Playoff Victory Celebrations (Baseball V. the other majors)

[Christine-In-AZ]

Apologies...forum OT, but I'm curious as to some of your takes.

Baseball teams go crazy jumping up and down on the field, spray champagne and even don series winning specific shirts and caps after clinching playoff berths, winning wild card games and 1st round series victories. Not sure about the NHL, but I know NBA and NFL teams reserve such celebration and merchandising for conference final victories and title wins.

Why(why do you think) in MLB, is every step to a title achieved followed by a blow out celebration that is far more than the other 3 "majors"? "Ah, hey Jays and Royals? You've only won a playoff series...why are you celebrating as if you've won something amazing"?

Just curious as to what others think.

[bwgood77]

To me, especially with baseball, because it is a MUCH bigger achievement to win a series in the baseball playoffs. In basketball and hockey, half the teams make the playoffs, so most teams have won a series not too long ago.

In baseball, sure, they added the wildcard playoff, but that one game playoff is a bit pathetic, so basically you only have 8 teams out of 30 playing in a playoff series in ANY year...that makes it TWICE as tough...do you know how tough it would be to make the playoffs if only four in each conference made it in the NBA?

Well think about it being that way for a long time.....many teams will have never made the playoffs or played in a series for YEARS....and in MLB, it used to be only 4 teams made the playoffs total....4 divisions, 4 pennants....WE WON THE PENNANT...you basically play 162 games to go to the conference finals.

It is also partially (this year) due to it being the Blue Jays (who happen to be in a division with the Yankees, Red Sox, Devil Rays who have all been tough for 10-15 years) not being in the playoffs really since 93 and the KC Royals were always the doormat of the league for the last 20 years or so until last year....so despite being in TX and seeing everyone disappointed here, I think the Blue Jay vs Royals is great for baseball.

The Cubs haven't won a playoff series in decades. Unless you live under a rock you have to know the Steve Bartman story...if not google it...but a fan altered their possible playoff series victory about 15 years ago after a long time never making it...I mean, I don't think the Cubs won a playoff series in like the last 60 years....that's just a guess...not a huge baseball guy...maybe longer than that.

The only other team to be determined in the final four is the Dodgers or Mets....Dodgers been there recently, so I guess I'd prefer the Mets, especially since it would irk Yankees fans.

[bwgood77]

To add to that, division play if much more heavily weighted in baseball, and teams like the Cubs and Blue Jays are in divisions with powerhouses...St Louis Cardinals have ruled that Cubs division for years and the Blue Jays have it worse with the Yankees in the early 2000s, then the Red Sox in the mid 2000s, then Tampa Bay.

KC also had it pretty tough as the White Sox were tough in early 2000s, and the Twins were always competitive, and then the Tigers came to life like the last five years.

With Baseball, I see more fans wake up and get SUPER excited with KC, the Cubs, and I can only imagine Toronto, knowing these boards.

[Christine-In-AZ]

To me, especially with baseball, because it is a MUCH bigger achievement to win a series in the baseball playoffs. In basketball and hockey, half the teams make the playoffs, so most teams have won a series not too long ago.

In baseball, sure, they added the wildcard playoff, but that one game playoff is a bit pathetic, so basically you only have 8 teams out of 30 playing in a playoff series in ANY year...that makes it TWICE as tough...do you know how tough it would be to make the playoffs if only four in each conference made it in the NBA?

Well think about it being that way for a long time.....many teams will have never made the playoffs or played in a series for YEARS....and in MLB, it used to be only 4 teams made the playoffs total....4 divisions, 4 pennants....WE WON THE PENNANT...you basically play 162 games to go to the conference finals.

It is also partially (this year) due to it being the Blue Jays (who happen to be in a division with the Yankees, Red Sox, Devil Rays who have all been tough for 10-15 years) not being in the playoffs really since 93 and the KC Royals were always the doormat of the league for the last 20 years or so until last year....so despite being in TX and seeing everyone disappointed here, I think the Blue Jay vs Royals is great for baseball.

The Cubs haven't won a playoff series in decades. Unless you live under a rock you have to know the Steve Bartman story...if not google it...but a fan altered their possible playoff series victory about 15 years ago after a long time never making it...I mean, I don't think the Cubs won a playoff series in like the last 60 years....that's just a guess...not a huge baseball guy...maybe longer than that.

The only other team to be determined in the final four is the Dodgers or Mets....Dodgers been there recently, so I guess I'd prefer the Mets, especially since it would irk Yankees fans.

I semi get your rational (a smaller pct of MLB teams make the playoffs), but no team in the NFL, the NBA or NHL goes bananas and pointlessly wastes alcohol when they reach the conference finals...only 4 teams out of 30/32 make BBall & Football's semies...but still they don't make early fools of themselves like baseballers. Why aren't these "final fourers" wearing champagne eye protection in the locker room. Something (other than numbers is at play)

Bartman? Really? Did you watch "Catching Hell"? This is off the question I posed, but (and I'm routing for the Cubbies) ...you really think Bartman altered that series? Unless you were hiding under a rock, you'd know that about 4 other people tried to catch that foul ball that everyone (including you) would've reached for in the din of the moment. If you've not watched "Catching Hell" get prepared...a sh*tload of those lovable Chicago Cubs fans were about as low as low can get...and everyone of them would have reached just like Bartman. Give me a f**cking break..."altered the series". Scapegoats are nice to use...the Cubs flatout blew that series, and then collectively made pr*cks and c*nts of themselves by blaming one of their own.

CATCHING HELL...must see

[Christine-In-AZ]

note: Cubs won the 2003 NLDS vs the Braves

[Christine-In-AZ]

BW,

You're painting this like there are special circumstances at play with the Jays, the Royals and Cubs. The D-backs have done this same schtick everytime they've made the playoffs...won a series or the whole shebang. Every clinch and playoff series win gets a "We Are The Champions" celebration ... I don't get it! Why baseball?

[bwgood77]

To me, especially with baseball, because it is a MUCH bigger achievement to win a series in the baseball playoffs. In basketball and hockey, half the teams make the playoffs, so most teams have won a series not too long ago.

In baseball, sure, they added the wildcard playoff, but that one game playoff is a bit pathetic, so basically you only have 8 teams out of 30 playing in a playoff series in ANY year...that makes it TWICE as tough...do you know how tough it would be to make the playoffs if only four in each conference made it in the NBA?

Well think about it being that way for a long time.....many teams will have never made the playoffs or played in a series for YEARS....and in MLB, it used to be only 4 teams made the playoffs total....4 divisions, 4 pennants....WE WON THE PENNANT...you basically play 162 games to go to the conference finals.

It is also partially (this year) due to it being the Blue Jays (who happen to be in a division with the Yankees, Red Sox, Devil Rays who have all been tough for 10-15 years) not being in the playoffs really since 93 and the KC Royals were always the doormat of the league for the last 20 years or so until last year....so despite being in TX and seeing everyone disappointed here, I think the Blue Jay vs Royals is great for baseball.

The Cubs haven't won a playoff series in decades. Unless you live under a rock you have to know the Steve Bartman story...if not google it...but a fan altered their possible playoff series victory about 15 years ago after a long time never making it...I mean, I don't think the Cubs won a playoff series in like the last 60 years....that's just a guess...not a huge baseball guy...maybe longer than that.

The only other team to be determined in the final four is the Dodgers or Mets....Dodgers been there recently, so I guess I'd prefer the Mets, especially since it would irk Yankees fans.

I semi get your rational (a smaller pct of MLB teams make the playoffs), but no team in the NFL, the NBA or NHL goes bananas and pointlessly wastes alcohol when they reach the conference finals...only 4 teams out of 30/32 make BBall & Football's semies...but still they don't make early fools of themselves like baseballers. Why aren't these "final fourers" wearing champagne eye protection in the locker room. Something (other than numbers is at play)

Bartman? Really? Did you watch "Catching Hell"? This is off the question I posed, but (and I'm routing for the Cubbies) ...you really think Bartman altered that series? Unless you were hiding under a rock, you'd know that about 4 other people tried to catch that foul ball that everyone (including you) would've reached for in the din of the moment. If you've not watched "Catching Hell" get prepared...a sh*tload of those lovable Chicago Cubs fans were about as low as low can get...and everyone of them would have reached just like Bartman. Give me a f**cking break..."altered the series". Scapegoats are nice to use...the Cubs flatout blew that series, and then collectively made pr*cks and c*nts of themselves by blaming one of their own.

CATCHING HELL...must see

No, I watched that game and I don't think he altered it, but my point was that people and fans were SO crazy about POSSIBLY finally winning a playoff series for years, that the fans and expectations and anticipation for a team like the Cubs to win a playoff series is FAR bigger than fan anticipation and pent up eagerness of other fans/sports in the U.S. It's just MUCH harder to do it in baseball because in basketball it is 95% because you have one of the top 5-10 premier players (or 2 of those). Baseball takes so many more contributors to come together and make it. Football is kind of in between, but still, typically in football you have the same teams getting to the playoffs and similar teams getting to the conference finals for years in a row. With baseball it is always like the perfect storm...everything has to fall into place.

Baseball has also been around SO much longer than other sports so the people who are longtime baseball fans are far more vested and die hard fans than the typical basketball fan. NFL is a bit in between (closer to baseball than basketball though which has far more new or fair weather/bandwagon fans).

[bwgood77]

BW,

You're painting this like there are special circumstances at play with the Jays, the Royals and Cubs. The D-backs have done this same schtick everytime they've made the playoffs...won a series or the whole shebang. Every clinch and playoff series win gets a "We Are The Champions" celebration ... I don't get it! Why baseball?

They all do it because of tradition. I don't think it's much more than that. But yes, there are special circumstances with this teams because it has been a very long time since they have done something, especially with the Cubs, who probably have the biggest fanbase in MLB. Toronto is probably up there too. KC fans are die hard as well considering they just have baseball and football.