Stephen A. Smith Wylin

[masagipatron]

The thing about learning English is that it’s not that easy if you’re from a country that speaks a different language and/or you weren’t taught the language growing up. So these young dudes grow up not really knowing the language that well and are expected to give thoughtful responses with their limited understanding of the language? I rather they give a more thoughtful response that is thoroughly interpreted. The easiest way to learn a language is when you’re really young and have the time (but don’t have responsibilities) to learn. These dudes came here to work. Their days are spent working out, practicing and playing. It’s not easy. As a fan, I want players who are going to win the game. That’s it. I don’t care if they stand for the flag, speak English, or whatever boomer hot take is in vogue atm. Help the team win, that’s all that matters.

 

[elpablo21]

DCAllAfrican timestamped

 

[blastercombo]

Only in American is “you better speak American!” A thing. They learn different languages and use them elsewhere

 

[Maximus Meridius]

Ever since Michelle Beadle got SAS suspended for putting words in my mouth he been a "good boy". He knows who he can talk crazy to. The asian community damn near acting like the jewish community, if they think a black person is talking slick they'll try to get you to bow down.

 

[Brownstone]

The thing about learning English is that it’s not that easy if you’re from a country that speaks a different language and/or you weren’t taught the language growing up. So these young dudes grow up not really knowing the language that well and are expected to give thoughtful responses with their limited understanding of the language? I rather they give a more thoughtful response that is thoroughly interpreted. The easiest way to learn a language is when you’re really young and have the time (but don’t have responsibilities) to learn. These dudes came here to work. Their days are spent working out, practicing and playing. It’s not easy. As a fan, I want players who are going to win the game. That’s it. I don’t care if they stand for the flag, speak English, or whatever boomer hot take is in vogue atm. Help the team win, that’s all that matters.

Yeah, but does Ohtani not speaking English harm his marketability? IDK I am asking, based on prior videos posted in this thread he speaks about as well as can be expected no? Also how is Japan following his progress? I assume he is huge over there no? Angels gear selling like crazy? These are the more pertinent questions emanating from SAS and his take imo......SAS commentary is terrible regardless of the angle, but lets at least engage the correct angle

Also, Baseball has done a terrible job at marketing their product anyway. Black kids don't play anymore because of how bad they have been at outreach and grass roots leagues across the country. If in the 50's you would have said 7% of MLB rosters would be black Americans while the NBA and NFL would be @ 70% you would have been laughed at.....SAS should have led with that

 

[fluid hips]

SAS is nothing more than a lap dog

 

[blastercombo]

SAS is nothing more than a lap dog

And that’s the moral to al this. He says what he’s told or he says what he needs to stay relevant. With the whole Rachel Nichols thing going on I’m sure ESPN told him to say anything to divert attention.

 

[marikomorose]

DCAllAfrican timestamped

Now he's getting schooled on cultural sensitivity by white men (of all people). SA is such an embarrassment.

 

[DCAllAfrican]

elpablo21

@ Him listing Nigerian fighters in a, "I have black friends" type of way.

Got DAMN that was rough man.

Still waiting for him to apologize to AMerican Black men.

 

[Fozz]

Yeah, but does Ohtani not speaking English harm his marketability? IDK I am asking, based on prior videos posted in this thread he speaks about as well as can be expected no? Also how is Japan following his progress? I assume he is huge over there no? Angels gear selling like crazy? These are the more pertinent questions emanating from SAS and his take imo......SAS commentary is terrible regardless of the angle, but lets at least engage the correct angle

Also, Baseball has done a terrible job at marketing their product anyway. Black kids don't play anymore because of how bad they have been at outreach and grass roots leagues across the country. If in the 50's you would have said 7% of MLB rosters would be black Americans while the NBA and NFL would be @ 70% you would have been laughed at.....SAS should have led with that

Does Ohtani not speaking English hurt his marketability? Not at all. His ability to hit bombs and throw 100mph is what gets people talking. He has a huge following in Japan where people look at him godly. Especially how he came from a rural part of the country and is known to live a simple lifestyle.

Like you said, MLB itself is the issue when it comes to it's marketability. So many young and exciting talent currently playing right now and have played over the years, but the league just doesn't market the right way.

 

[Fozz]

SAS is nothing more than a lap dog

Getting paid $12-13mil annually. You know he'll say whatever, backtrack, issue an apology and move on.

 

[frankmatthews]

SAS takes a somewhat valid argument from the standpoint of monetarily capitalizing on superstardom in american society and purposefully says it in a way that will cause backlash to fertilize engagement. This is what he does. This is why they pay him the big bucks. Dont get invested in his charades.

 

[DLF]

SAS takes a somewhat valid argument from the standpoint of monetarily capitalizing on superstardom in american society and purposefully says it in a way that will cause backlash to fertilize engagement. This is what he does. This is why they pay him the big bucks. Dont get invested in his charades.

Very well said man

if he said “unfortunately the American public feels this way but if he spoke English...etc etc...but he shouldn’t feel pressure to do so”

but this would also imply he is a good dude with good clean heart. Which he doesn’t given his history.

Same with Rachel Nichols. If she had a clean history AND said her bit like “I like (forgot name of other person) and think she’s great. ESPN bosses want diversity which is great but I am the host. I don’t wanna lose my job either. Give her her own show”

but that again would imply a lot of things that aren’t true and this all their”mishaps” are just what their heart says. Which makes them all guilty

 

[kingkoopa]

Getting paid $12-13mil annually. You know he'll say whatever, backtrack, issue an apology and move on.

GET THAT CHECK!

 

[kingkoopa]

Pay me 12 mil a year, I'd ruffle ALL DA FEATHERS!

Shock jock says something shocking......

 

[Kinfolk]

It was about him being the face of baseball and marketing the sport in America,

THIS

People took it and ran with it and now they have him being lectured on ESPN when it’s really MLB executives that need to be receiving that lecture.

Not being able to speak English as an athlete in the United States is totally fine.

Using an interpreter to get your point across in a foreign language is totally fine!

Not being able to speak English in the United States while trying to market yourself and the sport to a majority English speaking audience is a very difficult thing to do (again see Leo Messi’s failure to connect in the States) and the question that Stephen A was answering was “is that bad for baseball?”— the answer is still a resounding YES because of baseballs hilariously poor track record in marketing even it’s English speaking stars. It’s a matter of incompetence on MLB’s part. Stephen A did not say “it’s bad for baseball because of Ohtani’s race”.

Stating that that is the case (which is what SAS did) is not something that needs an apology. Clarification? Yes, SAS made his remarks in a crude manner given the current climate.

Major League Baseball should take the opportunity to address their failures as they squander Ohtani’s rise in real time.

blastercombo DLF

 

[JPS]

Some cats really trying to justify their xenophobic attitudes in a very slick manner in here.

just say u dont like Asians already b.

 

[Kinfolk]

Some cats really trying to justify their xenophobic attitudes in a very slick manner in here.

just say u dont like Asians already b.

Here we go again.

Nobody has a problem with dude being a bright star in baseball.

If he doesn’t learn English, his marketing potential in this country won’t be fully realized. That’s the part that’s bad for baseball. His nationality is an asset to baseball. That asset increases if he feels like he wants to learn English.

That’s what Stephen A should have said instead of what he said.

 

[JPS]

Correct.

 

[blastercombo]

THIS

People took it and ran with it and now they have him being lectured on ESPN when it’s really MLB executives that need to be receiving that lecture.

Not being able to speak English as an athlete in the United States is totally fine.

Using an interpreter to get your point across in a foreign language is totally fine!

Not being able to speak English in the United States while trying to market yourself and the sport to a majority English speaking audience is a very difficult thing to do (again see Leo Messi’s failure to connect in the States) and the question that Stephen A was answering was “is that bad for baseball?”— the answer is still a resounding YES because of baseballs hilariously poor track record in marketing even it’s English speaking stars. It’s a matter of incompetence on MLB’s part. Stephen A did not say “it’s bad for baseball because of Ohtani’s race”.

Stating that that is the case (which is what SAS did) is not something that needs an apology. Clarification? Yes, SAS made his remarks in a crude manner given the current climate.

Major League Baseball should take the opportunity to address their failures as they squander Ohtani’s rise in real time.

blastercombo DLF

lol what? Name a time where a sports figure had to actually speak to spread the word of their sport in the modern era?

this excuse was already said when they intergraded blacks into sports. “Who will want to watch that??” was a huge topic amongst racists. We really gonna use that excuse again?

 

[Nawzlew]

america's past time: soccer

 

[Kinfolk]

lol what? Name a time where a sports figure had to actually speak to spread the word of their sport in the modern era?

this excuse was already said when they intergraded blacks into sports. “Who will want to watch that??” was a huge topic amongst racists. We really gonna use that excuse again?

If he wants to do Pepsi ads here that require more than holding up a can and smiling- English required

If he wants to do an MLB ad here that consists of any dialogue- English required.

The argument here isn’t “who will want to watch that?” It’s will baseballs core demographic be able to relate to him beyond just enjoying his play on the field.

Stop trying to make this something that it isn’t.

If he wants to go the same route Mike Trout went which is “hey I don’t want to be involved, leave me alone and let me collect my $340M in relative anonymity” that’s alright.

BUT THE QUESTION WAS IS OHTANI BAD FOR BASEBALL AS FAR AS NOT BEING ABLE TO SPEAK ENGLISH AND THE ANSWER REMAINS YES!

Now if you want to debate whether that reflects poorly on American society that’s an entirely different discussion.

Nawzlew there’s other examples besides Messi… musiscians, other athletes etc. if you want to do more than just passive aggressively take shots I got time.

 

[ShoeGameBoss]

My opinion about Stephen A changed in the past 48 hours. The things he said about Ohtani and the Nigerian players is something a white supramacist would say. How are you against players speaking foreign languages when the majority of players in the league are foreign.? We have to get used to them and should learn more things about their cultures. Stephen A is ****ing hard. He’s trying to sound like a conservative white man so he can keep getting his money. Dude is deplorable.

 

[Mark Antony]

Was curious to see if Godzilla had any issues marketing, and no, if anything marketing firms were over-elated for a shot at a larger demo.

Marketing 'Godzilla' in Gotham

Yankees' rookie outfielder is off to a fast start both on and off the field.

www.espn.com

 

[jape]

messi is extremely popular in the USA.
not sure where you got that from

this was from 2013 so it's not even in question now

Lionel Messi's nine seasons as a professional have been notched by eye-popping achievement, be it the record-breaking 324 goals he has netted for Barcelona, the 91 goals struck for club and country in 2012, or the four Ballons d'Or landed along the way. Yet the Argentinian star's most recent accomplishment may prove to be among his most astonishing: The 26-year-old has just become the first international footballer to break into the top-10 list of America's favorite athletes, according to the vast ESPN Sports Poll (October 2012-September 2013.)

"It is a staggering statistic" said Seth Ader, ESPN's senior director of marketing who oversees the company's soccer-related World Cup marketing strategy. "It is the first time in the history of this poll that a soccer player has shown up inside the top 10 for entire year."

Messi's achievement is even more seismic when viewed through the lens of the 12- to 24-year-old demographic, who proclaim the Barcelona star to be the fourth-favorite athlete in the United States (the study tracks the fan base sizes and demographic trends for all major sports through a monthly telephone survey of 1,500 Americans ages 12 and over).