The state of Major League Baseball is a hot topic this
morning, with the season opening on ESPN Sunday night and in full
on Monday. USA TODAY's Chuck Johnson calls this "the year of the
comeback" -- for several key players and the game itself (USA
TODAY, 3/29). In Chicago, Andrew Bagnato writes, "Baseball again
has opening day jitters. Instead of asking, 'Who's on third?'
many major-league baseball clubs are wondering, 'Is anyone
watching?' The clubs are so nervous that they are reaching back
to the days of a Bill Veeck with promotions galore in an attempt
to win back the fans" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 3/29). MLB Properties
launches its "What a Game" campaign with a full-page ad in USA
TODAY. A baseball fills most of the page, with the copy reading:
"About this time every year a strange phenomenon occurs -- The
earth revolves around this" (USA TODAY, 3/29).
BY THE NUMBERS: A CNN/USA TODAY/Gallup Poll (503 fans
surveyed March 15-17) found slightly more fans saying they plan
to watch or attend games this year (USA TODAY, 3/29):
APRIL '95 MARCH '96
PLAN TO WATCH THE SAME AS PRE-STRIKE 43% 47%
PLAN TO WATCH LESS 48 39
PLAN TO WATCH MORE 7 12
PLAN TO ATTEND A GAME THIS YEAR 37% 44%
DON'T PLAN TO ATTEND 59 54
NEWS & NOTES: In New York, Claire Smith examines MLB's
potential in Mexico, with Monterrey and Mexico City "superseding"
Orlando, Charlotte and Northern VA as top expansion sites. Red
Sox CEO John Harrington: "If you didn't have to consider the
economic troubles and the governmental situation and well, if
Mexico City were in the United States, they would have had a
major league team a long time ago" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/29). The
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES notes MLB still has not decided on a playoff
format, in terms of who plays who and who gets home-field
advantage (Toni Ginnetti, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 3/29). In
Providence, Sean McAdam examines the "generational shift" among
MLB GMs, with one-fourth of all GMs now under age 42 (Providence
JOURNAL-BULLETIN, 3/29). In Washington, Thom Loverro profiles
the growing trend toward independent minor leagues, with Texas-
Louisiana League Owner Greg Earls predicting MLB teams will begin
turning to them for development since they can "do it cheaper"
(WASHINGTON TIMES, 3/29).
