Totally Unreadable

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

[SKO]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

This feels like Webio with people I actually don't want to see fail. But frankly I mean I'm not paying 10 bucks a month for it. My wife already thinks the sports things I do have subscriptions to are kind of ridiculous (and they are), I can't justify 120 a year for one writer I like when his stuff isn't that different than what you'll still get at Wrigleyville BP and FG.

[PenFoe]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

This feels like Webio with people I actually don't want to see fail. But frankly I mean I'm not paying 10 bucks a month for it. My wife already thinks the sports things I do have subscriptions to are kind of ridiculous (and they are), I can't justify 120 a year for one writer I like when his stuff isn't that different than what you'll still get at Wrigleyville BP and FG.

I wouldn't even consider paying for this.

I hope lots of people do and they do great, though.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

This feels like Webio with people I actually don't want to see fail. But frankly I mean I'm not paying 10 bucks a month for it. My wife already thinks the sports things I do have subscriptions to are kind of ridiculous (and they are), I can't justify 120 a year for one writer I like when his stuff isn't that different than what you'll still get at Wrigleyville BP and FG.

I wouldn't even consider paying for this.

I hope lots of people do and they do great, though.

Did I miss some meme or revelation wherein PenFoe is some free spender? 

[R-V]

/quote]

I wouldn't even consider paying for this.

I hope lots of people do and they do great, though.

I think this pretty much sums it up. I've never seen Greenberg as a provider of funny or unique takes. Sahadev is great, but I enjoy his reporting more than his analysis. Joe Sheehan is the one sports-related thing I subscribe to, because (a) it's cheap, like $25 a year and (b) his analysis is often unique and interesting.

[Yeti]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

This feels like Webio with people I actually don't want to see fail. But frankly I mean I'm not paying 10 bucks a month for it. My wife already thinks the sports things I do have subscriptions to are kind of ridiculous (and they are), I can't justify 120 a year for one writer I like when his stuff isn't that different than what you'll still get at Wrigleyville BP and FG.

I wouldn't even consider paying for this.

I hope lots of people do and they do great, though.

Did I miss some meme or revelation wherein PenFoe is some free spender? 

Pen uses my MLB At Bat info. He uses my Baseball Prospectus info (I don't actually know if he does, but he has the info).

He's a freeloader.

[PenFoe]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

I can't even find $100 a year for Baseball America.  Baseball Prospectus is around 100/yr.  Netflix and SiriusXM use up some more of my cash.

$10 a month, though?  That does seem steep.  To be honest, they do seem to be throwing some money at the writers, getting some good ones.  Sahadev seems truly excited about the opportunity (I imagine BP was pretty much his dream job).

SQD...

I was way off.  BP annual subscription is like 35 bucks.

Nice move, Sahadev.

This feels like Webio with people I actually don't want to see fail. But frankly I mean I'm not paying 10 bucks a month for it. My wife already thinks the sports things I do have subscriptions to are kind of ridiculous (and they are), I can't justify 120 a year for one writer I like when his stuff isn't that different than what you'll still get at Wrigleyville BP and FG.

I wouldn't even consider paying for this.

I hope lots of people do and they do great, though.

Did I miss some meme or revelation wherein PenFoe is some free spender? 

Pen uses my MLB At Bat info. He uses my Baseball Prospectus info (I don't actually know if he does, but he has the info).

He's a freeloader.

Wait, I've had your BP info this whole time??

Man, talk about a missed opportunity.

[SKO]

That's kind of a shitty thing to do, Pen. Pay for your fucking content. MLB At Bat is 2.99 a month. Good god.

[Tonker]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

Please, you spend a ten times that on potatoes every fortnight.

You misspelled "cabbage".

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

This isn't totally unreadable, but thoughts on The Athletic? You know, if anyone has any thoughts about it at all.

They have some good writers and I hope the site succeeds, but for $10/month, I'm skeptical. The NY Times is $15/month. Netflix is $7.99/month. Adobe has software plans for $10/month that require thousands of hours of development and maintenance to produce. It seems like a pretty steep cost for local sportswriting given all of the completely free (or, rather, ad-supported) alternatives that are out there.

I think that if you support the concept of independent journalism, it might be worth the $10 just to do your small part in helping them succeed.

I'd also argue that $10/month for good journalism isn't expensive, but $8/month for Netflix is a ridiculously good bargain, as is $10/month for Adobe. Hell, I pay $5 a month for a good VPN.

Full disclosure: I have no intention to subscribe to the Athletic.

Yeah, the value relative to other subscription services isn't very good.

And I do totally get the idea of supporting independent journalism. But I'm not sure they're looking to be viewed as a charitable cause.

Yeah if I was still single and childless I probably wouldn't think twice about throwing a ten-spot their way.  I know that's not a lot of money but raising kids is goddamn expensive and I have difficulty justifying throwing down $120 a year when I'm trying to save for my kids' college.

Please, you spend a ten times that on potatoes every fortnight.

You misspelled "cabbage".

*brain explodes*

[SKO]

really no one else wants to join me in making fun of Pen for needing to share a 2.99 subscription to At Bat with the Okie from Muskogee like he's a college freshman?

COME ON PEOPLE

[Canadouche]

really no one else wants to join me in making fun of Pen for needing to share a 2.99 subscription to At Bat with the Okie from Muskogee like he's a college freshman?

COME ON PEOPLE

I tried to, but somehow my post got eaten. I'm just going to take that as a sign that my joke was atrocious, and best left unshared.

[Bort]

really no one else wants to join me in making fun of Pen for needing to share a 2.99 subscription to At Bat with the Okie from Muskogee like he's a college freshman?

COME ON PEOPLE

I'm already dangerously close to antisemitism every time I post, so a Pen is Cheap meme would probably get me in deep with the ADL.

[SKO]

really no one else wants to join me in making fun of Pen for needing to share a 2.99 subscription to At Bat with the Okie from Muskogee like he's a college freshman?

COME ON PEOPLE

I'm already dangerously close to antisemitism every time I post, so a Pen is Cheap meme would probably get me in deep with the ADL.

Back in college we used to go to the shitty chinese restaurant right across the street from our dorm a lot. I would always buy a fountain drink to go with mine, and my friend who was notoriously cheap would constantly beg me to let him "fill it up with fruit punch and down it before you get your drink" and he was always quite mad that I refused to let him.

That is the guy I will always think of now when dealing with Pen. Anytime he's doing a PenCast this year in the shoutbox no one visits anymore I will assume he's doing so with stolen play by play.

[Canadouche]

really no one else wants to join me in making fun of Pen for needing to share a 2.99 subscription to At Bat with the Okie from Muskogee like he's a college freshman?

COME ON PEOPLE

I'm already dangerously close to antisemitism every time I post, so a Pen is Cheap meme would probably get me in deep with the ADL.

It's ok. It's just antipenitism. They understand.