I still watch my teams in the NFL (and have redzone running unless my team's full game is on), MLB, Premier League, College basketball and football. I rarely watch other games unless it's playoffs, though I probably have most Sunday/Monday Night NFL games on in the background while I play my favorite computer sports game.
What I have found in baseball is if there is a strike/lockout or even talk of either
coming up... I don't care.
I play OOTP and never miss the real games.