NEW YORK -- Due to recent rule changes and innovations to the game, MLB Deputy Commissioner/Business & Media Noah Garden is bullish on the idea of attendance increasing for a fourth consecutive year.
“This year is probably going to be the (fourth) year in a row that our attendance is up,” Garden said Friday at the inaugural Boardroom Members Conference. “We’re going to sell 74 million-plus tickets this year. If you put that in perspective, it’s more than the other three leagues combined.”
MLB attendance was 71.4 million in 2025, marking the third straight year with more than 70 million fans going through the turnstiles. If the league does reach 74 million, it would mark the first time since 2013. The single-season record is 79.5 million in 2007. The league has also seen double-digit increases in television ratings among its national partners.
Recent changes and innovations have included the addition of the pitch clock, bigger bases and the automated ball-strike system (ABS). MLB games are averaging 2 hours, 42 minutes this year, compared to 2:38 last season, as shorter games have become the norm since the pitch clock was implemented.
The revised games times have made it easier for families to attend games on weeknights. Before the changes, Garden said the thought of bringing his sons to a game on a weeknight and getting home at 12:30 am on a school night “just wasn’t palatable.” “Now, I can be home at 10:30 and we’ve seen a whole game and enjoyed it,” Garden said.
MLB special assistant to the commissioner CC Sabathia said the changes were needed because the sport had been stagnating.
“You can say it was stale. It was four-hour games, not interesting,” Sabathia said. “I feel we have made a conscious effort to (connect with fans) from the league side more so than I’ve ever seen while I was playing.”
