NEW YORK CITY—Mayor Eric Adams proudly announced that the total earnings for New York City from the Major League Baseball season, carried by the Bronx-based New York Yankees and Queens-based New York Mets, will likely come to $909 million this year.
On March 26, just before the beginning of the season on March 27, Adams appeared with Yankees President Randy Levine and Mets President of Business Operations Scott Havens at the Yankee Stadium to highlight the major cultural and economic powerhouses for the city.
“Today’s numbers show that our hometown teams continue to be a home run for our local economy. Whether you are a Mets or Yankees fan, when our teams play in New York City, we all win,” Adams said. “Both teams combined will generate over $900 million in economic impact during the regular season alone for the five boroughs.”
This year, the Yankees’ home games are expected to generate $594 million in economic impact, and the Mets’ home games are expected to generate $315 million. The economic impact of Major League Baseball in NYC in 2024 was $950 million. The Yankees drove in $606 million, and the Mets $353 million.
The mayor explained how games at stadiums in NYC positively impact the economy, as “each time someone spends money in a restaurant, a stadium, in a retail store, by buying apparel, or at a hotel, it infuses money into our economy.”
Adams also mentioned that the games positively impact the tourism industry. Last year, 65 million people visited the Big City.
Both teams are expecting to play 80 or 81 games in their home stadiums, and are going to be playing each other six times this season, up from last year’s four. The subway series, as games between NYC teams are called, bring in even more.
The possibility of a Mets vs. Yankees playoffs and its economic benefits were floated during the announcement. Levine said, “We don’t jinx any of that.”
The Yankees, Mets, and WNBA New York Liberty’s postseason brought in $200 million. Deputy Mayor of Communications Fabien Levy said that if there was a Yankees and the Mets World Series, the economic impact “would definitely be significantly more than that.”
Levine praised the mayor for his support of the Yankees through difficult times.
“The mayor has been nothing but incredibly helpful to us and supportive of the Yankees since his time as mayor. He has helped drive these economic numbers. He’s been there through some really hard times like COVID and the recovery from COVID. So I want to thank you for that.”
Adams addressed the recent tragedy of the death of Yankees veteran Brett Gardner’s son. Gardner’s 14 year old son died on March 21 due to sudden sickness while on vacation.
