[RedsBaron]

I'll never totally walk away; I've been a fan too long. But my interest in the game definitely is less than it was 25 years ago, for a lot of reasons: [1] The Reds were the Big Red Machine 25 years ago, and, more importantly for me, were made up of players I grew up with and idolized-now I'm older than any player in the majors and I don't idolize players young enough to be my own sons. [2] My interests are different, again partially a result of being older with more responsibilities. [3] Yes, the repeated strikes, drug abuse, player arrogance, owner arrogance, etc. have affected my love of MLB.
I will never totally abandon the game, but my sons, ages 5, 9 and 11 [I started late], have never embraced the game the way I did at their ages, and it seems to me that major league baseball is generally much less important to most kids now than it was to kids 30-35 years ago. It will be easier for a younger generation to leave a game they never fully embraced to begin with.