Quote:
Originally Posted by Prometheus
It's obvious why you cannot imagine it. You have extrapolated from your own parochial circle and projected your preferences onto to the rest of the population, notwithstanding your claim to not speak for everyone. As a result, you have managed to remain oblivious to an aspect of Vancouver that has been explained here many times: that Vancouver has an illustrious and rich baseball tradition; that professional baseball has flourished in Vancouver for nearly one hundred years and continues to do so; that the Lower Mainland is the primary source of Canadian talent in MLB precisely because it has the most developed and competitive youth baseball scene in the country; and that Metro Vancouver's population is superior to the metro population of many cities that currently support MLB.
A more informed, less insular analysis reveals that Vancouver meets the basic cultural criteria for an MLB city.
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Like you, Prometheus, (and unlike some of the posters here), I am a huge, and informed baseball fan. I was on a Little League team that was but a wild pitch (in extra innings no less!!) away from representing Canada in Williamsport. I can to this day rattle off at least 7 of the starters on the 1981 pennant-winning Montreal Expos and remember exactly where I was--my brother's wedding reception--when Joe Carter ended things in 1993 against Mitch "the Animal" Williams.
That being said, I'd have to side with those arguing against you this time. I understand that each of us tends to extrapolate from our own circumstances, but the question then becomes whose--persons like you and I or those such as crazyjoeda--perspective is more representative of the general public in Vancouver. With only anecdotal evidence to support my claim, I believe that the market simply does not exist here for an MLB team.
As for those arguing to put baseball in BC Place, I just have to shake my head. Your opinions are simply uninformed. There is a reason the building of
Camden Yards proved to be a watershed moment for MLB stadiums. The Skydome in Toronto symbolizes the swan song of a different era where multi-purpose stadiums were the rage. You wouldn't put the VSO in the Agrodome, would you?
If we ever were to get an MBL team I would support the building of an inconic ballpark where the 'Caps stadium was to have been built. (By the way, I'm very well connected into the soccer scene here in Vancouver and know that the 'Caps have every intention of being in BC Place for the long run.)