[IRISHMAFIA]

Sadly back there the FP and SP fees were the same and
all too many "umpires" would shun FP and its faster pace.

See, there is one difference right there. I stopped doing baseball and FP because of the LACK of a fast pace. Get a couple of good pitchers, or a couple of lousy pitchers and a BU could grab a snack between serious action.

Yeah, SP doesn't have that hard, precise pitching, but it does have everything else FP does plus more scoring, more action on the bases and, at the higher levels, some unbelieveable defense.

Again--around here--SP is dying and boring and quite negative. I think many of the players are just going through the motions out of habit. I used to enjoy doing SP; now I just want the game to end. FP games are the opposite: lively and fun and positive.

It's not so much as the game dying, but the players. As you stated, the older players dominate because they have been around long enough to understand how games are won and lost. With HR limitations, the super bats can only help score so many runs and the younger guys "show off" with their wallet. "Buy a bat, hit a home run" is their credo.

There is also the factor that growing up, the baby boomers didn't have as many options. It was football, basketball and baseball as the three main sports. Now you have lacrosse, soccer, ice hockey, roller hockey, wrestling, golf, swimming, diving, tennis, racquetball, skiing, snowboarding, skating, etc. vying for about the same number of participants and entertainment dollar. And, as you mentioned, the non-athletic distractions of the hi-tech world which would include fantasy leagues.

Actually, I find working the better teams in SP as very easy. They know what they are doing, they play exemplary defense and they hit the ball where they need to, when they need to. The best teams hit the ball out of the park for the purpose of exacting the most runs available, not to show off their $300 bat.

FP has been quickly climbing the ladder of popularity, but that leap started in 1997, the year after the game was included in the Olympics as a medal sport. This not only drew the interest of the girls and parents, but also sponsors and their financial support to promote the game. It is believed the '96 Olympics is what started the TV coverage of the game from the Olympics to NCAA Championships to league play on some networks. The key to all of this was the ability to get sponsors to pay for that time. No sponsors, no money, no TV regardless of the importance of the game. This is why everyone is so concerned about losing the Olympic venue. Sponsors are attracted to the five-ring logo.

The hope is that between the NCAA & ASA and in coordination with the ISF, the game can be kept in the spotlight long enough to keep the sponsor's attention and financial support.

[Edited by IRISHMAFIA on Mar 4th, 2006 at 11:22 AM]