MLB is Online! Fantastic…? Maybe? No.

It’s MLB playoff time!  Lets check in with Major League Baseball and see what they’ve done this year to “spice up” baseball to get all of those crazy kids to watch it.  What if I said there was a DUGOUT CAM!  I know, right! It’s too much.  But wait, there’s more.  From USA Today,

Online, in coverage TBS produces for mlb.com, you can watch TV cameras focused continuously on real dugouts. You won’t get TBS’ TV feed online, but you can access live camera shots focused on dugouts, batters and shots from a camera high above and behind home plate. Also online, TBS’ PitchTrak graphics, which also show pitch speed, will for the first time be used on live coverage of pitches.

Don’t believe me about the excitement?  Go over to MLB.com and check out the Mosaic Camera that shows backstop, pitcher, dugout, and batter cameras.  I think Major League Baseball is missing the boat on this one.  Sports like football or basketball can use the extra angles to pick up some of the action the viewer may miss, or show a matchup that the camera wasn’t focused on.  Baseball on the other hand?  Even the people on the dugout cam look bored unless someone is in the process of hitting a home run or something.  So, basically, unless you work for Elias or are named Buster Olney, you probably wont waste too much time watching a website that doesn’t even include TBS’ television feed.

You can’t only dress up baseball so much.  The online feed is only going to be beneficial if there are some rule changes to add some action and increase the game speed.  The online feed is not the way to get new fans, or keep baseball purists interested.  Its time to go back to the drawing board.

But, I do give credit for trying…And it certainly can’t be said that MLB isn’t trying out new technologies for their fans.

USA TODAY:  TBS takes another swing at playoffs