The Dodgers re-introduce me to my small, female brain

Good thing the Dodgers are introducing female-friendly broadcasts. I've always been too scared to ask questions about sports and baseball is so damn tough to figure out! Now they can explain to me the proper way to wear a pink hat, when to clap and the lady-like way to eat a hot dog (I guess we should probably stick to salads). Since I always have a tough time counting to three, good thing Jeanne Zelasko can help me along. It's like Sesame Street, but for adults! Well, not adults, just women. Our brains struggle to understand this hit and run thing. 

Says Zelasko: "I like to look at our broadcast as we're not afraid to explain something most people might take for granted."

I can't tell you how many times Jeff has cornered me and told me I'm taking Base on Balls for granted. And thank God we have Zelasko to explain to us what the "six hole" is. Counting to six is almost twice as hard as counting to three!

I'm getting a headache. This has to be the stupidest sports idea since ... well, it's hard to remember significantly stupid moments in sports. My brain is too full of recipes for Chicken Tetrazini.

Did it occur to the Dodgers that women don't enjoy being pandered to? That having one of the best announcers in sports (Vin Scully) is a fine way to learn about baseball? That baseball isn't that flippin' hard to understand to begin with?!

What bothers me about this more than anything is the contempt it breads for female sports fans. Take a look at some of the comments.

Uh... Bad idea. There is nothing worse than listening to woman do male sports. Gymnastics ok....Ice skating fine..... Underwater basket weaving great...But baseball? Come on! Recently listened to a NBA basketball game with a woman commentator. Absolutely Terrible. It just doesn't work. Pa leeeeese NO!

****???? Why ?
Women already get to view athletic men , and fantasize about them..........Why do you have to cater to them with thi generict broadcast team??? Unless Zelasco is wearing a thong for us men to view.
What's in it for us men??? Are you going to show us more female underwear commercials, so 'we' can fantasize also???
It's a load, as far as I am concerned, and it's dumbing down the game..........

Fannnn-tastic. I'm all for more females in the booth, but there's no reason to start this trend off with the training wheels on. My guess is if someone, not necessarily a female, is interested in something but confused by it, they probably will just ask someone. Or look it up on the internet. Or read a book. Or keep watching so they'll learn. Revolutionary.

So, I'm clearly offended by this. And I'm sure most female baseball fans (there are a lot of them) will be as well. Certainly quite a few of my male fan friends piped in on this as well. 

The way sports can become more female-friendly is not to treat that segment of the population any differently than the other. I've always believed  that most women who don't watch sports don't because they were specifically made to feel like an outsider. Maybe by their father, or their boyfriend/husband or maybe even their mothers who didn't watch sports and therefore made her feel like it wasn't something she should be part of. I also suspect men who grew up in households where their mothers/sisters watched sports are more accepting. 

I've been over this before. Sports is no more difficult to understand whether you are a man or a woman. While my trajectory as a sports fan started later than most, I don't feel badly about being a little behind. Who cares?

Blech. Your thoughts?