If you sign him, they will come.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have overtaken the New York Yankees as the biggest draw in MLB since adding superstar Shohei Ohtani to their roster, according to data from online ticket marketplace StubHub. Dodgers home games top the sport in the cumulative dollar value of tickets sold on the resale site heading into the 2024 season.
¡°There is no doubt¡± that it¡¯s due to Ohtani¡¯s impact, said company spokesperson Adam Budelli.
The Dodgers are the top-selling team for the first time in StubHub¡¯s history, after finishing eighth last season in the firm¡¯s annual preseason rankings, which the company began compiling in 2017.
The Dodgers signed Ohtani to a 10-year deal worth $700 million in December, making him the highest paid player in baseball history. The 29-year-old Japanese slugger and ace pitcher, who played with the Los Angeles Angels for the first six years of his MLB career, had an immediate impact on the resale market, with searches for Dodgers tickets on StubHub increasing tenfold on the day of the announcement.
Average resale prices for Dodgers home games have gained more than 10% to $200 from $180, compared to this time last year, while total sales have more than tripled. Japanese fans are helping to drive the surge, accounting for 22% of all Dodger ticket buyers.
The Dodgers begin their regular season Wednesday against the San Diego Padres in South Korea, where some tickets are going for more than $3,000. Their first regular season game at Dodger Stadium, an afternoon start against the St. Louis Cardinals on March 28, is the most in-demand ticket of the year so far, with an average resale price of $533 on StubHub. Dodgers¡¯ road games are also tops in the league, with an average ticket price of $122.
Overall MLB sales on StubHub are up 60% compared to this time last year, with more fans buying tickets earlier, a trend that Budelli attributes both to growing international demand and rule changes that helped to speed up games last season. MLB attendance was up nearly 10% last season, hitting its highest level since 2017.
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