THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball

Baseball (basketball would be a close second).  162 games a year.  If we only have one sport, I want it to last a good part of the year and I want a lot of games to watch, which basically means it can’t be football.

Baseball, although I’m not sure I could justify it beyond my own personal preferences. It would seem to me that a sport like soccer or basketball would maximize utility at the society level since they’re the lowest cost games.

I’d want it to be baseball because all the knowledge and experience I have in the sport would otherwise be obsolete.

B: if there was only one sport, you can be sure that the NFL would be played each day from Thu-Mon.

For example, here’s the CFL Alouttes:
http://en.montrealalouettes.com/schedule/year/2010/9

They had two off days: Tue, Wed.

I am with A Team here.  At all levels I would take Basketball (played inside or outside) or Soccer (Pretty much outside).

Both can be played rather competitively by either sex at any level.

I choose Baseketball.

if it’s just one LEAGUE, in their current incarnation, it would be a tough call between NFL and MLB.  but if it’s just one SPORT, i’m going football.  other leagues would be formed to fill in the off seasons.

If all sports were banned except baseball, my life would be unchanged in every way except that I’d waste a little less time on Sunday afternoons in the fall and winter (or, more likely, I’d be watching Hawaiian and Australian Baseball League games on Sunday afternoons in the fall and winter). So I’ll definitely go with baseball.

Is this one sport period, so people only play one sport?  You only see kids playing one sport in parks?  Does this include outdoor games like dodgeball and tag?

Our does this mean only one sport is an organized league with games on television, but people still keep playing different types of athletic games.

If its the first, the one sport is pretty obviously soccer, for the reasons mentioned above.  Its easy for people to play, also as the most popular sport in the world already there is less of a problem with people learning it.  I favor soccer over the nearest runner-up, basketball, simply due to personal preference over what I would rather both play and watch, though soccer also has advantages in popularity and getting people outside.

The second question is tougher, though a world where people play different things but only televise one sport is hard to imagine.  The best sports show on TV is the NFL, but I would prefer that the one televised sport is something people actually play.  That probably leaves soccer, basketball, baseball, rugby, and hockey in order of popularity.  Soccer again takes the edge due to current popularity, though it is not great television it is OK television.  Baseball would be a close runner up, and would be the clear first choice if we added the condition that there is no TV and we are following the sport through newspapers and the radio.

It is better that the one sport should be something that lots of people already know how to play, and follow, and has something of a history.  There is some value in avoiding disrupting people’s lives too much.

Just one? Depends on the purpose.

For everyday interest (especially in season): baseball.

For betting interest: football.

For occasional intense interest, in a sport that I was once pretty good in and have a feel for:  track and field!

Tough crowd.

How about “televised and/or paid attendance” sport?

Baseball, of course.  There is nothing quite like the daily ebb and flow of a pennant race, the optimism of spring, or the drama of October.  And the fact that every team plays every day (and not just some team within the league) is a huge plus.  Plus, it’s the most advanced with regards to statistics, and has the best history.

Mixed Martial Arts

The sport I enjoying playing most personally is baseball, and the sport I enjoying watching most is baseball.  So if it’s just about me, I vote for baseball.

If I’m supposed to take into account the interests of others, I’d need to consider soccer and basketball due to their popularity and low barrier to entry.

I’d keep tennis.

Baseball is my favorite.  Second to that is either Tennis or Soccer.  I used to like Ice Hockey a lot but haven’t been watching for years (I should give that another shot).

If I was trying to consider others, I might go with Soccer, assuming we’re talking worldwide here.

Where are all the curling diehards?!

Tango, another question to ask is if people could buy tickets to just one Summer Olympics competition, which one would it be?

Same for Winter Olympics.

For me, Summer would be track and field. (Next up: gymnastics.) Winter would be (men’s) hockey. (Next up: downhill skiiing.)

College football

Tennis.

(I don’t expect anyone else to agree...)

I agree, Andy: tennis. (Although I may regret that when Federer retires.)

@Tango - Well the point is, football is such a violent sport and takes such a toll on the body, there’s only so many games a team can play a year.  They couldn’t ramp it up to 50 all of a sudden, for instance, so overall, I’d just get way more enjoyment out of watching my team 82 games or 162 games a year than 16, 18, 20, or whatever it would be if football was the only sport.  On that basis, I don’t see how anyone can choose football.

I’m also assuming by only one sport, you mean only one professional league for us to watch.  The answer would change to basketball if we could only keep one sport to play, because it’s such an easy game to play - all you need is a hoop and a ball, and you can play by yourself, with one other person, or with a lot of other people.  Plus I’m good at basketball. 

For football, I was thinking that there would be a game on each day for some team, from Thu-Mon, with Tue/Wed off.  And, as a football fan, you would watch ANY game on TV, not just your home team.

So, you’d still get the same number of football games as baseball games to watch.