2020, anyone?

[Big Slick]

Originally Posted by AtlUmpSteve

Tom, I think you are missing the biggest bullet points; the ones that have the teams outside California most upset.

Their most legitimate complaint is the length of the tournament, and the amount of time needed to play a 64 team tournament.

Steve, I think this issue is more than XX number of days. Like I stated previously, the 2002 Gold was played on an 8 field complex. The games began on Monday and finished on Sunday. A "savings" of two days, and I think the number of teams was less than 64 (52 or 53 I believe). No one complained about the location, which was rural OK, or length of the tournament. And at that time, the top pitcher eligible to play was not there, she was playing for the US team. Want to venture a guess who won that year?

What has changed since 2002? More teams playing Gold, and way more showcases. The culture is now to show up on Tuesday, play for fun on Wed/Thurs/Friday, then single elimination on Sat/Sun. And they go to one every week, so who really has time for a tournament that really means something?

I guess it isn't too difficult to figure out what side of the argument I'm on. Nationals used to be the end all of the summer. Now it is just an annoyance.