Baseball-MLB says rule changes driving attendance up

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New rules aimed at speeding up MLB games have resulted in higher attendance and viewership, the league said on Tuesday, as it announced its highest regular season attendance in seven years.

Major League Baseball introduced new measures to speed up games ahead of the 2023 season, including larger bases, a pitch clock and the elimination of the infield shift, a dramatic collection of changes aimed at bringing back younger fans.

The rule changes led to average game times of two hours and 36 minutes - the fastest since 1984 - and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred drew a connection between the speedy contests and an increase in attendance.

There was a total attendance of 71,348,366 for the 2024 regular season, a 1% increase over last year, and an 11% jump from 2022.

"The increased enthusiasm baseball fans of all ages have shown the last two seasons is evident in all of the ways we track fan engagement," Manfred said in a statement.

MLB said shorter games also drove up increases in weekday attendance, with weeknight games seeing average attendance up by 13% over two years.

The historic effort of Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Shohei Ohtani, who became the first MLB player to record 50 stolen bases and 50 home runs in a single season last month, added to the enthusiasm.

"Building off last year’s momentum, the 2024 season was memorable with historic performances, emerging young stars, a series of successful special events, and tight pennant races," said Manfred.

(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Toby Davis)