So, you might remember this — or you might not — but a couple of months ago, I put together a goofy Baseball Exploration survey on Google Forms that asked a bunch of questions about the state of baseball as we head into 2019. That was really fun, lots of great responses. And I was going to write about it, even though it was obviously incredibly sloppy opinion research … but then something very special happened. Michael Mulvihill, executive VP for research and all sorts of stuff at Fox Sports, reached out to me and offered to help with some actual research.
He then put together a REAL survey of baseball fans across the spectrum, asking most of the same questions (and a few new ones). How do fans feel about the game today? How do people feel about teams shifting more? Is baseball losing fans because of pace of play? Are there too many relief pitchers? Is tanking ruining baseball? What do you think about instant replay? Do you want robo-umps calling balls and strikes? Have sabermetrics made the game better or worse? What do you think of baseball on television?
I have to say: Some of the answers proved surprising to me.
So, as spring training begins, we dive in and take a close look at Baseball 2019, where it is, where it might be going, and maybe we will throw out an idea or two as well.