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Originally Posted by painekiller
I had no ties to the Cubs and Cards, much less the Brewers, so this move means little to me.
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It's not about ties to any of those teams, it's about ties to the Astros and the NL. Those teams you mention are the enemy except during an All Star game or a World Series - then the AL is the enemy.
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I will grant you that the DH is a bad rule, other than that what is the difference in the two leagues?
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The old stereotypes are that the NL was all about pitching/defense/speed/bunting/sacrifices. The NL is old school, pitcher bats. The AL seemed to have all the sluggers (beer league baseball). Something still true is that an AL starting pitcher with a 4.50 ERA is considered "good". That usually wouldn't cut it in the NL...
Nowadays, with the advent of interleague play and free agency, the line between AL and NL has blurred a bit. I think I read somewhere today that the AL actually had more stolen bases than the NL this year...
I suppose it's more of a personal preference thing.... I prefer the NL - been rooting against the AL and those dastardly Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, etc. ever since I can remember.... I was an NL guy when I was a wee lad (liked the Pirates and Giants) and before my family moved to Houston in 1963. When we landed in Houston, I immediately adopted the Colt .45's as my favorite team. The Astrodome was just a skeleton (under construction) back then and my parents used to drop me off at old Colt .45 Stadium to watch a game. Somewhere I still have an old game program loaded with autographs of Jimmy Wynn, Joe Morgan, Don Nottebart and many more (and a bunch of the Cardinals, the team they were playing that day). Went to the first exhibition game in the new dome - saw Mickey Mantle hit the first home run in the dome. Saw Mays, McCovey, Aaron pass through.... I disliked the DH when it came out and I dislike aluminum bats (is that next for MLB?).
So, as a fan, I'm comfortable in the NL. Don't like it too much being pushed into the AL... :/