1) Major League Baseball needs a Hard Knocks-type show during spring training, to show the inner workings of his a team is built. It works great with NFL teams in training camp; it would be better with baseball.
There is so much free time in spring training; you can mike players/coaches in spring training games, show players getting sent down to AAA. We’ve seen it in movies, how about real life?
It would also work during the season, just like the NFL is doing now.
2) College football needs an 8-team playoff system; actually 16 teams or 12 teams would be better, but eight is good, for now. Fewer meaningless bowl games, more playoff games that would increase TV ratings, attendance and most important, the $$$ would be bigger.
3) In all pro sports, higher-seeded teams should be able to pick who they play in the playoffs; for example, seven teams from each conference make the NFL playoffs.
#1 seed gets a bye; the #2-seed would then get to pick from seeds #5-7 who they want to play first, then #3-seed gets next choice- the two remaining teams would play each other.
Next round, #1-seed gets first choice of who they want to play, and so on. Can you imagine the TV ratings this would get? It would ramp up interest astronomically.
4) Baseball needs both a salary cap and, more importantly, a salary floor; cheap teams who don’t even try to win are hurting the game, both aesthetically and financially.
This season, I care way more about my fantasy team that I do about the A’s, and I’ve been as A’s fan since 1965. They’re not trying to win; I’m too damn old to sit there and watch them get their butts beat most every night, so I focus on my fantasy team. At least I’m TRYING to win.
5) Admission to racetracks should be free, just like walking into a casino is free. You go to a track to bet on the horses, you’re going to bet on the races, you’re going to buy the (overpriced) food and drinks, you’re going to buy souvenirs, why should we have to pay $7 just to get in the door?
If need be, make people pay $10 to get in, but everyone gets a $10 voucher for betting, souvenirs or eating that day.
6) Spring football is a viable thing; when the XFL starts up next year and with the USFL already a thing, the two leagues need to merge and form a 16-team spring league that people will love, much like the USFL back in the 80’s.
7) High school basketball players should be able to go right from high school to the NBA, the way they used to; Lebron James, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant didn’t play college ball. Going to college for one year is useless; it doesn’t help the college game much, it doesn’t help the NBA, it doesn’t help the players much.
8) Major league baseball should realign geographically; no more American/National leagues, let crosstown rivals compete with each other year-round. Save money on travel, and attendance would be better. More Cub-White Sox, A’s-Giants, Dodger-Angel games, Subway series games.
9) College football teams should not be allowed to schedule I-AA opponents; it is cheating the fans who pay lot of $$$ to see Alabama play Mercer. It is STUPID; play Sun Belt teams, MAC teams, Mountain West teams, but not I-AA teams. It is stealing money.
10) This one will never, ever happen, but NBA playoffs would be way better if every round was best-of-3, and the Finals best-of-5. It would be more like March Madness; more dramatic, more upsets, more fan interest. Losing games would cost the league $$$, which is why it’ll never, ever happen, but the playoffs would be better this way.
11) This one will happen, probably next year. Baseball needs to ban shifts; all four infielders have to be on the infield dirt, two on each side of second base. Baseball needs more line drive hitters, fewer guys trying to hit every pitch over the fielders’ heads, out of the park.
12) ESPN needs to bring back their 24-hour college basketball marathon in November; that was so much fun, games on all night long, giving obscure teams some recognition. I remember being at a bar in Las Vegas playing video poker, watching a game from Hawai’i, then a game with Colgate or Iona or some unknown eastern teams playing— it was awesome.
13) Super Bowl needs to be on Presidents’ Day weekend, where everyone has the next day off from work. Add an 18th game? Give teams two byes instead of one? I’d prefer the 18th game, but the league would be better off if the Super Bowl was just before spring training started.
