re: WBC is an unserious exhibition in its current state.

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Just more evidence that hockey is the purest sport left standing.

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That’s just it. To most pro athletes and coaches, what they do is no longer a sport. It’s their livelihood.

Even most athletes who take international competition more seriously do so because it’s the pinnacle of their sport, not necessarily because of greater patriotism or a greater love for the sport. A tennis player would rather win Wimbledon than Olympic gold because Wimbledon is more prestigious and profitable. A swimmer would rather win Olympic gold than any other meet - but only because no one gives a flying frick about any other swim meets.

NHL guys may be more hardcore, but it’s also true that the Stanley Cup is way behind the Super Bowl, NBA Finals, and World Series in terms of prestige and viewership. They get less glory and money from their “day job” than most other American professional athletes.

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A tennis player would rather win Wimbledon than Olympic gold because Wimbledon is more prestigious and profitable.

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By far the nose emotional this man has ever been

NHL guys grew up competing for their countries once they hit 16 years old, playing in various world championships and other tournaments at different age levels. Playing for your country is ingrained in the sport. That said, winning the Stanley Cup is the holy grail of hockey.

Olympic Gold or Stanley Cup, it's like asking which of your kids you love the most to a hockey player.

Miller would have pitched had the US taken the lead, but I wouldn’t expect a casual to understand that

Had they taken the lead and had to bring in Taylor Rodgers, you’d be crying that they used miller prematurely

I felt like the energy and competitiveness were amazing. It seemed like the US really cared about winning. But baseball just isn’t built for a single elimination tournament format. That’s why the worst team in the league beats the best team at times. Bats go cold for a day, or even a week. I think you enjoy the games for what they are, exciting and fun. But don’t expect the tournament to name the country that’s best at baseball. Sample size is too small. In a 7 game series I think team USA wins 4-2.

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All of these players grew up playing baseball year round in some form or fashion.

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When they were kids they did. Now they are getting paid millions and have families and other shite they want to do before rolling into spring training and another 162 schedule.

I enjoyed the hell out of the tournament. But I don’t have to lie and say the US or anyone really is all in on winning. They aren’t. They are all handcuffed by their clubs

And it’s not rocket science why it’s exciting. Every game is a game 7. MLB is fricking awesome for a game 7 as well. There is nothing “special” about why the WBC is exciting

Clubs dictated pitch limit rules and usage (or held pitchers back entirely) for every country, not just the US. It impacts the US team more because their advantage lies on the pitching side, not the position player side. The DR in particular was missing a few very high profile starters

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It could be so much better.

1. MLB needs to remove its influence (I know they created the thing, but they’re harming the product with restrictions)

2. Every country (USA) needs to be 100% invested in competing.

3. It needs to be moved to late fall or mid winter and adopt a longer, more serious tournament format.

Just frustrating thinking about the roster we could’ve had if American players cared more and MLB had no say.

I mean not being allowed to bring in the best closer in the world in a tie game, top of the 9th, winner take all. Lunacy.

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Lunacy...

...expecting that MLB wouldn't care if their players went all out right before the season starts
...expecting that fans would rather see a killer, legit WBC than see their own team's players healthy going into the baseball season.
...expecting that players would want to play after the season ends when they get much needed time off to spend with their families, rest, and recover from injury.

Just do DR, US, Japan, and Venezuela and do it during the all star break just like four nations

No fake teams, no shite teams, and players are already ramped up so leash is slightly longer

I think that’s the most realistic option to improve it