Letters to the Editor
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on "decline"
First off, note that I was citing the ever-nebulous "conventional wisdom." That S.O.B. is wrong most of the time anyway, so much so that I wonder why I listen to him sometimes.
Revenue and attendance gains are certainly indicative of financial health. Fan interest (which admittedly is much less easily defined and reliably tracked) has generally diminished, or so I've read on numerous occasions over the last few years.
Perhaps these articles I've read were incorrect, and perhaps my recollections of these aren't quite in line with the current state of things. But it's not to hard to do a Google search and find articles about the perceived decline in baseball. I'm sure many of the points made in these articles are easily refuted. But people are talking about it, and have been for some time. And where there's smoke...
From what I've seen, MLB has evolved into a borderline niche sport. Baseball junkies certainly aren't going anywhere. Rotisserie leaguers love it. Casual fans looking to spend an enjoyable day spending too much money on beer and hot dogs have fun at the park. But as far as the rest of us, it seems that general interest in the game appears to be on the decline (or at least flat while interest in other sports is on the increase).
Is MLB in jeopardy? As you pointed out, hardly. This ain't hockey we're talking about. ;-)