No-Name Network Nightmare

If you're the CEO of a major television network, as so many of my readers are, and you are about to sponsor one of the greatest spectacles in sport, you're hoping (and yes, that's hoping as in getting down on your knees, hands clasped, head bowed) that your final participants are high-profile teams from New York and Los Angeles. Or maybe Boston. If you're talking basketball, you could throw in Chicago during the Jordan years and likewise the Windy City if the Cubs ever make it to the final two. Quit laughing, it could happen.

These days, it's all about big revenue and big markets, with big interest so that big advertisers will drop big money to pay big salaries for these big athletes. This year's World Series was just finalized last night, and it's the nice-but-not-quite-New-York Philadelphia Phillies, and the also-nice-but-barely-more-noticeable-than-Omaha-or-Toledo Tampa Bay Rays. I'm sure glad other sports teams had more imagination than the originators from Philadelphia: "Let's call them the Phillies." What if other cities had done that? Could you possibly take seriously teams like the New York "Yorkies"? How about the "Frannies" of San Francisco? Or think about the University of Santa Babara, trying to get behind their ultra-tough football team the "Barbies"? And we're not even going to discuss the High School team from Rocky Nook, Massachusetts!

Notice it's now the Tampa Bay Rays, no longer the Devil Rays. I guess it sounded too evil for the home crowd, but isn't evil good when you are trying to think of tough-sounding mascots? Also they had to call them Tampa Bay, since Tampa itself is too small to support a sports team at the major league level. Once they include the word Bay, as in bay area, you get to chunk in cities like Clearwater, St. Peterburg, Sarasota, Lakeland and so on. That kind of creates an artificially-generated hometown atmosphere, but if you've watched the media talking about the run-up to the Series, you know their stadium has had more empty seats than warm bodies for the most part, for much if not all the regular season. They've tried to create team spirit, but it's rung hollow up to now.

Anyway, back to Philly vs. Tampa Bay. Yeah, you can feel the stirrings on this one already, can't you? Those 2 areas of the US have been highly competitive for years, and the fireworks can hardly wait to explode. Cases in point:

1) Philadelphia is known for it's cheesesteak sandwiches, while Tampa Bay is sandwiched between Tampa and Bradenton, which is kind of cheesey.

2) Philadelphia has the Liberty Bell. Tampa took the liberty of franchising 14 Taco Bells inside its city limits (even more, if you count all the outlying areas!)

3) Philadelphia's fans are rabid and vocal. Tampa Bay fans are vapid and local.

4) The Phillie Phanatic is one of the most recognized mascots in all of sport. The Tampa Bay Rays have....eh....hmmmm...oh yeah - 14 Taco Bells!

So you can see by all the similarities, this will be quite a Series and I'm sure you're busy planning your life around watching the big games coming up. Or not. Now that they start the games so late at night, Major League Baseball is completely losing the youth viewing audience (and the elderly Cap'n's), which doesn't bode well for the sport long-term. When I was a young 'un we'd listen to the games on radio if we were in school, and everybody would watch on the weekend during the daytime. It really WAS our National Pastime. The whole night thing might have been a good idea if they started 2 hours earlier, but now people are just as interested in catching 6 Feet Under or Entourage on cable, as watching some no-name ballplayers, whether or not they're talented. Wrong teams, wrong timing, and even die-hard baseball fans are asking "what else is on?"

Outside Magazine just released its top ski destinations in North America, and once again Utah has come up big. #1 on the list is Alta (which by the way does not allow snowboarders), so for people looking for an ADULT SKI, this is the place. Whistler Blackcomb, just outside Vancouver was next on the list, followed by Vail, Colorado. The only California destination making the top 10 was Squaw Valley at #9, and nothing East of the Mississippi made the grade. Any time you're thinking of heading West to ski the true powder snow, let me know. I've got some excellent contacts who do a great job packaging ski vacations, any way you want them!