Major League Baseball (MLB) teams the Atlanta Braves and the Cleveland Indians have seen huge double-digit jumps in attendance numbers despite overall league figures remaining flat.
The Braves, who moved to their new 41,000-capacity SunTrust Park home this season, have seen a 33 per cent year-on-year increase so far during 2017, despite their former Turner Field ground holding 8,000 more seats.
The largest spike in attendance goes to the Cleveland Indians, who reached last year’s World Series, with a more than 37-per-cent jump at Progressive Field.
According to data reported by Sports Business Daily, overall attendance numbers for MLB games this season have remained flat, with an increase of 0.2 per cent on attendance numbers from this time last year.
So far this season, clubs have averaged 29,269 fans per game, with 46 fewer in last year’s average at this time.
For the fourth straight season, the Los Angeles Dodgers lead the league in average attendance with 45,311 per game, although that is down slightly.
The top five is completed by the St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays.
Kansas City Royals see major drop
With a 14,719-average attendance, the lowest in the league, the Tampa Bay Rays are on track for their lowest attendance figures since 2005, dropping 12 per cent since last year. The Kansas City Royals, down 18.4 per cent, have seen the steepest drop in the league from last year
The New York Mets saw a 13 per cent drop, with the Arizona Diamondbacks hitting a similar fall at the gate.
Stadiums throughout the MLB varied in the percentages of stadium capacity filled, with 68.1 per cent marking the overall score.
The Giants filled its 41,915-seat AT&T Park to an average 99.5 per cent of capacity, the highest in the league. At the other end, the Oakland A’s have only filled their 47,170-capacity Oakland-Alameda Coliseum to 36.6 per cent.
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