Attendance at minor league baseball games has not taken a hit over time, indicating high ticket prices and television/online viewing of the majors is more the culprit than lack of fans.
Baseball finances at all levels seems solid, no doubt helped buytaxpayers.
Yes, lack of TV is a big thing....
Every game used to be on TV on broadcast TV in local markets... not anymore.... now its on some obscure cable channel usually....
An afternoon game during the summer was a draw for kids during the summer... can remember actually going to the stadium with $10 and getting in and getting a drink... forget that now.
I delivered papers, and could easily afford to hit the games when I was kid.... Now its $20 just to get in... (not counting any fees they want to add to it) add a drink and you are at $30... want some popcorn? or peanuts? Better have $40...
Working a minimum wage job at $7.25 and hour... might see $5 an hour after taxes.. meaning a game is 8 hours a work for a kid today, minimum..... and we are in a “cheap” market....
Baseball has lost its way.....
Also,
When was the last time you saw kids play a sand lot or pick up game of baseball????????
The sport is dying...
Our local baseball org built a new facility far out of the way... kids still play organized with parents and refs... and the old fields in the parks that are easily accessible to all, sit empty and are grown over.....
My subdivision would get a game going at least a few times a week during the summer as a kid... We probably had 15 or 20 kids total in the neighborhood so we gathered everyone we could up.. even the kids you didn’t really like all that much just to be able to play.....
Tell me, when’s the last time you saw kids play a sand lot or pick up game of baseball? My oldest is 21, and I don’t think he ever played a pick up game of baseball in his life...