Between the Lines by Ivan Foley: Major League Baseball is back after the strike, but fans across the country thus far have given it a cool reception. In Kansas City, the Royals couldn’t even give away all 5,000 of the free general admission seats offered for the first four games of the season. As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I purchased tickets to take my four-year-old son his first Major League game. We were in the stands of Sunday’s 9-3 victory over the Yankees. Between the atmosphere after the strike and the cool, overcast weather, the turnout on Sunday was sparse. We did get to enjoy two free soft drinks and two free hot dogs, a little promotion the Royals had going for the first week as a way of telling the fans they’re sorry for the travesty Major League Baseball has become.
High winds last Tuesday night blew down the golden arches of McDonald’s on Prairie View Road in Platte City. The big M has only blown down once before in November 1988, according to manager Jan Branson. She said employees had gotten so many questions about the arches that they finally put a sign up on the drive-through explaining what had happened. Branson said it will take at least three weeks for another sign to arrive.
Eight students at Platte City Intermediate School recently participated in a Jump-A-Thon for the American Heart Association. Third and fourth grade students got pledges from family and friends for jumping and raised $1,334.17.