Started By
Message
re: Why does ESPN hate college baseball?
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:14 pm to WonPercent
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:14 pm to WonPercent
quote:
If you have the ESPN + app, you can see any game for like $10 a month.
Again, trying to grow the game. Non-traditional fans. Not ones who seek it out by logging on and finding the game online.
2
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:15 pm to WonPercent
quote:
If you have the ESPN + app, you can see any game for like $10 a month.
At home. At work. At the airport. On the shitter. Any game on any ESPN SECN. ESPN+ or SECN+.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:21 pm to tossedoff
quote:
logging on
I tell my television to put on whatever game. There is no "logging on."
On my phone, I open the ESPN app and press "watch."
Skip McDonald's once a month, spend that on ESPN, and you'll be happier. Or, like I do, have xfinity and have it included.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:26 pm to borotiger
quote:
I tell my television to put on whatever game. There is no "logging on."
On my phone, I open the ESPN app and press "watch."
Skip McDonald's once a month, spend that on ESPN, and you'll be happier. Or, like I do, have xfinity and have it included.
You are searching for it. To grow the game, you need people who are not searching for it. You need people who stumble upon it. See how college softball has grown.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:36 pm to tossedoff
quote:
You need people who stumble upon it
To make your argument make sense, every game should be on an over the air broadcast like ABC, CBS or NBC.
ESPN has 1 ESPN channel, 1 ESPN2 channel, 1 ESPN U channel, 1 SECN channel and ESPN+. All but ESPN had college baseball on.
This is a you problem.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:38 pm to borotiger
ESPN+ is def worth it.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:44 pm to borotiger
quote:
To make your argument make sense, every game should be on an over the air broadcast like ABC, CBS or NBC.
ESPN has 1 ESPN channel, 1 ESPN2 channel, 1 ESPN U channel, 1 SECN channel and ESPN+. All but ESPN had college baseball on.
These are not channels on cable? People don't channel surf on cable? I don't understand why you are adverse to trying to grow the game. Defend ESPN on making stupid choices on programming.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:46 pm to tossedoff
Have a goodnight.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 10:56 pm to tossedoff
likely has something to do with the metro area of the colleges (potential viewers)?
Posted on 5/29/26 at 11:31 pm to tossedoff
Because it's a niche sport compared to football and basketball. It has never been one of the "big three" because there are only the "big two."
Posted on 5/29/26 at 11:32 pm to greenbean
Prob. I bet the viewership is not that high..though def do not see many ads for it, highlights on shows, rarely hear them talk about....but they are a multi-billion dollar company. They know what they are doing better than my arse.
Posted on 5/29/26 at 11:39 pm to tossedoff
quote:
Why do you show LSU/Alabama football on ABC primetime Saturday
Because of L3U’s “national brand?”
Or more likely, so the nation can watch Bama whoop dat Tigah arse once again..
Posted on 5/29/26 at 11:49 pm to tossedoff
quote:
Do people not tune in for the 16/1 game for the basketball tournament? Random people just surfing the channels might stop to watch a game that has a crowd and energy
The 16/1 games are usually noncompetitive and poorly watched. Other than fans of the #1 seed, most people don’t watch. Instead they find more competitive games to watch and games with two big name programs. Not a #1 seed versus a Northeast State Tech program. So to your answer, no, people do not watch relative to other games.. .
Posted on 5/29/26 at 11:56 pm to tossedoff
quote:
I don't understand why you are adverse to trying to grow the game. Defend ESPN on making stupid choices on programming.
It isn’t that people don’t want to grow the game. It is that people think you are completely wrong and what you are suggested would not have a positive impact. It is that people think you are wrong that more people tune in for “excitement” than for a game between two bigger name schools with larger fanbases. It is that most people don’t think ESPN made stupid choices on programming.
Have you ever heard of Bananaball? Since excitement and crowd energy are so important to you, Bananaball may be what you seek. It may very well may be more entertaining to you than first round regional college baseball games.
Posted on 5/30/26 at 3:56 am to tossedoff
The host teams are matched up against the weakest opponent in the regional. You can't predict UCLA and Auburn outcomes and most of those host openers were complete snoozers.
Posted on 5/30/26 at 7:51 am to tossedoff
They give college baseball little attention due to the fact they have to constantly kiss the arse of everything NBA.
Posted on 5/30/26 at 8:05 am to tossedoff
quote:
Again, trying to grow the game. Non-traditional fans. Not ones who seek it out by logging on and finding the game online.
Baseball is really hard to program... It is slow, but still has lots of dead time that has to be filled by commercials. You never know how long a game will last or if it will be rained out when you try to schedule it. So you have to have a lot of backup programing available. And if you have a four hour game... people get pissed because you are pre-empting scheduled programing.
Just not that appealing to non traditional fans. In fact even fans of some college teams just 'keep track of' rather than watch their team on a regular basis...
It is interesting because softball is actually growing and picking up more non traditional fans. Why? The game moves faster, the ball carries slower which allows for more defense... and most importantly a game will usually fit in a 2.5 hour window.
It is too late now... but IMO college baseball would have been a lot better off if they had used a seven inning model from the beginning as it pertains to fan interest and TV.
Posted on 5/30/26 at 8:17 am to tossedoff
quote:I give them credit for building college baseball into what it is starting back with the CWS starting in 82-83. That year, Texas (Shiraldo, Clemsons and company) vs Alabama (Davide Magadan and company) was my first year to watch it and I watched every game I could and still work. It has grown since. Mistakes were made along the way but college baseball is what it is due to ESPN.
Why does ESPN hate college baseball?
Posted on 5/30/26 at 8:26 am to Diamondawg
Is softball getting more popular than baseball? It seems all the softball games have been in prime time on ESPN and Espn2
Posted on 5/30/26 at 8:30 am to Wishbone85
quote:
Is softball getting more popular than baseball?
Softball has had better viewership than baseball for quite a while.
Page 2 of 3
Back to top
Follow SECRant for SEC Football News