America’s pastime isn’t looking like it’s still one of the top choices. In 2025, MLB games had an average of 29,236 people, which seems like a good lot until you glance at the mostly vacant upper decks. Even on weekends or nights when there are rivalries, this nagging emptiness is present. Baseball enthusiasts are taking note of it, and they want Rob Manfred to act upon it.

“Make Me Commissioner” writer Jane Leavy, who knows baseball in and out, has been ringing the alarm. Recently, on the podcast Foul Territory, she brought up this same issue and urged Rob Manfred to find a solution to what has become the elephant in the ballpark. You know there’s a problem when passionate baseball voices speak up.

Jane Leavy laid it out without hesitation. She began with a question, “Have you looked at the upper decks in most regular-season games lately? They’re empty. Vast swaths of empty seats.” Leavy went on and said, “I fundamentally believe that baseball has a problem of too much inventory and too many games. Now, they’re not going to change the number of games unless they do the Rob Manfred’s reconfiguration, which might force them to come back down, and if they add more franchises still. But in the meantime, they have the seats empty.”

She also recalled one of her discussions on the same topic with Rizzo. “I asked Mike Rizzo about this before the Nationals decided to let go of him, and he said, ‘fill it up.’ Fill it up. And then he paused and he said, ‘of course, it doesn’t include parking and alcohol, right?’ So I said, ‘no parking and alcohol.'”

And what she said was true, and the numbers backs that up. The A’s are near the bottom of the attendance list, with an average of just 9,745 fans per game. Tampa Bay is close behind with 9,885 fans per game, and Miami is ahead with 11,975 fans per game. The White Sox, who play in the third-largest city in the country, can only get 17,755 fans to each game. The middle tier isn’t much better. The Twins, Royals, and unexpectedly competitive Orioles all have about 22,000 fans every game, which sounds good until you remember that most of these stadiums can house more than 40,000 fans.

The top tier highlights what can happen when things go right: the Dodgers draw around 50,000 fans per game, the Padres draw an estimated 42,000, and the Yankees around 40,000. But here’s the kicker: even these successful teams don’t always sell out.

Meanwhile, when you look at minor teams like the El Paso Chihuahuas, they almost sell out, getting a crowd of around 9500 spectators. When Triple-A teams sell out more games than the Majors, it’s a call for improvement. Rob Manfred has been urged to fix the vacant upper decks before.

Rob Manfred must learn from other leagues

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has heard this worry before. Problems with attendance aren’t new, and detractors have been pushing him for new ideas for a while. Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletics told him in August 2025 to follow the Savannah Bananas’ lead and make MLB more fun and exciting to win back fans.

The Savannah Bananas are an exhibition team that is changing the rules. They have high-energy games, strange plays, fan-first experiences, and full stadiums, even in areas where local MLB clubs don’t have as many fans. One weekend at Camden Yards brought in more than 45,000 people, which is a big difference from the Orioles’ average of about 24,000 in 2023.

It’s not just about tricks. The Bananas make ticket prices easier to understand by not having any hidden fees or corporate markups. They also open the gates early, let fans talk to athletes, have rules that are good for kids, and use social media a lot. Their TikTok numbers are even better than those of several MLB teams. Ghiroli used that to push Rob Manfred: if a barnstorming team can do this, why not the major leagues?

Now, the question is whether he can learn from the Bananas, listen to the voices, and bring more people and excitement back to big league venues, or will MLB stick to its traditional guns?