MLB has squandered that. Weekday afternoon WS games, with kids watching TVs in study halls, free periods, etc. in the gym or auditorium, were an effective way of building the fan bases - because a lot of kids would go watch the WS games, rather than sit in a study hall bored to tears.
MLB essentially traded this long-term development of future fans for more TV dollars in the short to medium term, and instead of afternoon games in the sunshine, we have night games, in late October or early November. These games are often too long, too late for younger viewers to stay up; the weather is often so bad as to affect the quality of play; the telecasts are in direct TV competition with other prime-time programming (as opposed to having to "compete" with the likes of Merv Griffin, Dick Cavett, soap operas and old sitcom re-runs); and of course, now, they're in competition with several hundred cable channels, several dozen streaming sources, plus video games, etc.
Frankly, an industry that operates this way - that moves to maximize current earnings at the direct expense of its long-term earnings potential - deserves to fail.
