When will Major League Baseball wise up and schedule at least one game each afternoon?

Baseball fans would love it and gamblers would go wacky.

Increasing popularity should be new commissioner Rob Manfred’s main responsibility. It’s no secret that baseball’s perception nationwide has taken a hit. In baseball’s infinite wisdom, it chooses to do the same thing as it always has done — have a few afternoon baseball games for getaway day during the week, but the rest are scheduled late at night.

If attendance is an issue, just look around at the league in April. It’s cold. It’s rainy. And no one wants to be at games at night. Television coverage proves that on a nightly basis.

How about mixing in at least one day game per day, and marketing it as such? Fans could look forward to their team being at home on a Monday afternoon. Think outside the box for a change and attempt to be the only game for a national audience.

Obviously MLB would have Vegas’s approval. And it’s obvious that sports gambling is going to expand in the next 10 years, so MLB should take a few hints from the NBA and NFL on ways to monetize and make its product more popular by utilizing sports gambling to its advantage.

Sure, television executives may frown upon such proposals, but handing over one day game a month, from a previously scheduled night game, would help MLB improve its relations on a national level. And the hit wouldn’t be too much to bear for the networks, which already make cash hand over fist with being generally the top-rated program on a nightly basis in their market.

It would not be hard to map out this plan. MLB should embrace a new approach and scheduling at least one day game a week would go a long way with fans and gamblers.

Baseball fans want it and deserve it.

 

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