MLB attendance up by under 1 percent

NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball’s average attendance rose by about half of 1 percent this year, ending three straight seasons of drops.

The 30 teams combined to average 30,229, STATS LLC said after the regular season ended Wednesday night. That was up from 30,067 last year, but remained nearly 8 percent below the record 32,785 set in 2007.

During the Great Recession of December 2007 to June 2009, the average dropped to 32,528 in 2008 and 30,350 the following year.

Cleveland had the biggest percentage increase, up 31 percent to an average of 22,726. Other teams with big jumps were Pittsburgh (22 percent to 24,255) and Texas (18 percent to 36,382).

Despite a thrilling run to the AL wild card, Tampa Bay dropped a big league-high 19 percent to 18,846. The Los Angeles Dodgers, beset by financial problems and a bitter divorce for owner Frank McCourt, fell 18 percent to 36,236 and failed to draw 3 million in a non-strike year for the first time since 1992. Houston, which lost a team-record 106 games, sank 11 percent to 25,546.