Assignment #1

Steve Yeisley
History in the Digital Age
January 23, 2008



Review of a Red Sox blog, http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/extras/extra_bases/


For the first assignment, I followed a Red Sox blog from the Boston Globe. As a Red Sox fan, I regularly read the Boston newspapers to get an in depth picture of how the team is doing and what is going on daily with them. I have never read a Red Sox blog. While I know things around the team would be slower in the winter, baseball’s offseason, I was still very optimistic and happy to do this assignment.

Format of the blog

The layout of the blog was very simple, straightforward, and easy to figure out. It was not colorful, which I liked, because it did not let me get distracted and helped me to focus on the information. It had the feel of reading an online newspaper, which of course it is part of. The posts were titled, and the blog was below them, nothing fancy. There were no pictures, and the only links it contained linked to older Red Sox articles which highlight the blogger’s point. It did not contain many ads, which was nice. The few ads it did have mainly centered on getting people to subscribe to the Boston Globe. Finally, the blog is intended to be very objective; it is not the place to go if you want to post an opinion about the Red Sox. In fact, it does not even allow for reader posts, which is good because it keeps many of the crazy, radical fans from ranting for hours on it. While many people might find the austerity boring, it was a refreshing change for me.

Content of the blog

The blog content was outstanding; it was exactly what I expected. Posts were frequent, sometimes two a day, although rarely were posts on consecutive days. Its purpose is to inform Red Sox fans about the state of their team, which it fulfills. Earlier posts include information on Jim Rice, a Red Sox legend who did not make Hall of Fame (voting for the Hall of Fame was released the previous day) and information about recent signings. Posts from the week that I followed include reasons why a recent Red Sox autograph charity event was postponed, more offseason signings, and ticket information for next season. The detail of the blog, however, is what really made it interesting for me. Rather than a newspaper article, or a brief mention on SportsCenter, this blog went more in depth with the information. A good example of this is the recent signing of Doug Mirabelli, a backup catcher for the Red Sox. While most major media outlets would not have even reported the signing of a player who does not start, the blog gives lots of detail about it. An excerpt states “Mirabelli has served as Tim Wakefield's personal catcher for his tenure with the Red Sox, which has bolstered his value, especially given his declining offensive numbers. Mirabelli, who was signed to a one-year deal last season, hit just .202 in 114 at bats last season. He had five home runs and 16 RBI.” This information is in-depth, concise, and exactly what I am looking for when following my team.

Would I recommend this blog?

This blog is obviously not for everybody. If you are not a sports fan, this is clearly not for you. Even the casual baseball fan would consider this blog too in-depth and would prefer more general coverage of the sport, like you would find on ESPN’s SportsCenter. However, if you are a die-hard member of Red Sox Nation, this blog is worth checking out.

I would also recommend it to New York Yankee fans, who should move away from the Evil Empire and join the winning team. :)