Interest in MLB season tops ire over lockout

NEW YORK — About 1 in 4 fans of Major League Baseball feel at least some anger toward the sport after its first work stoppage in a generation, according to a new poll, but the vast majority are still excited about the new season.

Only 27% of Americans say they are currently a fan of MLB, according to the poll from The Associated PressNORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The poll also finds 32% of Americans 45 and older say they currently are fans, but only 22% of younger adults say they are, a trend MLB management says it is working to reverse.

Even among fans, few were very attuned to the 99-day lockout that delayed the start of the season from March 31 until Thursday or say that it had a major impact on their views of MLB.

Jason Timmons grew up watching the Chicago Cubs and was following closely when they won the World Series in 2016, but he said he didn’t know they would be starting their season Thursday because “the whole labor thing kind of turned me off.”

“I think it’s petty,” said Timmons, a 43-year-old from St. Marys, West Virginia. “I just don’t think it’s right — billionaires fighting with billionaires over just little stuff.”

The poll shows three-quarters of fans say they’re at least somewhat excited about the upcoming season, and even more say they’re at least somewhat interested. Still, 28% of fans are at least somewhat angry and 39% are at least somewhat frustrated following the dispute, in which management and players vented their criticism of each other during weeks when the start of spring training was delayed.

“They’re always bickering about their labor,” Timmons said. “And it’s like, you’re just playing baseball. I mean, there’s other things going on in the world that’s more important than bickering about what they’re bickering about.”

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred apologized to fans when the labor agreement was reached on March 10. Union head Tony Clark said several times during the dispute that management chose to institute the work stoppage as a strategy.

For some, the lockout was only further evidence of what they were already feeling. The poll shows 22% of Americans say they used to be MLB baseball fans but are not anymore. Donald Joy is among them.

“I used to play baseball, I used to be a fan of it, but I’ve gotten away from it because of all of the nonsense,” said Joy, a 70-year-old from Bailey, Colorado. “People claiming to be slaves when they’re making $20 million a year.”

Joy lamented the growing costs for fans, from the price of a ticket to go to a game to the cost of a hot dog at the stadium.

“You get to a point where it’s not about the fans anymore,” Joy said. “It’s become a rich man’s sport. It is not for the masses.”