Fans Hate to Hear It, but They Do Come Back

If history is any indicator, a baseball strike would have no long-term effect on major league attendance, a joint study led by an economics professor at Cal State Bakersfield suggests.

David Berri, who co-authored the study with Martin Schmidt, an economics professor at Portland State, found that after player strikes in 1981 and 1994-95--despite claims to the contrary--fans returned to the games almost immediately.

“In the end, it appears that neither strike has had a lasting effect on attendance,” Berri said. “One might expect that attendance would recover from a strike, but given the rhetoric of fans, such a recovery would take a period of years. Our research suggests that the recovery occurs immediately.”

Trivia time: Earlier this season, David Eckstein of the Angels hit grand slams in consecutive games. Who was the last major league player to do it before him?

House rules: Charley Walters in the St. Paul Pioneer Press: “The house Tiger Woods is using this week at the Bearpath Golf and Country Club development in Eden Prairie, Minn., belongs to a notable former athlete who is out of town with his family on vacation.

“Word is, Woods not only had a whirlpool bath installed, but also a large-screen TV and furniture, and has a personal cook for the week. A little birdie says that in exchange for free rent, Woods will pay for the owner’s family vacation.”

Dynamic duos: According to Stats Inc., with Tom Glavine’s victory on Wednesday, he and Greg Maddux now have 340 combined wins as teammates, the same number Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax recorded with the Dodgers from 1956-66. The Atlanta Braves’ pair, who have been together for 10 seasons (1993-2002) also did it with 66 fewer losses, 153 to 219. Glavine and Maddux’s combined earned-run average also is slightly lower, 2.86 to 2.89.

Money matters: Jerry Greene in the Orlando Sentinel reports that Dale Earnhardt still has economic influence, even after his death: “[Earnhardt] has zoomed up the Forbes.com chart of ‘Richest Deceased Celebrities.’ He’s No. 4 among the Dearly Departed for continued profit directly associated to his name, reportedly earning $20 million from June 2001 through June ’02.”

No. 1 on the list? Elvis Presley with $37 million.

Sobering news: Bud Shaw of the Cleveland Plain Dealer is glad the Cleveland Browns are taking measures this season to cut down on drunken behavior by fans: “Your chance of going home without your neighbor’s cookies on your shoes is better than ever.”

Penalty box: Steve Rushin of Sports Illustrated, on Buffalo Sabre owner John Rigas’ recent arrest on fraud charges: “He faces up to 30 years in prison, though it may help Rigas to think of such a sentence as a few million consecutive two-minute minors.”

Trivia answer: Albert Belle of the Baltimore Orioles in 2000.

And finally: Jon Saraceno in USA Today: “Security at Network Associates Coliseum, home of those nasty Oakland Raiders, has announced the stadium’s list of prohibited items, including alcohol, illegal drugs and firearms. What’s this world coming to? Next thing you know, they’ll want to ban tattoos, brass knuckles and Pamela Anderson.”