Umpire says Red Sox and Yankees are too slow

Umpire Joe West criticized the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees for taking too long to play saying "They're the two clubs that don't try to pick up the pace. They're two of the best teams in baseball. Why are they playing the slowest? It's pathetic and embarrassing. They take too long to play." West was the crew chief for the season opening series in which the three games had time of 3:46, 3:48 and 3:21. The time for an average baseball game last year was under three hours. Some of this may be players working counts, etc. but having watched these two teams play numerous times, I agree that they are very slow. ESPN's Buster Olney said this morning that he didn't feel it was appropriate for West to make comments like that, much as it would be for a player to make similar comments about an umpire. However, I don't feel that detracts from the validity of West's comments. I've been telling people that the Yankees and Red Sox give baseball a bad rap for being a really slow game and that if they watch other teams the pace is usually quicker. Not that I don't enjoy watching games involving either of these teams (although I'm not a fan of either), I just wish they would play quicker. There's no need for hitters and pitchers to have excessive routines. Just step up to the plate or pitch the ball. A lot of guys would be well served to do this. I pointed out to my brother on Tuesday night that the Giants game I was watching which started an hour after the Red Sox-Yankees game that night still managed to end about 20 minutes prior to the game in Boston. I don't imagine slow games will ever stop me from watching baseball (it is by far my favorite sport), but it would help in increasing and maintaining its fan base.