Fansided

3 reasons why weekend MLB attendance is the highest it has ever been

By Luke Dahlgren

Sep 10, 2014; Boston, MA, USA; A general view of Fenway Park during the seventh inning of the game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 10, 2014; Boston, MA, USA; A general view of Fenway Park during the seventh inning of the game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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Attendance at major league baseball games is higher in the first two weekends of the regular season than it has ever been before.

In the past twenty years Major League Baseball has taken a backseat to football and basketball as the sport that captures the collective imagination of the American public. However, signs of renewed fervor in baseball has come into fruition.

Spring Training enjoyed it’s highest attendance on record, with over 4 million fans attending games; including a Spring Training record 15 thousand for a game between the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox.

Now, baseball is beginning to see the effects in the regular season

There are a few strong reasons why this might be the case.

  1. Teams in large markets have emerged this season in the wake of bad stretches.
    The most notable of these teams is the Chicago Cubs, who have looked competitive and sharp, if not quite stellar, in starting off 6-5. But the New York Mets have also shot out to a 10-3 start after seasons of sub-.500 mediocrity. Combine that with success with the LA Dodgers, Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers, and baseball has become a headline in national news that wants to cater towards larger markets.
  2. The weather has been just peachy on the weekends.
    It’s been gorgeous on the weekends in the north at least as far as I can see, and with winter finally over in the north people are itching to enjoy the sunlight in the outdoors. There is no better place to spend their time than out at the ball game.
  3. There are more people on the Earth now than ever before.
    The world’s population has grown from 3 billion in 1960 all the way up to 5 billion by 1987, 6 billion by 1999 and 7 billion by 2011. When 2025 rolls around, that number will be above 8 billion. Where else do we put all of those people before the world becomes a food desert but inside baseball stadiums.

Obviously, the attendance numbers only reflect the weekend work in April. On weekdays, the stadiums remain relatively empty while kids wait to get out of school and the weather slowly becomes more consistent. But these numbers may be demonstrative of more interest in baseball when the summer finally rolls around and the attendance shoots up more permanently.

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