Mariners' attendance climbs, outpacing pre-pandemic numbers

Headed into last week's All-Star break, the red-hot Mariners could brag about something else besides their 14-game winning streak:

• The M's are among only seven teams in Major League Baseball with a higher per-game attendance average at the break this season than at the same point in 2019 — the last pre-pandemic season.

By the numbers: The Mariners' 13.2% rise in attendance from the All-Star break three years ago is sixth highest in the league.

• Overall, Seattle's team is averaging a home crowd of 25,675 this season through 47 games — good for 16th among the 30 MLB teams.

Why it matters: Big league teams have struggled to put fans back into the stands since the COVID pandemic.

• This season's average attendance of 26,409 fans per game league-wide represents a 5.4% drop overall from the All-Star break three years ago, per MLB statistics.

State of play: The Mariners' league-high winning streak was snapped Friday by the AL West-leading Houston Astros, which swept all three-games from the M's at home.

Yes, but: Nonetheless, the Mariners drew big crowds to T-Mobile Park over the weekend, with a sell-out of 45,282 fans Friday and crowds of 43,201 and 34,854 on Saturday and Sunday respectively, per the team.

• The Mariners remain in the final AL wildcard spot in the latest standings.