The American Major League hit a box office hit. The number of spectators exceeded 70 million in 6 years. The speedup was effective in reducing the average game time by 24 minutes. The introduction of the ‘pitch clock’, which refers to the pitching time limit, brought about a big change. It was a godsend for Commissioner Rob Manfred (65).

On the 3rd (Korean time), the Major League Secretariat announced the average game time and number of spectators for the 2023 regular season. Ahead of this season, regulations such as pitch clock, enlarged base size, and defensive shift restrictions were changed to increase speed and create more exciting games, which led to a box office hit.

The total number of major league spectators this year was 70,747,365, a 9.5% increase from last year (64,556,658). It succeeded in recovering 70 million spectators in 6 years since 2017 (72,678,797). The average audience also increased by 9.1% from 26,843 to 29,295, which is the largest increase in attendance since the Major League expanded from 28 to 30 teams in 1993. The attendance of 26 of the 30 clubs increased.

More than half of the 17 clubs mobilized a total of more than 2.5 million spectators. Tied record for most in Major League history. LA Dodgers (3,837,079), San Diego Padres (3,271,554), New York Yankees (3,269,016), St. Louis Cardinals (3,241,091), Atlanta Braves (3,191,505), Philadelphia Phillies (3,050,000) Eight teams, including the Houston Astros (3,052,347) and the Toronto Blue Jays (3,021,904), exceeded 3 million spectators, which is also the first time in 10 years.메이저사이트

Based on weekend games, the total daily attendance exceeded 1.5 million 11 times. This is the highest number since 2017, far surpassing the 5 times in 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022 combined.

This huge box office success is being evaluated as an effect of speeding up the game due to the change in regulations. The average time per game, which reached 3 hours and 10 minutes in 2021, decreased to 3 hours and 4 minutes last year when the sign exchange equipment ‘Pitch Com’ was introduced, and this year when the pitch clock was introduced, it decreased further by 24 minutes to 2 hours and 40 minutes. It was shortened to less than 3 hours for the first time in 8 years since 2015 (2 hours and 56 minutes).

It is the shortest game time in 38 years since 1985 (2 hours and 40 minutes), and the last season that was shorter than this year dates back to 1984 (2 hours and 35 minutes). There were only 9 games that took more than 3 hours and 30 minutes. Just two years ago, in 2021, there were 390 games that lasted longer than 3 hours and 30 minutes, the highest ever, but it has decreased to an absurd level.

The pitch clock effect is clearly significant, as the pitcher must throw the ball within 15 seconds when there are no runners and within 20 seconds when there are runners. After an adjustment period at the beginning of the season, he has fully settled in.

According to the Associated Press, shortstop Carlos Correa (Minnesota Twins) said of the pitch clock, “It took some time to get used to it, but after I got used to it, the game became much faster. No time wasted. “I think he will continue to improve in the future,” he said with satisfaction. Catcher Will Smith (Dodgers) also said, “The pitch clock is settling in smoothly. It’s nice to be able to go home a little earlier. “There are no more four-hour matches,” he said, welcoming the speedup.

Scores per game (8.6 points → 9.2 points), stolen base attempts (1.4 → 1.8), stolen base successes (1.0 → 1.4), and stolen base success rate (75.4% → 80.2%) all increased noticeably. The 3,503 stolen bases were the highest since 1987 (3,585), and the stolen base success rate was the highest ever. The league batting average (.243 → .248) also increased due to the shift restriction effect. In particular, the average batting average of left-handed hitters (.236 → .247) rose by a penny, making it the highest in four years.