This Is Real?

CBS Sports has introduced the world to their Baseball Boyfriend fantasy baseball game.  It is described as "a single draftee fantasy sports mini game designed for girls."

Where do I start?  Was this a necessary creation?  No, of course it wasn't.  I have been playing fantasy baseball and hockey for years and clearly coming in 2nd place in my hockey league just screams that I don't know what I'm doing.  My poor girlie brain just can't handle the statistics of more than one player at a time so I definitely need to have a baseball boyfriend so I'll only have to follow one player.

One of the things that kills me about this is that the concept really is not terrible.  It's the fact that it is being marketed to girls in a way that makes them look like sports morons that stinks.  Creating a simplified fantasy baseball game really is not a bad idea.  But instead of saying it is for girls, it's easy enough to say it is for beginning fans or casual fans.  In fact, MLB.com has something simple in their Beat The Streak game where you only choose one hitter to follow each day.  It just doesn't make sense to alienate half the baseball fanbase as too dumb to play real fantasy baseball.

Another thing that kills me is that it is marketed for "girls."  Someone on twitter (I don't remember exactly who, but if it's you - or you know who - tell me so I can give credit) pointed out that it is for girls and not women.  As part of the younger fanbase, this is the last thing I want to be associated with.  I was ecstatic when I realized I was finally out of the "I Want To Marry Every Player" stage and really wish it had never happened.  This is encouraging girls to like players for their looks and not for the game they play and the work they do.  I know how confused I was about which players I actually liked and which I liked for their looks, this is just making that worse for the current girls in that situation.

I hate how much attention I have already given this when I really just want it to go away.  All I ask is that you don't play this game, even if you would be playing as a joke, the numbers would show success and that is the last thing it deserves.