Read Loyal Homer’s argument that the derby is relevant, and Sports Geek’s argument that it’s not.
Today, we at The Sports Debates would like to lead Major League Baseball in a short class on Business Operations 101 (who says sports can’t be educational?!).
As a business manager in my ‘other’ life, one of my primary responsibilities is to ensure that my department is always spending its time on value-adding practices. Simply put, I have to constantly evaluate our procedures to ensure we are not wasting any valuable time, money, or resources. There must be some type of a return-on-investment for everything that we do.
For example – “Why does Frank get all the packages before sending them to Lucy?”
Perhaps, when the process was created, Frank had to verify credit card information before Lucy could ship the package.
What if, though, the company just purchased a new computer system to automatically verify credit card information? Does Frank need to get the packages any more? No. Instead, we can we deliver them directly to Lucy, improving our process?
While the act of taking the package to Frank added value at one time (to verify credit card info), it does not add value any more. Just because we’ve always done it that way, that doesn’t mean it’s the best way to do it now.
Professional sports leagues like Major League Baseball must go through similar exercises. Every aspect of the game MUST add some kind of value to the growth and long-term success of the league. If it does not add value, it is not worth continuing… it’s a waste of everyone’s time.
That is not to say that tradition should be ignored. On the contrary, I am a very big fan of tradition. But to advocate tradition for its own sake is foolish. Whatever the tradition, it should still add some kind of value (either intrinsic OR extrinsic) to the league if it is worth upholding.
As the first half of the baseball season draws to a close, the most popular players within the league (not necessarily the ‘best’) are getting ready to participate in two of Major League Baseball’s traditions – The All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby.
Much has already been debated about the relevance of The All-Star Game, so we do not want to focus too much on that here. What we are more interested in is the Home Run Derby.
As a young child I remember the anticipation that comes with the build up to the Home Run Derby. For me, I couldn’t wait to watch guys like Eddie Murray, Darryl Strawberry, Wally Joyner, and Andre Dawson step up to the plate, just to see who would become that year’s Home Run King. It was fun and it was exciting.
Nowadays, some of that magic seems to have gone. It makes me wonder…
Why does Major League Baseball still host an annual Home Run Derby? Does it still add value to the game of baseball, or to the Major League organization?
Simply put, “Why do we do it?”
I am asking my friends Loyal Homer and Sports Geek to apply a standard business principle to one of Major League Baseball’s traditions, and to determine if it is a practice worth continuing.
Loyal Homer will argue that the Home Run Derby is an event that still provides value to the organization and the fans, and is therefore a tradition worth continuing.
Sports Geek will argue that the Home Run Derby, while at one time a worthwhile event, is no longer worth hosting. Instead, it is a waste of time and energy on an event that no one really cares about any more.
Let’s see who hits this one out of the park…
Yeah, I think I like the derby no matter who’s in it. It seems like every year there’s some record being broken… check out our site http://doin-work.com
The records do not become suspicious to you?