With TBS' division series playoffs two days old, I just asked Turner Sports where D-FW fits among the 56 major markets metered for overnight ratings results. I figured we'd be close to the bottom of the barrel and the worst market with a major league team. I was almost dead on.
Dallas-Fort Worth ranks No. 54 with a per-game rating of 1.4. That translates into about 35,560 homes. Only Tulsa and Houston, home of the Astros, have shown more disinterest.
Now as you know, I hate baseball and there are a lot of other people out there that feel the same way, but those numbers were pretty shocking to me. I knew this wasn’t a big baseball area, but I expected there to be more interest.
That got me thinking, which sports phrase is more outdated…Baseball being called “America’s pastime” or the Dallas Cowboys being called “Americas Team?” Just think about it.
Let’s look at “America’s Pastime” first. We all know that baseball has been around forever and used to be one of the hottest things around, but it isn’t like that anymore. There is a whole generation of people who fell out of love with baseball. Whether it be because it is boring, or the cheating, or whatever. It has become less popular. I think most people would agree that football is now the most popular sport in the U.S. and should be labeled accordingly. NFL and College Football dominate the TV, newspapers, radio, etc…So should football be considered “America’s pastime?” I think it has more of an argument than baseball does now.
Now, onto the Cowboys and being called “Americas Team.” As a Cowboys fan it hurts me to say it, but the Cowboys haven’t been relevant on the field for over a decade. They haven’t won a playoff game in ages and can no longer say they have the most Super Bowl Trophies. So, if they haven’t been productive, how can they be “Americas Team?” Yes, the still dominate TV ratings and sell a lot of merchandise, but if they aren’t winning, are they still relevant enough to have that label? Should the Steelers carry that label now?
I have been thinking about this for a while now, and it is hard for me to make a choice. There is really no right or wrong answer, but I am trying to make an unbiased decision. I feel like with the Cowboys still being the most watched football team and how much they are in the news, they have a more legit argument for being called “Americas Team” versus baseball claiming they are “America’s pastime.” We all know baseball isn’t the most popular sport anymore.
