My pet peeve: In-Game Threads

[badgerfan.tgf]

Why, oh why, does every little tidbit of thought regarding any game have to be put in the "in-game" thread? I realize the moderators of this board what to keep it neat and tidy around here, but it really is annoying.

 

I come home from the game last night and I want to read about what everyone thought about the win. There are about 3 new topics on the Major Leagues page and a 25 page thread about the game. So when I want to see what everyone's thinking about the hole in Fielder's bat, I have to sift through 25 pages of mostly "Yessssss!!!!!" and "GABE GROSS IS MY HERO!!!" type posts just to find some stuff on Prince.

 

Wouldn't it be better if we left the game thread for an actual online depiction of the game, i.e., Cappy strikes out McLouth, next batter flies to right, etc.? That way we could have more than three new threads on the main board for each game. It would make it much more easier to navigae this board.

[Brian the Automator]

[ Wouldn't it be better if we left the game thread for an actual online depiction of the game, i.e., Cappy strikes out McLouth, next batter flies to right, etc.? That way we could have more than three new threads on the main board for each game. It would make it much more easier to navigae this board ]

 

There are already places you can go to get play-by-play textual recaps of games. We're not intereseted in re-creating that.

 

What we're trying to prevent are countless spawns of threads relating to games, especially when those threads usually involve knee-jerk reactions of plays that happened during the game. This is what occurred last year when we didn't have tighter controls on what content should be included in IGT's and what should be included in the Major League forum.

 

EDIT: Besides, not to sound pessimistic, but the IGT's tend to calm down a little bit with "YESSSS!!!" after decent plays once the year gets further underway.

[JoeHova]

I tend to agree with BadgerFan. Sometimes it seems like new threads are really discouraged here. At the same time, I sympathize with the idea of keeping a board free of knee-jerk reactions and superfluous threads.

 

Both of you make good points. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[dadofandrew]

To be honest, that's why I never check out the IGT...or very rarely. I wish there could be a "serious" IGT, full of thoughts and comments like "Prince's swing looks far too long right now", and another for all the "Woo-hoo" stuff, but I guess that's an unlikely scenario.

[Brian the Automator]

[ IGT, full of thoughts and comments like "Prince's swing looks far too long right now", and another for all the "Woo-hoo" stuff, but I guess that's an unlikely scenario. ]

 

That's not a bad idea, but it would be impossible to implement because now you have judgement calls between what's thoughtful and what's either a rant or an outburst of joy.

[rluzinski]

I realize the moderators of this board what to keep it neat and tidy around here, but it really is annoying.

 

You'd probably see 3-5 mini threads started for each game if it was allowed. Most of those threads wouldn't spur much discussion amuway, since their topics are usually limited in scope and were probably already covered in the IGT.

 

For something that encompasses more than one game, a thread could certainly be justified. For instance, a "Slow Start for Fielder" thread wouldn't be locked because it encompasses Prince's play over 2 games. Heck, it's only a matter of tume before that thread IS made http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[bullox]

Does this belong in the BF.net issues forum? http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Brian the Automator]

It does, and i'm copying it there now.

[Southwest Brewer]

In game threads are in game threads......how deep of a conversation could you expect during the game other than internet cheering and a little bit of discussion on decision making.

 

I would hate to have to sift through the IGT for Prince's hole-in-the-bat discussion.

 

Also, I like reading the tidbits.....i.e. a post that says only "98mph" because I don't have the video and haven't been smart enough to find that info on the internet yet.

 

If you want to discuss something you saw at the game, just word it a little more "grand scheme of things" and start a thread.

 

Woooooooooooooohooooooooooooooo YES! Gabe Gross is my hero. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[brewerjamie15]

If you want better play-by play analysis and key topic conversation I'd suggest that you stop in the chat room during games. This is your best bet for more pertinent game conversation.

[vamac53]

i like the igt the way it is.... too many spawn offs is too confusing... though i stay active in igt while im watching game on mlb.tv, last nite i watched american idol for 10 minutes, and the pages went from 20 to 26... so i had to fast read 6 pages; but thats all right... plus, if there is a legite spawn off that will sustain itself...i'm sure the mods will keep it alive...

[Mass Haas]

Once minor league season rolls around, I have enough trouble keeping up with the Major League Forum, so I've definitely said goodbye to the IGT's.

 

However, I will read the first page of each and then the final couple of pages -- I do find that some of the more insightful game-related thoughts are posted in the hour or two just after the game.

[DuWayne Steurer]

I've followed a string of locked threads and whatnot to this point, so I feel like here's where I should comment.

 

The main page on the MLB forum has 4 locked threads. One, about a major league pitcher, is locked, and directing people to the minor league forum, where I know a lot of people don't read on a regular basis.

 

Anything at all game related has pretty much been locked down, and I gotta say, I'm in the same boat as MassBrew. With Brewerfan's burgeoning popularity, the game threads are savagely unwieldy. Anything said in game thread with any substance is going to be missed, and asking someone to post something game related in a game thread 14 hours after the game ends is akin to asking them to shout into an empty room.

 

Those game threads are HUGE. If I don't read them as they happen, I'm not going to bother. 14 pages of "Whoohoo!" surrounded by a 1 in 10 chance to see an insightful post, which are being buried by asking people to make sure they don't post ANYTHING game related at all outside a game thread.

 

I understand the need to keep page views and thread counts down, but if there's a handful of people that want to discuss Yost's recent managerial blunders or whatever, directing folks to a game thread is pretty much making it a dead issue.

 

I don't mean to step on toes, it just seems like there's an awful lot of locked threads lately, and people that are voicing their opinions that they don't feel like they can even try to bring up a topic if they think a mod might lock it down. I'm not insinuating that "freedom of speech" exists in a privately owned forum, but it certainly seems that topics that could lead to decent discussion have been shot down or directed to "game threads" that aren't going to get a lot of action after the fact.

 

My 2 cents.

[Brian the Automator]

I think part of what people feel is anger that THEIR thread was locked. It's really nothing personal... We don't expect everyone to read every post on the site and know where everything is. As long as the moderators are curteous and/or professional in dealing with locked threads, I don't have any problem funnelling conversation into a thread, even if it's not in such an obvious place.

 

The IGT situation isn't perfect by any means... but I think they follow a pretty natural progression. Normally, at the end of the threads, you have the "wrapup" type posts and the conversation surrounding it.

 

The bigger problem is that if we were to allow game-specific threads outside the IGT's, moderators would have to make a determination as to what constitutes "insight", and what constitutes a general IGT-type comment. That's far more dangerous than our current blanket policy to funnel all game-specific posts into the IGT.

 

So, in short, i'm asking everyone to respect our wishes to keep all game-specific conversation in the IGT. It's the system in which we have found the most success and which most of the people on the site seem to be OK with...

[DougJones43]

what if there were two threads dedicated to each game? one could be an "in-game thread", with all of the discussion, play-by-play, and comments done in real-time regarding the game itself. the other could act as a "post-game thread", which could include questioning of certain managerial decisions, re-examining certain plays and their ultimate impact on the outcome of the game, venting, etc.

 

it seems like the #1 complaint is that people don't want to have to sift through the IGT chit-chat and excitement in order to find actual discussion about game strategy and the like. maybe breaking it into two separate threads would help clear this up?

 

i don't know much about moderating or site costs, so maybe this isn't a workable idea. just thought i'd throw it out there. either way, i think the site is still top notch and the mods do a commendable job.

[Southwest Brewer]

game strategy forum would be nice....or just let me know where the game strategy type questions/posts belong. I don't want to post them in the stats forum b/c not everything in strategy is about calculators and more interesting/fun discussion could be sparked if it was a even (or even lesser) mix of stats.

 

For instance, the The Importance of Getting Ahead In The Count thread is kind of a strategy/management type that many anti-stats people won't read.

[pogokat]

I think strategy belongs on the MLB forum...i want to read stuff like this because it could broaden my horizons...

 

the only thing is to make sure your post relates to baseball or the brewers in general...don't just question one in game move...if you want to talk strategy just make sure it relates to more than just todays game..

 

i think the stuff you guys are asking for is perfectly reasonable...but i think the moderators side is perfectly reasonable as well...

 

last year, before the implementation of the strict IGT we would have 5 threads at a time...and the more people that arrive at brewerfan, the more unruly it gets...we simply have to have some organization...

 

also, i think keeping a limited amount of threads on the front page is a great asset of this site...sometiems crowded message boards have a tendency to create a bajillion new threads, and it is impossible to try and keep conversation moving forward...i think everyone here wants to try and deepened their knowledge and understanding of baseball, not just repeat the same conversations over and over and over again..

 

Believe me..this gets rough...in the 5 years of brewerfan, we've had the k's vs. other outs argument about 50 times...that means that 10 times a year the exact same conversation is repeated..it is inevitable

and it's frustrating to the people who've experienced the other 49 versions of this argument...but we realize that things change and new perspectives come about and new people arrive, so we bite our lips (or tie our fingers) and let the conversation go on...

 

however, there is no need to have simultaneous discussions about the same stuff...and the reason we normally point out old threads is because sometimes referring to an old thread will stop people from having to rehash and repost the same stuff over and over again...

 

why do you think rluz has 8000 posts? It's because once a week someone says: "Carlos Lee is a gamer and Geoff jenkins sucks" or "Ben Sheets is no good"

 

so, in an effort to better the community, rather than cater to the new members, we try our best to keep repetition to a minimum.

[1992casey]

I feel that the in-game threads are somewhat unwieldily, too, but I also remember last year's effort to narrow their scope not working very well. It would seem to me that doing this would require an awful lot of moderator effort and that it's simpler to go with the flow.

 

If I want to go to the in-game thread and look for one thing?like 'was he safe or was he out?'?I can usually get to that point in the game pretty quickly by popping up one of the logs available on the web, then glancing at post times on the various pages of the thread.

 

As far as the locked thread issue, here's what I'd suggest. If you run into a situation like this and you feel that the topic is worth separate discussion, send a private message to a moderator. He could help you frame your topic into a broader scope. It could then be posted to a new thread.

[rluzinski]

Believe me..this gets rough...in the 5 years of brewerfan, we've had the k's vs. other outs argument about 50 times...that means that 10 times a year the exact same conversation is repeated..

 

That's why I think it helps to archive some of thethe more repetative threads. The "4-3" thread in the statistical forum can be referenced now when the "strikeouts don't matter" topic comes up (can we rename that thread, BTW?). Like you said, that doesn't mean it can't be discussed further; just that the same thing doesn't have to be typed by the same people over and over.

 

why do you think rluz has 8000 posts? It's because once a week someone says: "Carlos Lee is a gamer and Geoff jenkins sucks" or "Ben Sheets is no good"

 

I'd have 10,000+ easy if Ginter and Branyan hadn't been traded. Thank gosh they were!

[temke]

i think the entire "statistical analysys" category is another reason for that...though it is fun to be blown away with statistics and graphs every so often!!

[1992casey]

Here's an example of something mentioned in an in-game thread that could easily be spawned off into a new thread. The game prompted the question, but the answer covers a broader period of time.

 

From today's in-game thread:

Author

Athens Badger

(4/26/06 1:10 pm)

 

Ok, what changed 2 years ago to turn Ben into a K pitcher? It is definitely fun to watch.

[DHonks]

not to get offtopic, but the answer to the quote from 1992casey is that Sheets scrapped the 2 seamer and began dialing up the 4-seamer as hard as he could. In addition, he also somehow managed to learn to locate his heater. His first 2-3 years, his curve was not a strikeout pitch. In the last 2+ years he now has 2 strikeout pitches (high cheese, curve), better command, he also seems to throw more fastballs, and only uses the changeup occasionally to mix it in, but rarely more than 2-3 times per game