Baseball is growing again
10/29/2024 08:00 AM
A lot to be excited about!
As the 2024 baseball season came to a close, MLB reported that the campaign garnered the highest attendance since 2017. Additionally, 2023 & 2024 represented the first consecutive years of attendance growth since the 2011 & 2012 seasons. Baseball is back, baby!
MLB statistics & spin aside, there are other reasons for being excited about baseball in ways not seen for close to a decade…
All-In From Day 1
- I love having every team play on Opening Day. By all means continue to build in off-days for weather, but having every fanbase engaged from Game 1 is wonderful.
Exciting Youngsters
- Elly De La Cruz (67 stolen bases) absolutely electrified the baseball world for a few months, and Bobby Witt Jr. (32 HR, 31 SB, 171 OPS+) helped perpetuate one of the biggest turnarounds—100 Kansas City Royals losses in '23 to '24 ALDS—in recent memory.
Pitching Prominence
- In a league that sometimes seems "all about the long ball", not one but two starters achieved the prestigious Pitching Triple Crown (leading the league in Wins, ERA, & Strikeouts): Detroit's Tarik Skubal (18W, 2.39 ERA, 228K) & Atlanta's Chris Sale (18W, 2.38 ERA, 225K).
Honoring History
- The contest at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, AL not only honored the Negro Leagues—and the inclusion of their players/stats in the official MLB register—but turned into a de facto wake for the passing of Willie Mays.
Continued Quirkiness
- No other sport assembles a cast of characters quite like baseball—and the New York Mets were proof positive of that! During their improbable run to the NLCS—starting 24-35 and having to play a wacky season-ending doubleheader just to gain entry—the Amazins' cultivated OMG swagger, adopted Grimace, and brought Pete Alonso's pumpkin on the road. Only in baseball (and Queens)!
A Loveable (Gulp) New York Yankees?!
- It is possible a higher power may smite me for this statement, but is it possible the Bronx Bombers are no longer the most universally hated team in MLB? The easy-to-love Aaron Judge (58 HR, 144 RBI, 223 OPS+) made another run at Babe, Roger, & himself, while Shufflin' Juan Soto (41 HR, 109 RBI, 178 OPS+) is a baseball clinic every plate appearance. As both star on baseball's biggest stage, I find myself (looks above nervously) not abjectly rooting against the Pinstripes.
Ohtani Insanity
- Shohei Ohtani's first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers deserves its own post, but in summary: 731 PA, 197 H, 38 2B, 7 3B, 54 HR, 130 RBI, 134 R, 59 SB, .310 BA, 1.036 OPS. A very real case for the best single season in the sport's long history. Much like with NYY, Ohtani's World Series presence somewhat mitigates the oft-malaise for the perpetually high-payroll Dodgers competing for the crown.
A lot of reasons to be excited about Major League Baseball, to be sure. With the league moving even further away from the Bally Sports—now hilariously rebranded Fanduel Sports—debacle and increasing fans' ability to watch games, I truly believe this growth & enthusiasm can continue into 2025!
