17, Baseball moved the World Series deeper into October in 1969
The summer’s of 1967 and 1968 were marked with urban unrest and rioting in cities across the country. In ballparks across the nation, attendance dropped dramatically. The Los Angeles Dodgers drew almost one million fewer fans in 1967 than they had the preceding year. But in riot torn Detroit, the Tigers attendance went up by over half a million in 1968, despite armed troops stationed in the shadows of Tiger Stadium. Hitting in both leagues was feeble. 1968 became known as the Year of the Pitcher. The following year, due to expansion, the American and National leagues split themselves into divisions. The regular season division leaders held playoffs to determine which team would represent their league in the World Series. As a result, the World Series took place later in October than it traditionally had.
Baseball, the game of summer, lost fans to football, and even basketball, as the World Series was played at night, often in frigid weather. The Fall Classic no longer held the nation in thrall. Television ratings dwindled. Attendance during the regular season fell, as fewer fans entered their region’s urban core to watch games, especially at night. While the World Series had once drawn the attention of even the most casual of fans, by the early 1970s even some baseball fans had lost interest, unless their team of choice was playing. Beginning in 1970 the National Football League expanded its scheduling to present games on Saturday and on Monday nights. In 1973, in an attempt to increase offensive production and generate greater fan interest, the American League adopted the designated hitter rule. Interest in baseball, and the World Series, continued to drop, especially in the fall.