Sports Poll: Should Pete Rose Be In The Baseball Hall Of Fame? 6 Out Of 10 Americans Say Yes, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Once America's Favorite Pastime, Baseball's Popularity Sags Among Young People, Legal Betting Seen As A Bad Thing In College Sports, Less Negative For Professional Sports
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In the wake of Major League Baseball changing eligibility rules for its Hall of Fame, Americans 60 - 27 percent think Pete Rose, baseball's all-time hits leader who was banned from the sport for gambling on games when he was manager of the Cincinnati Reds, should be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, according to a Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pea-ack) University national poll of adults released today. The survey was conducted in collaboration with the Quinnipiac University School of Communications.
"Few names generate more conversation, more debate, more heated arguments than whether or not Pete Rose should be in Baseball's Hall of Fame. It won't go away, even after Rose died last year. Roughly two years from now, for the first time, he'll get his chance. It's clear Americans feel he has waited long enough," said Nick Pietruszkiewicz, Assistant Professor of Journalism and Program Director of Sports Communications, Quinnipiac University.
FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH
When Americans were given a list of nine sports and asked which is their favorite sport to watch, football (29 percent) tops the list, followed by baseball (15 percent) and basketball (11 percent). No other sport reached double digits.
However, among 18 to 34 year olds, football (20 percent) tops the list, followed by basketball (15 percent), soccer (10 percent), baseball (9 percent), boxing (9 percent), race car driving (9 percent), and hockey (8 percent) with other listed sports receiving less than 5 percent.
"Baseball has an age problem. MLB has been making changes to court younger audiences. Clearly, it's not working as much as it would like," added Pietruszkiewicz.
When Americans were given the same list of nine sports and asked which one they consider to be the most popular for Americans to watch, football (74 percent) trounces all the rest, followed by baseball (11 percent) and basketball (7 percent).
ROBOT UMPIRES
Roughly two-thirds of Americans (65 percent) oppose using robot umpires in Major League Baseball games now that MLB tested an automated ball-strike system during spring training games, while 25 percent support using them.
Opposition to robot umpires is across the board among listed groups, although there is a difference between men and women in the strength of that opposition.
Women (71 - 19 percent) oppose using robot umpires, compared to men (59 - 32 percent) who also oppose using them.
BETTING
Six out of 10 Americans (60 percent) think legal betting on college sports in the United States is a bad thing, while 30 percent think it is a good thing.
There are big differences by age:
- 65 years of age and over: 75 percent think it is a bad thing, while 14 percent think it is a good thing;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 66 percent think it is a bad thing, while 27 percent think it is a good thing;
- 35 to 49 year olds: 52 percent think it is a bad thing, while 36 percent think it is a good thing;
- 18 to 34 year olds: 46 percent think it is a bad thing, while 42 percent think it is a good thing.
Legal betting on professional sports in the United States draws less negative views, as 47 percent of Americans think it is a bad thing and 41 percent think it is a good thing.
Age plays a part again when it comes to how people view it:
- 65 years of age and over: 60 percent think it is a bad thing, while 28 percent think it is a good thing;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 51 percent think it is a bad thing, while 40 percent think it is a good thing;
- 35 to 49 year olds: 40 percent think it is a bad thing, while 48 percent think it is a good thing;
- 18 to 34 year olds: 41 percent think it is a bad thing, while 47 percent think it is a good thing.
"Older sports fans are almost always against changing the status quo - why fix what isn't broken? This is clear in the stark contrast between generations' acceptance of sports gambling on both college and professional sports," said Brittani Webb, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Media Studies, Quinnipiac University School of Communications.
COLLEGE ATHLETES
Americans 59 - 36 percent think that college athletes should be paid.
There are big differences by age:
- 18 to 34 year olds: 74 percent think college athletes should be paid, while 22 percent think they should not be paid;
- 35 to 49 year olds: 67 percent think college athletes should be paid, while 28 percent think they should not be paid;
- 50 to 64 year olds: 54 percent think college athletes should be paid, while 44 percent think they should not be paid;
- 65 years of age and over: 38 percent think college athletes should be paid, while 54 percent think they should not be paid.
Americans 63 - 29 percent support allowing college athletes to negotiate endorsements and salaries.
TRANSFER PORTAL
The transfer portal that allows college athletes to move from one team to another without sitting out the year gets a thumbs up as a good thing for college sports from 47 percent of adults, while 26 percent think the transfer portal is a bad thing for college sports, and 28 percent did not offer an opinion.
WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL
Roughly one third of adults (32 percent) say they are paying more attention to women's professional basketball compared to five years ago, while 52 percent say they are paying about the same amount of attention, and 10 percent say they are paying less attention.
Responses from men and women are similar.
Among women, 31 percent say they are paying more attention, while 55 percent say they are paying about the same amount of attention, and 8 percent say they are paying less attention.
Among men, 33 percent say they are paying more attention, while 49 percent say they are paying about the same amount of attention, and 12 percent say they are paying less attention.
Three in 10 Americans (30 percent) say if they knew Caitlin Clark was playing in a women's basketball game, they would be more likely to watch the game, while 65 percent say it wouldn't make a difference, and 2 percent say it would make them less likely to watch the game.
After being told that players like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese started out their rookie year earning salaries a bit over $70,000 with the average salary for WNBA players being roughly $147,000 according to some estimates, 47 percent of Americans think WNBA players generally should be paid more, while 35 percent think salaries should stay about the same, and 5 percent think they should be paid less.
"Awareness around pay disparities between men's and women's professional athletes has increased, just as women's basketball is receiving more media coverage. You can see American women are responding to all this by supporting increased salaries for players," added Webb.
1,115 U.S. adults nationwide were surveyed from June 22nd - 24th with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Doug Schwartz, Ph.D. since 1994, conducts independent, non-partisan national and state polls on politics and issues. Surveys adhere to industry best practices and are based on probability-based samples using random digit dialing with live interviewers calling landlines and cell phones.
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Poll Questions
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Question 26. Which professional sport would you say is your favorite sport to watch: baseball, football, basketball, hockey, soccer, tennis, boxing, race car driving, or golf?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Baseball 15% 13% 16% 9% 16% 16% 20% Football 29 32 26 20 31 37 34 Basketball 11 8 14 15 9 8 10 Hockey 6 5 7 8 6 8 2 Soccer 7 8 7 10 9 7 4 Tennis 3 3 3 4 5 1 3 Boxing 4 6 3 9 6 2 - Race car driving 6 6 5 9 5 5 6 Golf 4 5 3 4 1 3 7 SOMETHING ELSE(VOL) 5 4 5 5 2 4 3 DK/NA 10 9 11 6 10 10 12 -
Question 27. Which professional sport do you consider to be the most popular for Americans to watch: baseball, football, basketball, hockey, soccer, tennis, boxing, race car driving, or golf?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Baseball 11% 10% 11% 5% 8% 14% 15% Football 74 77 71 75 81 74 73 Basketball 7 5 9 12 6 3 4 Hockey - - - 2 - - - Soccer 2 1 2 3 1 1 1 Tennis - - - - - - - Boxing - - - - - - 1 Race car driving 2 1 3 1 1 4 1 Golf - 1 - - - - 1 SOMETHING ELSE(VOL) 1 1 1 - - 2 - DK/NA 3 3 3 1 2 2 4 -
Question 28. Compared to five years ago, are you paying more attention to women's professional basketball, less attention to women's professional basketball, or about the same amount of attention to women's professional basketball?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ More 32% 33% 31% 31% 24% 37% 35% Less 10 12 8 9 14 9 9 About the same 52 49 55 55 59 48 46 DK/NA 6 6 6 5 4 5 10 -
Question 29. In thinking about women's professional basketball, players like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese started out their rookie year earning salaries a bit over $70,000 with the average salary for WNBA players being roughly $147,000, according to some estimates. Do you think WNBA players generally should be paid more, less, or should salaries stay about the same?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ More 47% 43% 51% 46% 53% 46% 47% Less 5 6 5 5 5 6 5 About the same 35 38 32 41 34 38 32 DK/NA 13 13 12 9 8 10 16 -
Question 30. If you knew Caitlin Clark was playing in a women's basketball game, would you be more likely to watch the game, less likely to watch the game, or wouldn't it make a difference?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ More 30% 33% 28% 25% 28% 30% 41% Less 2 2 2 2 - 3 3 No difference 65 61 68 72 67 65 52 DK/NA 3 4 2 1 4 2 5 -
Question 31. As you may know, college athletes can move from one team to another without sitting out the year because of the transfer portal. Do you think the transfer portal is a good thing for college sports or a bad thing for college sports?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Good thing 47% 46% 47% 60% 54% 44% 30% Bad thing 26 31 20 14 24 35 30 DK/NA 28 22 33 26 22 20 39 -
Question 32. Do you think college athletes should be paid, or not?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Yes/Paid 59% 62% 56% 74% 67% 54% 38% No 36 33 38 22 28 44 54 DK/NA 5 5 5 4 4 2 8 -
Question 33. Do you support or oppose allowing college athletes to negotiate endorsements and salaries?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Support 63% 65% 62% 78% 74% 61% 42% Oppose 29 30 28 17 22 35 45 DK/NA 8 6 10 5 4 4 14 -
Question 34. Generally speaking, do you think legal betting on - college sports in the United States is a good thing or a bad thing?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Good thing 30% 35% 25% 42% 36% 27% 14% Bad thing 60 55 64 46 52 66 75 DK/NA 10 10 11 12 11 6 11 -
Question 35. Generally speaking, do you think legal betting on - professional sports in the United States is a good thing or a bad thing?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Good thing 41% 45% 37% 47% 48% 40% 28% Bad thing 47 46 49 41 40 51 60 DK/NA 12 9 14 12 12 9 12 -
Question 36. As you may know, robot umpires were tested during Major League Baseball spring training games with an automated ball-strike system with hopes of using them in the games. Do you support or oppose using robot umpires in Major League Baseball games?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Support 25% 32% 19% 30% 29% 21% 21% Oppose 65 59 71 62 62 71 68 DK/NA 9 8 10 8 9 7 11 -
Question 37. As you may know, Pete Rose, baseball's all-time hits leader, was banned from the sport for gambling on games when he was the Manager of the Cincinnati Reds. He is now eligible to be considered for the Baseball Hall of Fame. Do you think Pete Rose should be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, or don't you think so?
ADULTS....................................... AGE IN YRS.............. Tot Men Wom 18-34 35-49 50-64 65+ Yes/Should 60% 67% 53% 50% 63% 67% 63% No 27 23 32 35 23 23 29 DK/NA 12 10 15 15 14 10 8