Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen Claps Back At Cam Newton
Former NFL quarterback and one-time MVP Cam Newton found himself in the middle of controversy over his comments about baseball and Pittsburgh Pirates legend Andrew McCutchen interjected with an opinion of his own.
Newton described baseball as a dying sport and said he expects the WNBA to surpass MLB in 20 years. McCutchen was quick to quip, questioning Newton’s knowledge of the sport.
“He talks about baseball like a person who has never been around baseball talks about baseball,” McCutchen wrote on X.
He talks about baseball like a person who has never been around baseball talks about baseball. https://t.co/cah3XxTuQV
— Andrew McCutchen (@TheCUTCH22) December 27, 2024
Newton was one of the best quarterbacks in football at his best and led the Carolina Panthers to a Super Bowl appearance in 2015
The numbers don’t back up Newton’s claim. The first two games in the 2024 World Series between the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers had its highest average viewership since 2017. MLB also made $11.34 billion in revenue in 2023.
The All-Star game also saw a 6 percent increase in viewership. Pirates ace and reigning 2024 National League Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes also played a role in that having been the first rookie pitcher to start an All-Star game since Hideo Nomo of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995. Skenes pitched one shutout inning for the National League.
While no sport is perfect, young stars can often carry the day as long as they’re in a position to do so. The reigning MVPs, Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, met in the World Series. The Dodgers went on to win the World Series in five games.
The WNBA is on the rise, especially after Caitlin Clark was drafted in 2024, but baseball is far from a dying sport. And as long as the sport keeps producing young stars, it’ll be thriving rather than dying.
