History AudienceAlienatingEra / Sports

* The Houston Astros went through one in the late 2000s and early 2010s, starting shortly after their sole World Series appearance to date in 2005. Years of signing aging players to large deals, overvaluing a few mediocre free agents, not spending on the draft, and trading away prospects left the team with an aging core incapable of competing and no help in the minor leagues. After a prolonged decline, the team was finally sold in 2010 (with the league forcing the new owner to move the team to the American League after over five decades in the National League, a move which [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks angered many long-time fans]]). Things only got worse, as the new front office decided the only way to rebuild was to trade off anyone worth mentioning, which further disappointed fans, who had grown attached to the leaders on the rather weak rosters. After that, the team went on a record streak of [[EpicFail three straight seasons with the worst record in baseball]], losing 324 games from 2011-2013 (and picking up the three #1 draft picks that went with it). There were other minor issues along the way, like trouble negotiating a television contract that left most of the surrounding area unable to see games; unknowingly drafting an injured player first overall (due to teams not having access to medical records before the draft) and not signing him as a result; and having their central database hacked and some of the results leaked. Thankfully, the end of the Audience-Alienating Era came in 2015, with the team making the playoffs as a Wild Card team (after having ''just'' come short of the AL West division championship), their top prospects (acquired thanks to fire sale trades and good draft positions from their tanking) making a splash in the majors, the television contract finally working out for more fans to view the games, and a still-strong minor league system. Even the hacking was resolved, with it being tied to members of the front office of their former NL rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals. And then in 2017, they won their first World Series crown. However, it was later revealed that coach Alex Cora, and (at the time player) Carlos Beltrán engaged in technology-based sign stealing sullies this to a degree.[[note]]Sign stealing itself is not against the rules; teams who manage to get a runner to second base will often try to do this. However, using technology to do so in real time (in the Astros' case, analyzing the live video feed) is very much prohibited.[[/note]] Both Cora and Astros manager A.J. Hinch (who failed to stop the players from cheating whenever he had the chance) would be suspended for the 2020 season, until both found work once again, as Hinch would go on to manage the Detroit Tigers and Cora would be [[KarmaHoudini reinstated as the Red Sox's manager]].

*** The subversion of the sport's traditional feeder system thanks to the rise of "Buschwhacking", the act of competing simultaneously in both the NASCAR Cup Series and its second-tier feeder series (today the Xfinity Series, previously sponsored by Busch from 1984 to 2007, hence the name "Buschwhacking"[[note]]Hilariously the most prominent Buschwhacker (and current record holder for most Xfinity series wins) is named Kyle Busch[[/note]]). In prior years the logistical issues with attempting serious runs in both championships made it rare, but in 2001 Kevin Harvick made history by doing just that and simultaneously winning the Busch Series and earning Rookie of the Year in the Cup Series, proving that it was possible. Harvick's 2001 season was forced into doing that by unfortunate circumstances,[[note]]he was elected to be the successor to the late Dale Earnhardt Sr., but also had to fulfill his contractual obligations to his Busch Series sponsors[[/note]], but later drivers would fully commit to Buschwhacking and from 2006 to 2012, every Busch/Nationwide Series champion was also a full-time Cup Series racer. This broke the feeder system by throwing rookies straight into uncompetitive races with top-tier talent, stifling the rise of new drivers for almost a decade before the rules caught up to restrict Buschwhacking.[[note]]Example: The three-year run from 2010-12 that saw Kevin Conway (finished 35th in points), Andy Lally (33rd), and Stephen Leicht (''45th'', only entered 16 races and [=DNQ'd=] in 4 of them) win Cup Series Rookie of the Year, more or less by default. None of the three ever got a ride with what could be considered a major team and Lally won the award despite announcing he would leave NASCAR at the end of the season, before the votes were counted. Later winners Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2013), Brent Moffit (2015), Daniel Hemric (2019), and Cole Custer (2020) are also viewed as major busts, going into the 2023 season Stenhouse is the only one with a full-time ride (albeit on a low-tier team) in the Cup Series.[[/note]] In fact, the prominence of Buschwhacking can be directly linked to the lack of parity era that followed it (see below)--when the Buschwhackers started to retire, the drivers tapped to fill their seats were woefully unprepared. With the feeder systems finally stabilized, drivers like Tyler Reddick, Creator/RossChastain, Chase Briscoe, and others were able to spend more years in Xfinity and be instantly competitive when they moved to Cup, although unprepared rookies like Harrison Burton and the revolving Front Row Motorsports #38 seat show that the problems caused by Buschwhacking haven't truly gone away.

** Clint Bowyer would ''really'' like to forget 2016. In the wake of Michael Waltrip Racing shutting its doors over the Spingate scandal, the 15's charter was bought out by backmarker team H. Scott Motorsports. This wouldn't have been a problem if not for Bowyer's contract, which forced him to drive the car even if its charter moved to a different team. The result was an abysmal 27th place finish in the final standings, no wins, no top fives, and only three top tens. Bowyer would move to take over the 14 for Stewart-Haas Racing the next year, successfully putting the Audience-Alienating Era to an end.

*** In one of the best examples of truly poetic irony, Texas Motor Speedway lost its All-Star Race date in 2023 to... a reopened and repaved North Wilkesboro Speedway[[note]]It was reported that Fox demanded the race be moved out of Texas, as the 2022 running was an unmitigated disaster that got terrible ratings, probably not helped by the fact that fans (and many within NASCAR) hate Texas Motor Speedway to begin with[[/note]]. This move was met with near-universal acclaim from fans, although the decision to axe Road America, which recorded six-figure attendance in both its years on the Cup calendar, for a first-time-ever ''street course race'' in UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}} proved [[BrokenBase a lot more controversial]], though the Chicago weekend itself was a success (despite rain shortening both the Xfinity and Cup races) with the Cup race seeing a memorable finish with Supercars import Shane Van Gisburgen winning ''on his Cup debut'', becoming the first driver in 60 years to win a Cup race on their debut.

*** In one of the best examples of truly poetic irony, Texas Motor Speedway lost its All-Star Race date in 2023 to... a reopened and repaved North Wilkesboro Speedway[[note]]It was reported that Fox demanded the race be moved out of Texas, as the 2022 running was an unmitigated disaster that got terrible ratings, probably not helped by the fact that fans (and many within NASCAR) hate Texas Motor Speedway to begin with[[/note]]. This move was met with near-universal acclaim from fans, although the decision to axe Road America, which recorded six-figure attendance in both its years on the Cup calendar, for a first-time-ever ''street course race'' in UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}} proved [[BrokenBase a lot more controversial]].

** The Mike Sherman years definitely qualify as their latest Audience-Alienating Era. In addition to being their coach, he was also given the mantle of general manager after Ron Wolf retired. To say this was a colossal mistake was an understatement; Sherman's scouting abilities were virtually nonexistent and resulted in such [[SarcasmMode stellar draft picks]] as Ahmad Carroll (a cornerback who was notorious for constantly giving up big plays, earning him the nickname "Highway 28") and B.J. Sander, a punter that Sherman ''traded up'' to get. In addition to that, photos surfaced of him asleep at the player combines, which only fueled the fire against him. While they posted decent records under Sherman and won the NFC North three times, they struggled in the playoffs. The Packers suffered their first home playoff loss under his tenure, a 27–7 asskicking at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons, and also their second, a 31–17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in 2005. The 2005 season resulted in a 4–12 record, the first losing season for the Packers since 1991, and resulted in Sherman's firing. Some argue that the seeds of Brett Favre's diva attitude were sown here as well; whereas Mike Holmgren wasn't afraid to (figuratively) smack him upside the head when he did something stupid, Sherman's coaching philosophy seemed to be "Brett can do whatever the hell he wants." It's no coincidence that his interceptions trended higher in this period, culminating in a 29-interception season in 2005. When Mike [=McCarthy=] was hired, everyone rejoiced.

* The NBA All-Star Game has been in one arguably since Michael Jordan's retirement, and especially after the retirement of Kobe Bryant, the last major star who really took the game seriously. The Nielsen ratings tell the tale: the game regularly averaged double-digits throughout TheNineties, but the 2000 game (minus Jordan and the first ASG after the 1998-99 lockout) fell to a 6.9 rating, and the game has never come close to double-digits again, exacerbated by the game moving from Creator/{{NBC}} to Creator/{{TNT}} in 2003. The last time the game exceeded a 5 rating was in 2011. While the ASG was never really meant to be a serious display of competitive basketball, any attempts to play defense have disappeared, as have any real shows of athleticism, since players don't want to risk injury, so the ASG has devolved into a 48-minute shooting and dunking contest with players jogging up and down the court and then standing around while the other team has the ball, no longer hiding their lack of interest, as the game itself has been overshadowed by the other All-Star weekend activities (like the dunk and three-point competitions). The NBA, recognizing how bad things have become, has tried a bunch of gimmicks to WinBackTheCrowd, but they've all failed.

** While the tweaked ASG limped along the next few seasons, it hit an absolute low point in 2023. This time, the NBA decided to switch to having the captains choose their teams ''right before the game'', playground-style, which led to an awkward incident involving regning league MVP Nikola Jokić.[[labelnote:explanation]]Jokić thought he was the last player remaining and walked over to join [=LeBron=] James' team before James could make an announcement, except Lauri Markkanen of the Utah Jazz was also remaining, making it look like Jokić was dissing Markkanen in a game that Markkanen's team was hosting, though Jokić said he hadn't seen Markkanen.[[/labelnote]] Players complained about introductions and pregame ceremonies dragging on too long. [=LeBron=] James didn't bother showing up for the festivities until around 24 hours before game time. Several All-Star selections couldn't play due to injury, the gameplay was still uninspired (the losing coach, Michael Malone, called the 184–175 contest "the worst basketball game ever played"), and ratings plummeted to 2.2, an all-time low.