Only the biggest MLB fans are following the lockout, but a majority have soured on this year’s season
Six in 10 Major League Baseball fans say the players-owners dispute has made them lose interest in the baseball season this year, according to a new poll from the Los Angeles Times and SurveyMonkey fielded March 3-7, 2022.
- Men are more likely than women (64% vs. 55%) to say they’ve lost interest
- Seniors 65+ are more likely than younger adults to say they’ve lost interest (65% vs. 61% of 35-64 year-olds and 53% of 18-34 year-olds
- Republicans (68%) are more likely than Democrats (56%) and independents (55%) to have lost interest
- Big fans (59%) and casual fans (61%) are equally likely to have lost interest
Among self-described MLB fans, 11% are following the lockout closely, 31% are following somewhat closely, 39% are following not too closely, and 18% aren’t following it closely at all.
Among “big fans,” 36% are following the lockout news closely, 40% are following somewhat closely, 18% are following not too closely, and 6% are not following it closely at all.
About four in 10 people across the U.S. consider themselves to be MLB fans (11% are big fans and 27% are casual fans).
Players and owners share blame for the lockout
As the Major League Baseball lockout drags on, about half (49%) of fans say the players and owners are equally to blame, while 31% blame the owners and 12% blame the players. Young adults are more likely to point the finger at both sides: 18% of 18-34 year-olds blame the players, 37% blame the owners, and 33% blame both equally.
Few predict the loss of an entire season, but many are disappointed to delay Opening Day and lose any games
Just 13% of MLB fans say they don’t expect the lockout to be resolved this season, but there’s no consensus on when it will likely end. A plurality (35%) expect it to be over before the end of April, 24% expect it to be over before Memorial Day, 13% expect it to be over before the All Star Break, and another 4% expect it to be over after the All Star Break.
Read more about our polling methodology here.
Click through all the results in the interactive toplines below: about:
