After four months of waiting, today is finally Opening Day in the world of baseball. Soon stadiums across the country will be filled with cheering fans waiting for the crack of the bat, hearing the umpire yell strike, and of course eating peanuts and Cracker Jack. However, it’s looking like there won’t be a lot of younger people in those crowds.
America’s oldest sport might be becoming exactly that, old.
What once was the biggest sport in the U.S. is starting to decrease in viewership and a lot of people aren’t too excited for the season to start, especially young people, a trend that continues at USC.
“I haven’t been following it in years,” Ezra Avery, a sophomore studying economics/mathematics, said. “There’s so many games in a season, and it’s hard to follow individual players. Also the games are long and kinda boring.”
Major League Baseball just can’t seem to strike a chord with the college generation. Some students just don’t see importance in the game with how many games there are, and how long the season is. The beginning of the season also faces an uphill battle having to compete with the NCAA Basketball Tournaments.
March Madness is one of the most highly anticipated times of the year in sports, and unfortunately for the league, its first games are right in the middle of the tournaments. Currently it’s already time for the Sweet 16 and as the season inches closer to the finals people would much rather watch that then the first of 162 games.
“I think men’s and women’s March Madness absolutely overshadows Opening Day,” Tovia Manning, a sophomore studying law, history and culture, said. “We are seeing the stats, we are seeing how much the viewership is increasing, seeing these incredible athletes break records. There are more underdogs and all of that is just much more entertaining to watch.”
And while there are still some die hard fans out there, young people aren’t buying into the baseball hype.
“I don’t want to say people aren’t missing out on a lot, because I like the sport, but it wouldn’t be the sport I recommend to someone,” Abby Rowley, a sophomore studying mechanical engineering, said. “You take baseball at face value, it’s fairly boring and you aren’t guaranteed hits. I feel like more often there are less exciting baseball games than exciting games.”
Part of the reason young people may not be interested in baseball might be due to the fact that other popular sports feature a faster pace and more tension, which can be more exciting for the casual viewer.
For example, basketball is constantly moving with players running around the court. Additionally, the football atmosphere heightens the game and makes nearly every play feel important. In a game that can be slow, it manages to keep people on the edge of their seats.
Baseball, on the other hand, struggles with both. It can often take multiple innings for a major play to happen, and even then it may not result in a run.
“I play baseball, and I know the game is boring and slow-paced if you are just watching it,” Brian Tewjiayan, a first-year graduate student studying architecture and USC Club baseball member, said. “I feel like the case with professional baseball, if there aren’t a lot of good players on one team, it’s boring to see the worse players.”
It’s not like MLB hasn’t been paying attention to this though. The league is very aware of the shrinking viewership and aging fanbase. In an effort to try to combat this last season, the sport instituted a new pitch clock rule to speed up the game.
While some fans weren’t too happy with the rule change it did end up having a positive effect on viewership. MLB reported 86% of people ages 18-24 are more likely to watch the game with the rule changes.
“Is it still America’s pastime, you know I don’t think so. I think with the growing popularity of other sports baseball has taken a backseat,” Miki Turner, Annenberg professor and advisor for USC’s Sports Business Association, said. “Maybe it’s because it hasn’t evolved into something else or hasn’t made any inroads trying to appeal to this generation.”