Far Fewer Empty Seats in Citi Field in 2025
Than When This Picture Was Taken
SO MANY FANNIES!
The Mets collapsed in 2025. Barely missed the playoffs. Ugh!
Yet, they were 5th in baseball in attendance, with 3,184,570 fannies through Citi turnstiles.
In 2024, they surged into the playoffs. Barely.
They were only 18th in attendance, at a mere 2,329,299 butts.
So 865,000 more butts, or fannies, your verbiage choice, graced the seats of Citi Field in 2025. That is a 37% increase in attendees, who brought their butts, and fat wallets, with them.
So…was Soto a huge bargain?
I’d say the answer.
It starts with a Y.
GERONTOLOGY
The 2025 Mets were 25th oldest in baseball in average hitters’ age at 28.9.
That doesn’t sound good.
But the 2024 Mets hitters averaged an elderly 30.0 years, which was 29th.
I call that PROGRESS, as you put enough older players on the same roster, I am certain that on average, fans will bemoan 1) injuries and 2) “unexpected” decline.
Pitchers? The Mets were 27th oldest at 30.7 years in 2025, and 31.0 years old in 2024, which was 28th oldest.
Boosting that age ratio were indestructible warriors like Manaea and Montas.
My thoughts? Let’s get that average hitter age down below 28.0 in 2026, and let’s get that average pitcher age down to 29 or lower in 2026.
So we can avoid injuries galore, and natural age decline.
(Data source: Baseball Reference)
I have a new stat for you - AFPG - Average Fannies Per Game.
It is a more important stat than you might think.
I wrote this back in January on the subject of attendance:
The Mets have hugely under-earned the Yankees each year.
Steve Cohen know that.
David Stearns knows that.
Even in 2024, the Yankees drew a whopping 1 million more regular season fans to their tilts in the regular season than the Mets (3.3 million vs. 2.3 million), the equivalent of 25 additional Yankees sell outs, despite both teams making the 2024 playoffs.
The Mets greatly underperformed…at the ticket box.
Here are 3 interesting info links on team revenues:
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/estimating-postseason-revenue-for-players-and-teams/
https://www.sportspro.com/news/mlb-revenue-2024-rob-manfred-yankees-dodgers-world-series/
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-mlb-teams-take-home-the-most-revenue/
In 2023, it tells me the Yankees grossed the most revenue at $679 million.
The Mets were only 11th, at $393 million in revenues, or only about 60% of the Yankees’ haul.
The Mets, in other words, appear to have grossed a whopping $286 million less in just 2023 than did the Yanks.
Heck, even the Mariners’ gross revenues exceeded that of the Mets.
Steve Cohen knows that.
David Stearns knows that.
Juan $oto may level the Mets’ and Yanks’ revenues.
Perhaps entirely erase that $286 million annual revenues deficit.
That’s a ton of extra Mets cabbage, or extra moola boola, so to speak.
So…do you still think the Mets paid too much for Juan $oto?
Or is he ... I dunno ... a bargain?
BELLINGER?
He will want a long term deal (5-8 years) and turns 31 next July. Age-related decline in baseball is well chronicled. Some decline slowly, many decline quickly.
That said, Mr. Bellinger is versatile and skilled at all three outfield positions and at first base.
He also remarkably, as a lefty in 2025, hit .353/.415/.601 in 176 lefty plate appearances, quite incredible. Last lefty hitter with a 1.000+ OPS against lefties? Barry Bearer Bonds. In his career, Cody is about even vs. lefties and righties, but one has to think that his 2025 lefty hitting was an anomaly.
Also inflating his 2025 numbers? Yankee home cooking. He hit .302/.365/.544 towards the short porch, but .241/.301/.414 on the road, a large variation. Citi Field? No porch. So, it seems his stat line for 2025 was inflated due to eating Yankee franks.
He really controlled his strikeouts, with just 90 in 656 at bats, when his K rate prior to 2023 was much higher - he seemsto have fixed that (showing, Mack, that high K rates can be bent downwards). in those 656 PAs, “just” 59 XBHs, and on the road, not very many. Keep in mind: When he played in Citi Field, that was part of his “road”.
Career-wise, he has hit poorly in the playoffs: .211/.282/.378 with 92 Ks in 298 PAs. Looks like a Tyrone Taylor slash line.
Downside risk? His last 3 years have been a resurrection. Meaning that in 2021 and 2022, he put up Jose Dreary Siri type numbers: .210/.265/.389 in 2021, and a mind-blowing .165/.240/.302 in 2023. Could he return to that at, say, age 34, in the midst of an 8 year deal? Who knows?
He hit 47 HRs in 2019, but his HR output was much more muted since, only boosted to near 30 in 2025 by the Porch.
Me? I’d prefer a short-term CF signing to bridge to get the Mets to the nearly ready Carson Benge, who will be IMO the next Bellinger, but SO MUCH CHEAPER, and without age related decline risk for a decade or more.
THE Mets have to start to get much younger. Signing key guys who will be 31 at the start of a (very) long term deal is frankly Russian Roulette. With about 4 bullets in the six bullet chamber.
Remember Jose Reyes, batting champ at age 28? He went to Toronto and hit a fine .296 at age 30. At age 35, back with the Mets, though, he hit a baffling .189, and retired. Age decline. Not really baffling at all.
If I was Cody Bellinger, the only way I’d stay in NY is to hang out by that comfy Bronx Porch. The Yankees likely re-sign him.
He succeeded in their house.
He’d be mediocre in the Citi Halfway House, where he’d only do half as good.
Unless Steve and Dave move the fences in. Deaf ears on that.
Next.
CHIPS, ANYONE?
Francisco Lindor was reported to have gotten his right elbow cleaned up surgically, after the end of the 2025 season, the team announced. Lindor is expected to be ready by February. “Pass the chips, will ya?”
19 comments:
one more win
Ya know, all of you on this site (who owns this joint?) have convinced me of the downside of signing long term contracts for old men playing hardball
Maybe the agreement between the owners and player's union have it corrent about the amount of time for team control
This team is like my lower lumbar... it needs an adjustment
Let's give Vientos a year to prove he can both hit and hold his own on first. THird base is out of his futre now. And, if he flos big time by the break, turn it over to Ryan Clifford
What the hell
Who would we have faced in the playoffs, first round? Wasn’t Cincy booted by LAD? That would have been short. SD or the Cubs, maybe we advance. But with pitching in tatters…
I am for Vientos IF the new hitting coaches agree to my aggressive hitting philosophy. It works for Oakland sluggers, why not our young boppers?
No, they would have got their asses handed to them, but they would have at least been a playoff team. Now,,, they're only Maynard (most readers too young for this reference)
he's out there right now with the new pitching guru noving your fences in
I'd pass on Bellinger. Those road splits scare me, along with age and length of contract.
Tom, a question for you. How is Soto going to make up the 286M difference in revenue? Is he going to star in a stripper revue? A beefcake calendar maybe. He'd have to sell a lot of Jerseys.
Sign Bellinger, play him in CF until Benge is ready; then move Cody to 1B. That's if we don't re-sign Petey. If Bellinger can level his golf swing even 5%, he'll hit for a higher average. That would provide the necessary RBIs thru contact (rather than Petey striking out with men in scoring position) in the middle of the lineup. Bellinger has hit for average, previously. I believe that getting him away from that short right-field porch at Yankee Stadium might convince him to slightly level his swing (similar to the swing he produced when he arrived in the majors with the Dodgers).
Age? Petey is younger? And when Petey is in a slump, he leaves lots of potential RBIs on the table! I think Bellinger would be more consistent. Moreover, last year's BA was probably an outlier for Alonso (if you want to cite stats!)
Plus, who's the better fielder. Something to keep in mind regarding Stearns' predilection.
Bellinger also hits lefties better than Pete. Therefore, he would probably protect Soto every bit as good as Pete.
Look
I'm willing to go along with Vientos and Clifford, but if they flame out, the chain is so weak you would have to talk Duda out of retirement
Look on the bright side: now they are in the lottery.
JoeP, not sure where your $286 million came from, but his being here causing an extra 40% in attendance in 2025? How much added revenue did THAT bring in?
SO. many imported hitters end up doing worse than their norm in the Citi Cauldron. Soto thankfully did well…next year, he will do better.
Just remember that Bellinger had Judge hitting alongside him, besides the porch. That probably boosted him in a way that even Soto on the Mets can’t boost as much.
Who will get the bigger deal - Cody or Pete?
Bellinger gets the bigger deal because he is a better athlete who fields well at multiple positions. Bellinger will get in the area of 6 years at about $170M. Pete will be lucky to get 5 years at $135M. I don’t see the Mets going more than 4 years, $110M for Pete.
Very sound take on Bellinger
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