Fathead Blog

Imagine this: Your favorite MLB team ends the season with the worst record in the league and instead of shrugging it off like in years past, saying to yourself, there’s always next year, your team heads to the minors and some AAA team gets their spot. Example: the Detroit Tigers finish the season in fifth place in the AL Central and 2^nd to last in the entire American League. (Hey, I’ve been following the Tigers since the mid ‘60’s, it’s been known to happen.) The Toledo Mud Hens win the International League the same year. The next year, the Mud Hens are playing in the Big Leagues and the Tigers are on the road in Pawtucket. Put aside the financial logistics and the fan uproar and simply ask yourself this: Would baseball be a better game if the best teams got a chance every year to play at the highest level?

A lot of folks think the English Premier League is the best soccer league in the world and you know what? Last year, three teams from that league were relegated, sent down to a lesser league, to make room for three teams that had great seasons. Imagine how the fans of those up and coming teams must feel! They’ll be hosting the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea at home this year. Can you imagine as a fan of the Mud Hens what you’d feel when the Twins or the Yankees came to town and you had a chance to beat them!

Granted, as a fan of the Detroit Tigers I’d never want to see my team sent down to the minors, but if I were a life-long fan of the Mud Hens, getting a chance to play in the Big Leagues, well that might be a different story.