The Orioles this season will continue the “Kids Cheer Free” program, initiated last year, which "allows parents to bring children age 9 and younger to any home game" for free. Every adult who buys a regularly priced game ticket in the upper deck can "bring up to two children" free of charge (BALTIMORESUN.com, 3/19). In Baltimore, Peter Schmuck writes, "Conventional wisdom tells us this is not going to be a good year for the Orioles." The team has "lost fans in every season" since '15, and attendance in '18 "dropped to its lowest point in any season not shortened by a strike" since '78. By the middle of last season, there was "no choice but to embark on a full-scale organizational overhaul" (BALTIMORE SUN, 3/21).
IT'S IN THE GAME: In Toronto, Laura Armstrong noted the Blue Jays "will have a cut-off time for video games and television before games this season." Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said that the new rule was a "player-driven initiative, after a leadership group made up of 10 of the team’s veterans shared concerns that screen time was a distraction." Video games, particularly Fortnite, have "become more prominent, and more problematic" in pro sports (TORONTO STAR, 3/19).
DOUBLE DUTY: THE ATHLETIC's Pierre LeBrun wrote the Hurricanes "need to figure out what they’re doing at the GM position." Don Waddell currently serves as both GM and team president, so he "has to deal with all the business functions that particular job also entails." Hurricanes Owner Tom Dundon said that he "hadn’t given it much thought yet but knows that he will at some point." Dundon clearly "doesn’t believe in the traditional ‘my-way-or-the-highway’ GM approach, he believes in a collaborative effort" (THEATHLETIC.com, 3/20).
KNIGHT AND DAY: In Las Vegas, Ben Gotz notes secondary ticket prices for tonight's Jets-Golden Knights game are "higher than the prices" to attend the first rounds of the NCAA Tournament. Golden Knights tickets "start at $118 each on StubHub.com," while first-round games in Des Moines today start at $80. LasVegasTickets.com President Ken Solky said that "even a normal game for the Knights makes them one of the most sought-after tickets in Las Vegas" (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 3/21).
