Content area
Full Text
The Colorado Rockies led Major League Baseball home attendance in 1998 for the sixth consecutive year, despite drawing about 100,000 less than the previous season.
The Rockies drew 3.78 million at Coors Field (capacity 50,000) in Denver and have topped the majors since they entered the National League in 1993. They played their first two seasons at Mile High Stadium, drawing some crowds of 80,000.
MLB drew a record 70.6 million, a 12% increase over 1997. Two teams were added, the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the American League. It was also a record-breaking year in terms of home runs (St. Louis' Mark McGwire) and total wins (ALs New York Yankees), among other historical milestones.
The D-Backs were second to Colorado in the National League and third overall, playing in the state-of-the-art Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix.
The Baltimore Orioles were second in the majors, playing home games at Camden Yards. They drew almost 26,000 more than last season. The Orioles had the highest average attendance in MLB.
The St. Louis Cardinals, on the strength of McGwire overtaking Roger Maris for the single-season home run standard, had the biggest turnaround in the National League. St. Louis drew 604,313 more than in 1997 at Busch Stadium. Ten National League teams recorded increases at the...