The latter issue is why gutting the minors the way they did for short term savings rather than working with them on a streamlined model looks so shortsighted. Remove it from the culture, and it’ll be done
I think it works on two fronts. Minor league ball is definitely part of the summer culture some places. I know I used to love going to games whenever I lived in a town with a minor league team. You're losing those kids who would normally turn into fans. On the other hand, you have people already living in your markets who have cut the cord (anecdotally, but it seems to be the norm among our friends/neighbors) who would like to watch games, but can't. Those people will drift away over time and there kids will have no exposer outside of in person attendance
