With new rules, MLB to draw more than 70 million fans, highest attendance since 2017

More than 70 million fans will attend Major League Baseball games for the first time in six years, a post-pandemic rebound for a sport that instituted its biggest on-field changes in decades. A pitch clock to speed play — game times are down 24 minutes to 2:40 for nine-inning games — limits on defensive shifts to increase offense, new social spaces at ballparks and technology innovations to speed entry have factored into a 9.2% rise in average attendance to 29,176. “Getting back above 70 million is an accomplishment for us,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Wednesday.