What have we learned from baseball in this World Series? Is it that baseball is starting to make a steady comeback? Or is it that this is one last gasp before baseball begins its ultimate demise? I’m hoping for the former and that baseball is ready for a comeback in the public eye. There are mixed reviews on want the viewership for this World Series means. There is also fear of what the future holds for baseball.

Game 1 of the World Series in 2021 between the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros got over 10 million viewers which is a 17.5% increase from game 1 of the 2020 World Series between the Dodgers and Rays. On this surface this looks like a positive uptick for baseball. However, this is still the second lowest viewed game 1 in recent years. It still trails the previous low in viewership which belonged to the 2014 World Series between the Royals and Giants.

So, what do these figures mean? Is baseball making a comeback after a weird 2020 or is this just a slight uptick in a sport that has lost the American Consciousness? This World Series has been decently entertaining. The Atlanta Braves who only won 88 games in the regular season have caught fire at the right time. They are a fun young team who is taking on the biggest enemy in Major League Baseball today, the Houston Astros. It is a fun matchup for baseball fans and has provided great storylines and moments.

The fear is that this may be a last gasp of enjoyment for baseball with turbulent times ahead. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires on December 1, 2021. Based on the contentious “negotiations” of 2020, it does not look like smooth sailing ahead. We all remember last summer as players held out for full pro-rated salaries and Owners refused to budge. Meanwhile the world was struggling amid a pandemic. Baseball appeared completely tone def and missed out on the golden opportunity to swoop in and provide a distraction to America in our most desperate hour. A chance to prove why they are America’s Pastime.

Instead, they argued for much of the summer and let their opportunity to play the hero disappear. Now the hope is that they have learned their lesson and the discussions this year will end in a completed agreement and players reporting to camp in the Spring. However, I am not so hopeful. I fear with are in for a long winter of impasses, contention, fear, and distrust. The players and owners clearly do not trust each other and neither wants to move an inch.

My advice is that we all enjoy this World Series. Baseball fans have a long winter of dread ahead in which we all need to prepare for the likelihood of a player strike or owner lockout. We can only hope they have not forgotten the pain the strike of 1994 caused. Nor should they forget the damage done to the reputation of baseball that only a steroid fueled home run race could mend. Well, Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire, and Sammy Sosa aren’t walking through that door. All we can do is hope they can play nice for the sake of the game.