"The immensity of this record is staggering, and it serves as a perfect illustration of the passion and excitement for the game that exists across the entire Major League Baseball landscape," Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig said. "Our sport has reached heights that were unimaginable only a few years ago. By any measure, this is truly a golden age for Major League Baseball. I thank baseball fans everywhere, and I share their enthusiasm for another memorable October."

For only the second time in history, all teams' winning percentages are within the .600 to .400 range. The 2007 season marks the first year since 1988 in which no division winner has repeated. Only one of the eight postseason teams will be making a second straight postseason appearance.

Five of the 15 highest single-day attendances in history occurred in 2007, including the most prolific day ever - July 28th, when 717,478 fans attended the 17 games throughout MLB, averaging 42,205 per game.

LARGEST ATTENDANCE DAYS IN HISTORY

Highlights among the 30 Clubs included the following:

• Twenty-three of the thirty Major League Clubs showed an increase over a year ago.

• Eight Clubs - the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals - set overall single-season franchise records.

• Ten Clubs drew more than three million fans, 16 Clubs drew more than 2.5 million and 24 eclipsed two million.

• Six clubs averaged more than 40,000 per game, while 12 averaged more than 35,000 per game.

• The Los Angeles Dodgers, who led the National League in attendance for the fourth consecutive season, set a franchise record for single-season attendance, topping 3.8 million for the first time with 3,857,036. Their total was the fifth-highest in National League history and the highest in the league since 1997. It marked the eighth straight season in which the club's attendance surpassed the previous season's total.

• The Detroit Tigers drew a franchise-record 3,047,133, passing the three million mark for the first time ever. In addition, the Tigers have now exceeded two million fans in each of the last three seasons for the first time in club history.

• The New York Yankees again established a new American League and franchise record by attracting 4,271,083 fans, averaging 52,729 per game at Yankee Stadium.

• The St. Louis Cardinals established a franchise record for single-season attendance with 3,552,180, surpassing their previous high (set in 2005). The Cardinals sold out all 81 home games. The 2007 season was the 11th in which the Cardinals have surpassed three million. They have now drawn more than three million in four consecutive seasons and in nine of their past 10 seasons.

• The Chicago Cubs set a single-season attendance record with 3,252,462 fans, soaring past the previous mark (set in 2004). It is the largest single-season attendance mark for any franchise or venue in the history of the city of Chicago. The Cubs have now surpassed three million fans in home attendance in each of the last four seasons, beginning in 2004, when the club reached the milestone for the first time.

• The Boston Red Sox set a club record for an eighth straight season with 2,970,755 fans, selling out each of their 81 home games. The Red Sox have now hosted 388 consecutive sellouts at Fenway Park.

• The New York Mets set a franchise record with 3,853,937 fans. The Mets drew 38 crowds of more than 50,000.

• The Milwaukee Brewers set a club record with 2,869,144 fans, surpassing the previous record set in 2001 (the inaugural season of Miller Park) and averaging 35,422 per game. Milwaukee also set a record with 31 sellouts.

• The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim finished with a home attendance of 3,365,632, marking the fifth straight season that the club has eclipsed the three million mark. The Angels averaged 41,551 fans per game.

• The San Francisco Giants reached the three million mark (3,223,215) for the eighth straight season since opening AT&T Park in 2000. The Giants are just the fourth team in Major League history to accomplish that feat, joining Colorado (1993-2001), the Dodgers (1996-present) and the Yankees (2000-present).

• With 3,020,405 fans, the Houston Astros have now drawn more than three million in three of the last four years. The club has now reached the three million mark in four of its eight seasons at Minute Maid Park and at least 2.8 million fans in six of the eight seasons at Minute Maid Park. Since the opening of the ballpark in 2000, the Astros have averaged over 35,000 fans per game for the history of the facility.

• The total of 2,296,383 is the third highest single-season total in Minnesota Twins' history. This marks the ninth time in the Twins' 47 years that the team has drawn more than two million fans in a season. This is also the first time since 1991-1993 that the team has drawn two million-plus fans in three consecutive seasons.

• The San Diego Padres drew 2,790,074 fans this season, the third highest single-season mark in franchise history. San Diego sold out 15 games in 2007, compared to six sellouts in 2006. This season marks the sixth time in franchise history the team has sold more than 2.5 million tickets.

• The Atlanta Braves saw an attendance increase for the third straight season and, with 2,745,207 fans, topped the 2.7 million mark for the first time since 2001.

• The Yankees and Mets combined to draw 8,125,038, the Dodgers and Angels combined to draw 7,222,668 and the Cubs and White Sox combined to draw 5,936,857.

In addition, MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, established a new online ticketing record for the seventh consecutive year as it has sold nearly 27 million tickets - through Sept. 30 - on behalf of the 30 Major League Clubs at MLB.com and the individual club sites.

Like Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball also set an attendance record for a fourth straight year, closing the 2007 season with 42,812,812. Between the two organizations, more than 122 million fans attended baseball games in 2007.

* Paid attendance reflects tickets sold, not the total number of actual individuals through the turnstiles of MLB stadiums.

Maury Brown is the founder and president of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football and The Biz of Basketball (The Biz of Hockey will be launching shortly). He is also a contributor to Baseball Prospectus contributed to the 2007 Pro Football Prospectus and is an available freelance writer.

He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here

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