Pollapalooza What The MLB Lockout Can Tell Us About Political Fandom And Sports Partisanship , at FacebookTwitterEmailLinkPHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY FIVETHIRTYEIGHT / AP IMAGESWelcome to Pollapalooza, our weekly polling roundup. The MLB lockout left fans feeling frustrated — especially with team owners — and, they claim, less interested in the sport. First, some background: At the end of Dec. 1, the collective bargaining agreement that governed MLB players’ relationship with their employers (i.e., the 30 MLB teams) expired. Interestingly, in past labor disputes, fans generally sided with MLB owners. And sure, maybe MLB fans’ game-watching habits are more malleable than partisans’ political beliefs, but sports fandom can inspire people to do extreme things and twist themselves up in logical knots, just like partisanship.

Source: Washington Post April 01, 2022 16:59 UTC