honor the Negro Leagues, TV pundits were left open mouthed as Jackson shared some of the horrifying experiences of racism that he endured in Alabama during the 1960s. The fact that Jackson was able to sit there 57 years later and share his stories on live television shows how much society has changed during that time.
While things remain imperfect, we are on a path to a more enlightened and equal society, and sports has played a part in that journey.
Underwhelming Individuals
Let’s return to the action out on the field of play and, much like our first point, it isn’t a particularly positive one. With offensive stats down and entertainment in short supply, baseball fans have also had to contend with a number of poor performances from the league’s top players.
Ronald Acuna Jr, the NL’s MVP started the season sluggish before picking up, and then, there’s the ACL injury that has ruled him out for the remainder of the campaign. Corbin Carroll has failed to follow up in the form that saw him win the NL Rookie of the Year last time out, and Edwin Diaz has been pitching at well below par on his return from injury.
There are many more who have been disappointing so far this season, in fact too many to name. The only positive, however, is that the season still has a long way to go and that the issues leading to reduced offensive stats and worsening individual performances have enough time to be resolved.
(The individuals of the USA cricket team have been anything but underwhelming as of late.)
Unfortunately it just so happens that this downturn in form and entertainment in MLB has come at a time when cricket is putting on a display of big hits and 90mph + bowling in Grand Prairie, Lauderhill and New York.
Perhaps the lesson to learn, then, is that if the baseball action on TV is turgid and uninspiring, you’d be better off flicking to the other channel and watching team USA in the Super 8’s of the T20 World Cup. At least for now, anyway…
