When did MLB playoff scheduling start this?

[SandraC]

Back in the day, WS games started at 1:30 p. (3:30 for West Coast games) If anyone wanted to follow the games, they had access to radios and/or TV's. The ratings were good. Sure ,there was less work at the office and more kids not paying attention in school. The nationwide following was strong, no matter who was playing. The best part was no one lost any sleep and none of the games started so late that kids couldn't watch. I know those days are gone forever.IMHO something is missing from our national culture, something we'll never see the likes of again. Say what you want about the advantages of night games but having the Cubs and Dodgers play late into the night at Wrigley Field is almost sacrilegious.

I'm for starting the games at a decent time, but for the sake of balanced reporting it must be recognized that:

1. While games did not start too late for kids to watch, they did sometimes start too early. My dad always talked about WS games taking place while he hadn't gotten home from school yet.

2. The ratings were good because there were like 4-6 channels depending where you lived, with the other channels most likely not showing sports against the WS. And there was no internet...or ipods...or cell phones...or texting...or a lot of other things that occupy people's time now.


Sandra

 

[SabresRule]

My dad always talked about WS games taking place while he hadn't gotten home from school yet.

You're a Yankee fan.

Was it frustrating when they played big playoff games against the Royals and Dodgers in the afternoon while you were at school and probably missed at least five/six innings?

 

[SandraC]

You're a Yankee fan.

Was it frustrating when they played big playoff games against the Royals and Dodgers in the afternoon while you were at school and probably missed at least five/six innings?

No, it didn't bother me at all...because I'm not that old!

Perhaps I really should post a picture...

The first playoff game I remember was 1995 against Seattle. During my school years the Yankees never made the playoffs!


Sandra

 

[Pete K]

True,there were only a handful of TV channels in any given market. Most were showing soaps, or talk/variety shows such as Art Linkletter's Houseparty. The WS dominated the ratings because it was the most compelling programming on TV at that time. Radio was still a powerful, with listeners "sharing" the experience of listening to the same two or three radio stations in their market. Technology now makes it possible to watch baseball on a laptop, or listen to it on a cell phone. What's to stop someone from listening/watching the game at anytime or anyplace? For that matter, if I still want to watch in the daytime, I can, thanks to DVR's. That was impossible 40 years ago.