In MLB, fan attendance is usually tied to how competitive a team is; perhaps even more than factors such as distance from the ballpark to downtown, ticket prices, food/beer prices, and others.
This is true in all professional sports: if the team is good, fans will go watch it perform.
If the club is in the middle of a postseason race, then more fans will go watch.
If, entering the season, fans know the roster isn’t built to compete, attendance numbers will undoubtedly be affected.
It’s as simple as that, and the Washington Nationals know this.
They have been rebuilding ever since they won that 2019 World Series.
They systematically let stars such as Anthony Rendon, Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, Yan Gomes, Juan Soto, and many others go via trade or free agency.
Fans know this: they have eyes and care about the team.
As a result, the Nats have experienced the largest decrease in average fan attendance this year compared to last, per Codify Baseball.
Average attendance so far this year
vs. last year's average attendance:⬆️ +10,293 Philadelphia Phillies
⬆️ +7,378 Cincinnati Reds
⬆️ +6,787 Cleveland Guardians
⬆️ +6,167 Texas Rangers
⬆️ +6,166 Baltimore Orioles
⬆️ +5,395 Pittsburgh Pirates
⬆️ +4,773 Toronto Blue Jays
⬆️…— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) August 21, 2023
The team has seen, on average, 3,125 fewer fans per game go to Nationals Park in 2023.
It actually isn’t surprising: the team is 57-68, last in the NL East division.
We should point out, however, that the Nats have been a bit better than expected and that there has been progress on many fronts.
Lane Thomas developed into an All-Star-caliber player, CJ Abrams is blossoming into a bona fide contributor, and Joey Meneses, Keibert Ruiz, and other hitters have been decent to good.
On the pitching side, Josiah Gray has developed into a quality starter and MacKenzie Gore has shown a lot of promise.
There are reasons to go watch the Nationals, and there could be a path towards more improvement in 2024.
NEXT: MLB Analyst Highlights The Nationals' Recent Turnaround
