At a certain point, baseball lost something. It was called the National Pastime and still is, but really, it’s not anymore. Major league cities love it and kids play it in small towns but many more kids are playing football and basketball and soccer.
And part of it is baseball’s own fault. By the time the World Series was called off in 1994, it was already weakened, but that was a major blow. How could they do that? Millions quit watching in disgust. Toss in steroids, Steinbrenners and the owners dumping Faye Vincent and it had become a total mess.