How To Fix Baseball: Show Every Time a Fan Runs on the Field And Gets Drilled By Security
Last night while the Yankees were pummeling the Minnesota Twins, the camera panned away to show Giancarlo Stanton’s face. No it was not to show his frustration as he went 0-4 with 3 strikeouts, it was because a fan had leapt from the stands and was running on the field. I personally love when this happens during sporting events. Whether it’s during baseball, soccer, or football it’s a hilarious sight as some guy is sprinting around the field aimlessly, usually with his shirt off, only to be tackled eventually by several large security guys.
The problem with baseball and other sports is that they pan the camera away and don’t show the craziness unfolding. We’re left with fan videos like the ones above that catch the final moments of the tackle, but nowhere near the whole thing. If this were televised we would’ve seen a security guard get tackled by another security guard by accident and it would’ve been fantastic. Feits and KFC talked about crazy ways to improve baseball a few episodes back where they brought up legalizing steroids and using metal bets, but this is an actual realistic option.
The reason MLB doesn’t do this is because it will entice fans to do it more so they get on TV. The way to counteract that is to up the penalty for running on the field. Make the fine like $100,000 or have the streakers put in jail for a few days instead of just overnight. If broadcasts started to show people running on the field and decking out security guards I think that would improve the watchability and approval rating of baseball from average fans without question.
Another option I thought of the other day, which might be too much, is actually utilizing the pitch clock that is in every stadium. At Yankee Stadium it’s found behind the left field stands as it counts down, but it’s meaningless because there’s no rule. I think if a team picked one inning where the pitch clock was instituted and the fans could do a loud shot clock countdown like they do in basketball that would be awesome. They could fuck with pitchers by yelling out the wrong time and it would be chaos. I’m not saying use the pitch clock the whole game, as MLB tries to cut down on pace of play, but use it for one inning as strategy for the opposing pitcher. I obviously think baseball is the greatest thing to ever happen, but some are not as fond of it. These two options could greatly help sway their opinions.