America's Favorite Past Pastime

            Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, all famous Baseball players who lived during the reign of Baseball popularity. From the early twentieth century Baseball has been America's favorite pastime. The thrilling tingle fans felt up their spine as they stepped into Yankee Stadium, waiting eagerly too see "The Babe" strut to the plate. Nothing felt better seeing the hometown Yanks thump the Red Sox's, eating Peanuts & Crackerjacks. Those were the good ol" days, where a hot dog at the concession only cost a quarter. Now, the National Football League (NFL) is becoming increasingly popular among the United States, especially for men aged between eighteen and eighty. Major League Baseball (MLB) has had their television ratings drop dramatically over the past decade. Baseball is disappearing.
             Growing up, Baseball was life, my only ambition to wake up in the early mornings. During tournaments where games were scheduled early as nine in the morning, I would be at the field at seven. Sitting in the dugout, staring out in the field, waiting for the sun to clear the dew. During those years, the mid nineties, the league was composed of seven or eight teams. As the years passed, the number of teams thinned. This past year a record low, three teams were put together. The worst place team still had the pleasure of the bronze medal. More kids are finding Xbox and Gamecube more entertaining than trotting around the bases after a long homerun.
             The recent decline of TV ratings for the MLB, have been prompted by the beginning of a new football season. Nielsen Media Research, a company that reveals the amount of households who tune into a program, show NFL Monday Night Football ranked number one followed closely by NFL Monday Showcase at number three. In order to get an audience to watch the annual MLB All-star game, commissioner Bud Selig decided to announce that the league (American or National) that won the game would have home field advantage during the World Series.