By Will Lingo
September 27, 2004

And oh, by the way, we broke our all-time attendance record.

Three weeks after the minor league season ended--and after initially projecting attendance of 39.5 million--Minor League Baseball announced that its teams drew 39,887,755 fans this season, an all-time record.

"Congratulations to our clubs, leagues and of course the fans who have made this possible," Minor League Baseball president Mike Moore said in a statement. "This is a proud accomplishment for our industry."

Unfortunately, no one found out about the accomplishment until every minor league team had closed its gates for the season. Minor League Baseball had not issued an official release on overall attendance since Aug. 16, and responded to an inquiry from Baseball America on Sept. 8 by saying unofficial attendance estimates put attendance at 39.5 million for the season.

The old record of 39,782,717 fans stood since 1949, and it represented the peak of a post-World War II boom that saw 448 teams playing in 59 leagues across the country. The new record came from 178 teams playing in 15 leagues.

"Many thought this record would never be broken because of the much larger number of teams that existed when it was established," Moore said, "but the hard work and dedication of our operators and cities have enabled us to overcome that difference. Minor league baseball continues to grow and prove itself as part of the fabric of our communities."

The minor leagues have been approaching the attendance record for several years, with four of the five highest attendance totals in the 103 years of the National Association coming in the last four years.

Nine of 15 leagues showed an attendance gain over last season, and the Eastern and South Atlantic leagues set season records of their own. The Eastern League drew 3,914,027 fans, breaking the previous record (set in 1999) by about 50,000, and the Sally League drew 3,285,949, breaking a record set last year by about 150,000.