MLB attendance trending down for the 4th straight season

Pez68

Registered User
Mar 18, 2010
18,267
25,064
Chicago, IL
First, what's the "right way" to play the sport? Second, even if nobody strikes out how many of the 27 outs are going to go to a fielder? Maybe 8-10 at most? And then whatever balls that go for hits that find their way to you. It's not some new thing that fielder's just don't field the ball that much per game. Go back to 2007, Aaron Hill led the majors with 424 plays on defense, he played 160 games. That averages out to 2.65 plays per game out of 27 outs.

Seriously. Paying attention to the game, shifting, backing someone up when the ball is hit their way, and being a cutoff man hardly qualify as "involvement" in the game. Most people like to touch the ball in a sport they play. Oh, and you get to bat 3-5 times in a 3 hour long game....
 

Kyleftlx

twitter*****/kyle_ftl
May 9, 2010
1,231
36
Michigan!
What incentive do I have to attend a Tigers game this season? While all star players like Keuchel and Kimbrel sat out half a season because teams wouldn’t pay them, Detroit was trotting out a guy named Gregory Soto, who over 4 outings has an ERA above 11. The team has been at the bottom of the standings for the last two seasons, and their GM even made comments about how they don’t plan to spend money/compete until maybe 2021. The worst part is that unlike the Red Wings, who are awful but have young and talented future players like Larkin, Mantha, and Zadina playing at the NHL level, the Tigers aren’t in a hurry to bring up their top prospects despite some of them dominating minor league ball. The way the MLB’s 40 man roster / 25 man roster works, its harmful for a losing club to give a younger player a shot. Why would I want to go to a Tigers game in 2019 to see Miguel Cabrera and a cast of fringe MLB players who will never really be that special? There’s literally nothing to be excited about, and unless you REALLY love the game, you don’t have a reason to attend.

My family owned a season ticket package for years. Then, I kept noticing Stubhub had better seats available for less money than our package was worth. Maybe offer more to the fans who are willing to buy packages? Offer the opportunity to meet the players- even if the family purchases a minimal package. Or, offer complimentary soda/hot dogs/whatever along with the tickets. My father might have kept buying season tickets if he actually felt like there was a reason to do it.

Overall, there’s a lot of other things for me to spend my time and money on than overpriced beer and a ticket to a mediocre ballgame.
 
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robert terwilliger

the bart, the
Nov 14, 2005
24,059
511
sw florida
The only other thing that could help the team is the rays leaving the state There is no easy fix.
or erasing the marlins from existence and moving the rays to miami.

joe sheehan said in one of his newsletters that mlb really should just move both teams from florida and just use florida as a spring training place, maybe as a neutral site when needed. miami has seen success via previous owners but a combination of tanking, the death of jose fernandez and just repeatedly giving the middle finger to its fanbase has given them an apathetic city that might come out if the team is doing well.

the rays on the other hand are really a well run organization from top to bottom, finding creative solutions to its problems and making deals that don't get people hard but are good to look at. they can't get people to come to games because their stadium is in a different city in a shit neighborhood on a f***ing peninsula. it's like they play their games in an airport.
 

PCSPounder

Stadium Groupie
Apr 12, 2012
2,852
564
The Outskirts of Nutria Nanny
I can see the MLS improving to the point where it easily surpasses the CFL and competes with the MLB at a respectable level. But I don’t see it ever surpassing the MLB as they just don’t have the means to nab the highest quality talent from overseas.

The changing demographics without a doubt improves the league and product. But I believe they also have the unfortunate title of having the poorest fanbase in all of pro sports which doesn’t exactly draw in the best advertisers.

The CFL doesn't have Seattle, Atlanta, Portland, etc.

In Canada, I can see you phrasing it that way regarding MLS (Toronto is up and down, Montreal has not really caught on, Vancouver started out somewhat well and has squandered a LOT). As a business, the CFL is happy to have Saskatchewan locked down.

Now, time to flip this.

MLS has a major market problem. LA Galaxy once threatened to break through that, but not a lot of the more expensive seats are held by "die-hard" fans. LAFC threatens to pass them up, and if LAFC can continue their hot start this year, it'll be interesting to see if they can pierce the veil. Up in the northeast corridor and in Chicago, however, there's not much that has captured imaginations (and not for a lack of trying).
 
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Bondurant

Registered User
Jul 4, 2012
6,393
5,726
Phoenix, Arizona
Does the switch to digital tickets have an impact? I live walking distance from a ballpark. I gave yet to attend a game this year. Part of my decision making is MLB insistence that I maintain the Ballpark App (an app they butchered and gutted the best features) and then want me to open a separate ticketing account for each team I want to buy tickets for.
 

Acesolid

The Illusive Bettman
Sep 21, 2010
2,531
319
Québec
MLS average attendance has declined nearly 2,000 per game since 2017.

2017 - 22,100 per game
2019 - 20,200 per game


That doesn't really matter.

Total attendance is still massively going up.

If you have slightly less average attendance, but a lot more teams... you are doing great.

Total attendance in 2010 was 4,002,000. In 2016 7,375,144. In 2018 8,553,245.

That's a massive increase.
 
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AdmiralsFan24

Registered User
Mar 22, 2011
14,979
3,896
Wisconsin
Relocating teams out of good markets with filled arenas to unnatural markets with empty ones isn't the same as expanding your league.

Coyotes got a team that was always in the bottom half of the league in attendance and spent quite a bit of time in the bottom 5. Ditto for the Hurricanes. And the Panthers were an expansion team so they added attendance which means it's great.
 

tony d

Registered User
Jun 23, 2007
76,589
4,548
Behind A Tree
I've heard about this. To me the baseball season being so long might be a factor as well. I figure once you get kids out of school in July and August you'll see more people at the ballpark.
 

JTToilinginToronto

Isles Fan
Jan 18, 2019
4,667
4,786
I find baseball games to be boring live. Lots of dull moments and there's really not much to do other than to play on your phone or watch the players just standing around.

I feel like it's more of a TV sport that you have on in the background when you do work around the house.
 
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MAHJ71

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Dec 6, 2014
11,710
3,986
NWA 217
I've heard about this. To me the baseball season being so long might be a factor as well. I figure once you get kids out of school in July and August you'll see more people at the ballpark.
Kids get out of school in May these days :laugh:
 

Newsworthy

Registered User
Jan 28, 2018
4,253
982
USA
For me baseball is boring to watch but I try to attend a few games a year. The long season doesn't help either and if your team isn't in a playoff race than it's hard to get excited.
 

frivolousz21

2019 STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS ST LOUIS BLUES
May 17, 2007
3,273
84
St. Louis, Mo
I can concur as a O's fan I was a diehard but the part about teams being content at being losers and just being happy to collect revenues check is the ACTUAL biggest problem with baseball, then you add in fans having no hope. As a fan of those other 24 teams outside of the 5-7 rotating perennial contenders it SUCKS knowing your team only has a 2-3 yr shot out of every 10 yrs at being competitive. The current set up of baseball just isn't sustainable long term 10-20 yrs. Its a serious issue and this is coming from a formerly die hard 34 yr old who'd watch games from start to finish growing up with my dad even up to about 2008. Once you kill competitive hope you create long lasting apathy. I though after turning things around from 2013-15 my passion would return it did briefly I watched more games BUT not start to finish I check in and out of games up and watch the last 2-3 innings now I've checked out again because of the aforementioned status quo.


We have at least one thing in common.

I stopped following the Cardinals as a die hard from 1992-2009.

And I am 36.


Personally the steroid ERA = EXCITING!!

POST AMPHETAMINES/STEROIDS = ZZZZZZZzzz
 
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JTToilinginToronto

Isles Fan
Jan 18, 2019
4,667
4,786
I also imagine the consecutive home games causes problems. Many homestands are 1-2 weeks long, with games nearly every day. I don't know many people who are able to devote 5+ hours a day (3+ hours at the game, probably 2 hours traveling back/forth) 7-14 consecutive days with other real life responsibilities.

I'm guessing that takes a toll on people who are willing to buy seasons or ticket packages.

At least with the other sports, there's time to devote to your real life between most games. NFL almost always has 6+ days off if you have consecutive home games (unless you have an outlier Thursday night game). NHL and NBA games almost never have more than 2 or 3 home games in a row in as many days. There's usually an off day or two in there somewhere.
 
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