Author Topic: Stephen A.-Ohtani  (Read 13723 times)

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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #15 on: July 13, 2021, 03:53:03 PM »

Online greg683x

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

That’s an awfully big leap to make based on the quoted paragraph
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #16 on: July 13, 2021, 04:01:41 PM »

Offline Roy H.

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SAS isn’t wrong.  We have a guy on pace for 60 HRs who also stars as a front of the rotation pitcher.  Babe Ruth stuff.  And yet, he’s not marketed all that much. 


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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #17 on: July 13, 2021, 04:08:30 PM »

Offline Moranis

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

That’s an awfully big leap to make based on the quoted paragraph
Yep and it isn't about status.  No one is saying Ohtani shouldn't be allowed to play or have the same status as anyone else.   

I'm reminded of Anderson Silva a lot when this sort of topic comes up.  Silva was the most dominant fighter in UFC history.  He was just crushing everyone, but both his PPV numbers and his marketing opportunities were absolutely hurt by his inability to speak to the American public without using an interpreter. Baseball isn't the fight game, in that you absolutely have to sell yourself to make money and get buy rates, but being able to speak and connect with fans directly absolutely matters.

For the record this also works in reverse.  I mean Yao Ming was a mega star in Asia.  And that obviously doesn't happen if he was a white American.  Similarly, I don't think Jeremy Lin would have been all the rage in the US, if he didn't speak English.  Being able to connect to people is important for marketing.
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #18 on: July 13, 2021, 04:13:22 PM »

Offline Big333223

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I'll never understand why everyone gives Smith any oxygen. He doesn't know anything and he's never known anything. He's good at talking on TV so he's Ryan Seacrest. Congratulations. I do not care what he says.

I also don't think it matters much what language a player speaks when the thing he's doing doesn't require fans understanding him. Were Maguire and Sosa fun to watch because of what they said?
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #19 on: July 13, 2021, 04:19:54 PM »

Offline Kernewek

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Regularly incomprehensible man criticises the use of interpreters.
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #20 on: July 13, 2021, 04:32:00 PM »

Offline Celtics4ever

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I would bet he Stephen A does not lead lose his job.   He apologized, life goes on.  He is an entertainer more than anything else but he can write too, if you read some of his articles.   I do not care for the Shout over types which is a prime example.

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #21 on: July 13, 2021, 05:10:38 PM »

Offline rocknrollforyoursoul

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

And your comments are a great example of why I no longer comment a lot on these types of things. Unless people toe the liberal/woke party line, you're just a hateful, narrow-minded, homophobic, xenophobic, misogynist bigot.

I said nothing about status. And yeah, if you're playing a major sport in a country where the primary language is English, and you're a star and you're going to get interviewed a lot and marketed a lot, it's a pretty good idea to speak English and do so as often as possible. If I were a pro athlete playing in, say, the Turkish basketball league, I wouldn't expect many people there to understand me, and I'd be thinking that I should learn at least some basic Turkish (or whatever their language is called).

As a side note: Being an editor, it's disappointing that many people don't really understand, or properly use, the word "phobia." It means "fear," but it's now equated with any sort of disagreement. Someone thinks immigration law should be enforced—"Xenophobe!" Someone thinks marriage is one man and one woman—"Homophobe!" That's nothing more than a cheap demonization tactic that way too many people have been getting away with for years, usually used because their actual arguments aren't valid. So if you want to go on demonizing people and slapping negative labels on them, have at it, but you're not fooling me.
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #22 on: July 13, 2021, 05:22:34 PM »

Offline BruceBanner18

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SAS isn’t wrong.  We have a guy on pace for 60 HRs who also stars as a front of the rotation pitcher.  Babe Ruth stuff.  And yet, he’s not marketed all that much.

Case in point: There's a billion reasons why John Cena speaks Mandarin Chinese.

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #23 on: July 13, 2021, 08:52:21 PM »

Offline Ogaju

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

lol

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #24 on: July 13, 2021, 08:54:43 PM »

Offline Ogaju

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

The statement is so blatantly xenophobic but I do no expect anything lmore from that blowhard.
« Last Edit: July 14, 2021, 02:47:24 AM by Ogaju »

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #25 on: July 13, 2021, 08:57:45 PM »

Offline Ogaju

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

That’s an awfully big leap to make based on the quoted paragraph
Yep and it isn't about status.  No one is saying Ohtani shouldn't be allowed to play or have the same status as anyone else.   

I'm reminded of Anderson Silva a lot when this sort of topic comes up.  Silva was the most dominant fighter in UFC history.  He was just crushing everyone, but both his PPV numbers and his marketing opportunities were absolutely hurt by his inability to speak to the American public without using an interpreter. Baseball isn't the fight game, in that you absolutely have to sell yourself to make money and get buy rates, but being able to speak and connect with fans directly absolutely matters.

For the record this also works in reverse.  I mean Yao Ming was a mega star in Asia.  And that obviously doesn't happen if he was a white American.  Similarly, I don't think Jeremy Lin would have been all the rage in the US, if he didn't speak English.  Being able to connect to people is important for marketing.

works in reverse? How many folks lose money around the world because they only speak English.

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #26 on: July 13, 2021, 09:01:12 PM »

Offline Ogaju

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

And your comments are a great example of why I no longer comment a lot on these types of things. Unless people toe the liberal/woke party line, you're just a hateful, narrow-minded, homophobic, xenophobic, misogynist bigot.

I said nothing about status. And yeah, if you're playing a major sport in a country where the primary language is English, and you're a star and you're going to get interviewed a lot and marketed a lot, it's a pretty good idea to speak English and do so as often as possible. If I were a pro athlete playing in, say, the Turkish basketball league, I wouldn't expect many people there to understand me, and I'd be thinking that I should learn at least some basic Turkish (or whatever their language is called).

As a side note: Being an editor, it's disappointing that many people don't really understand, or properly use, the word "phobia." It means "fear," but it's now equated with any sort of disagreement. Someone thinks immigration law should be enforced—"Xenophobe!" Someone thinks marriage is one man and one woman—"Homophobe!" That's nothing more than a cheap demonization tactic that way too many people have been getting away with for years, usually used because their actual arguments aren't valid. So if you want to go on demonizing people and slapping negative labels on them, have at it, but you're not fooling me.

You may be right now please give me a word for someone that hates foreigners or people of a different race. That probably fits SAS better. Didn’t he just rail against CBS getting the GM gig?  He is a hypocrite. I hope I used that correctly.

Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #27 on: July 13, 2021, 09:54:42 PM »

Offline Moranis

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Stephen A is a blowhard, but I don't think it is a horrible thing to question whether or not a player in the US would be better served speaking English fluently and without the use of an interpreter.  It may in fact affect his marketability.

I tend to agree. I'm not a big Stephen A. fan, but I don't think he's being racist towards Ohtani in particular or Asians in general; I think he was just saying (perhaps uneloquently) that if MLB is going to market a player—any player—it sure would help if that player spoke English, because that will make it easier for that player to directly connect with fans, most of whom speak English.
and i am sure this includes those players who speak spanish and not english as well, right? i mean, if you can't speak english you should not be allowed the same status as those who do, right?

wasnt a very similar "argument" posited in the 1940s about integration?

this is clearly a statement rooted in ignorance and xenophobia.

That’s an awfully big leap to make based on the quoted paragraph
Yep and it isn't about status.  No one is saying Ohtani shouldn't be allowed to play or have the same status as anyone else.   

I'm reminded of Anderson Silva a lot when this sort of topic comes up.  Silva was the most dominant fighter in UFC history.  He was just crushing everyone, but both his PPV numbers and his marketing opportunities were absolutely hurt by his inability to speak to the American public without using an interpreter. Baseball isn't the fight game, in that you absolutely have to sell yourself to make money and get buy rates, but being able to speak and connect with fans directly absolutely matters.

For the record this also works in reverse.  I mean Yao Ming was a mega star in Asia.  And that obviously doesn't happen if he was a white American.  Similarly, I don't think Jeremy Lin would have been all the rage in the US, if he didn't speak English.  Being able to connect to people is important for marketing.

works in reverse? How many folks lose money around the world because they only speak English.
It absolutely works in reverse.  People connect better with other people that speak their language.  The 3 highest paid athletes last year on Forbes list were not American (Connor McGregor, Messi, and Ronaldo).  3 more in the top 8 are not American and outside of McGregor and Federer you don't see much in US endorsements from the other 4 (Neymar and Lewis Hamilton along with Messi and Ronaldo).  However, if you want to connect with the American audience, it absolutely helps a great deal if you speak English.  You don't have to be American, see McGregor (the highest paid athlete in the world last year), but speaking English fluently without the use of an interpreter makes a difference.  That isn't xenophobic, that is quite simply reality.  And if you want an example of an Asian athlete breaking through with major US sponsors, you can look to Naomi Osaka who is at 55 million in endorsements for 2021 including major brands like Beat's Electronics, Levi's, Sweetgreen, and Tag Heuer.  Now granted Osaka was basically raised in the US and actually has to use an interpreter when speaking Japanese, so not quite the same thing, but she does represent Japan in international competition.
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #28 on: July 14, 2021, 12:28:08 AM »

Offline gouki88

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SAS isn’t wrong.  We have a guy on pace for 60 HRs who also stars as a front of the rotation pitcher.  Babe Ruth stuff.  And yet, he’s not marketed all that much.
Isn't he? I don't follow baseball at all yet see him plastered all over social media, much more than guys like Fernando Tatis.
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Re: Stephen A.-Ohtani
« Reply #29 on: July 14, 2021, 01:17:05 AM »

Offline rocknrollforyoursoul

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SAS isn’t wrong.  We have a guy on pace for 60 HRs who also stars as a front of the rotation pitcher.  Babe Ruth stuff.  And yet, he’s not marketed all that much.
Isn't he? I don't follow baseball at all yet see him plastered all over social media, much more than guys like Fernando Tatis.

I live in L.A. County and haven't seen anything with Ohtani. Granted, this is Dodgerland, and the Angels are in the next county over, but it seems like the Angels' desire to be known as an L.A. team (formerly the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim," now the "Los Angeles Angels") would spur them to increase Ohtani mania around here.
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