Published: May 19, 2009 12:51 pm      

MARK MAYNARD: Earlier start is just a start 5/19/09

Major League Baseball’s decision to start World Series games before 8 p.m. is commendable.

At least, they’re starting to understand that it’s important to cater to the young fans — not to mention some of us older ones — who simply can’t keep our eyes open to watch the end of a World Series game at 1 in the morning.

There’s school, work and, well, outright tiredness.

Some of the best World Series moments of the past 25 years have happened after midnight — for no one but the most diehard of fans to witness.

Baseball’s new first pitch time is approximately 40 minutes earlier than World Series games in past years. In fact, according to MLB’s records, this year will mark the first time in more than 30 years that a night World Series game will begin before 8 p.m. ET, according to MLB.com. The Fox pregame show will begin at 7:30 p.m.

American League Championship games, also televised by Fox, will have the same earlier start times. According to USA Today, it is undetermined whether postseason games on TBS will start earlier.

It’s understandable advertisers want to get the most bang for the buck, and having your showcase games played during prime-time hours is important. But when you’re going to bed in the seventh inning because it’s approaching midnight, who’s watching those commercials anyway?

As a rule, World Series games take longer to play because the stakes are so high. Pitchers contemplate longer before deciding what to throw. Batters fidget more before climbing into the box. Everybody concentrates a little harder. It’s natural. Nobody wants to fail on that stage because it can be career-defining. But the game goes on and on and on — and baseball is already a sport that most feel takes too long.

I’m not sure it’s that parents wouldn’t let their kids stay up to watch the game in the late hours — parenting has changed a lot in 30 years — it’s just that it’s crazy late. You’re tired by 12:30 or 1 in the morning if you’re 10 years old or 50. Then, the next morning, we’re forced to turn on SportsCenter and watch recaps of what we missed.

The earlier start time should just be a start. MLB should look into changing the weekend games — or at least the Sunday games — back to the afternoon. Some of us remember World Series games played during the day (although there’s a lot less now than they’re used to be).

The problem that baseball faces during the weekend is college football and the wildly popular NFL. But if you can’t put your showcase event against a regular-season NFL or college game and come away with a fair share of the audience, then you’re in bigger trouble than you may think.

The NFL’s signature event, the Super Bowl, traditionally starts around 6:30 and finishes around 10:30. That’s a good watching window for young and old alike and an example of good marketing. Of course, it’s only one game where the World Series is the best-of-seven series.

The last World Series day game was played in 1987 between the Cardinals and the Twins, on a Saturday. But since it was indoors, playing in the daytime hardly made a difference.

The last World Series day game under blue skies was in 1984. It was Game 4 and Game 5, played on a Saturday and Sunday, at Tiger Stadium between the Tigers and the Padres.

So it has been 22 years since a World Series was played during the day and 25 where you could actually see the sky and clouds.

The earlier start time is a good move for MLB. Hopefully we can make it through an entire game this fall.

MARK MAYNARD can be reached at mmaynard@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2648.