The 2024 MLB London Series was the most entertaining yet. After a routine win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, the New York Mets mounted a dramatic comeback and ultimately held on for the win on Sunday. Two deranged Bulls brought us some exciting baseball at London Stadium.
There haven't been many notable changes to the fan experience from 2023. Jess Glynn's performance was well received by the crowd on Sunday, and the atmosphere was generally good in and around the stadium.
Fan experience
Vendors wandering around the lobby and bleachers is a great idea, and definitely helps Americanize the environment. However, more could be done to make food more accessible from your seat, and it would be great to be able to order from the stands if MLB returns to London Stadium.
Part of the reason this is appreciated is how bad the waitlists are. Sure, this is the norm at large events, but it's a real problem. Even when exiting midway, some food stalls still experience large, slow-moving queues. Before the first show, waiting for food or drink is a painful process.
On the plus side, the quality of the food is excellent. The cheesecakes, pastries and hot dogs were highlights for us Quality of pulled pork was appreciated, even if the portion size was not.
Prices should be dropped
This takes us to the long-standing problem with the London series: value.
It's a one-time event. MLB spent a huge amount to hold the event. Yes, these things are true, but ticket prices increase every year. Food prices have done the same.
It is not uncommon for any food item to cost up to £15 at the London Stadium – a small mac and cheese meal or a corn dog and a few chips should not be anywhere near that price, even taking into account the captive market brands in the event space and presence in London.
MLB does an excellent job of offering different, high-quality food options. Our group would have liked the beer range to extend beyond Heineken, Moretti and Amstel, but it's hardly a deal breaker.
The challenge is to serve as an introductory weekend for potential new baseball fans, and it should feel a lot like a money maker. Queues this big should not be Be the norm when it has a significant impact on the point of the day (watching baseball).
The activities around the playground are fun. Could they have more tunnels and batting cages? Perhaps a suitable setup as we saw in 2019? Unless you rush right up to them like we did when the gates opened on Sunday, you're stuck in a slow-moving line.
Overall a great weekend
The general ideas are excellent. Most of the execution is very good. There are only parts of the 2024 MLB London Series experience that should be better given the surprising ticket prices. This was their third attempt to do so, after all.
Anecdotally, I'm still fascinated by how many people this actually brought into the game.
The people sitting around us on both days were mostly Americans, either living here or vacationing here. Fans traveling from New York and Philadelphia have helped create an “authentic” atmosphere, but that doesn't exactly indicate that MLB has broken into a new market in the UK yet.
To beat the same drum, I think prices across the board need to be much lower to attract people who would jump at the chance for a day at the pop-up stadium.
Sunday's game was epic by the standards of the stadium clock era. The late innings couldn't have been more tense, and the game ended in a historic double play. If this was the last regular season game in London, the Mets and Phillies would have beaten us to the punch.
Harper and Nemo contemplate the future of the London series
There are areas for improvement, of course, and it seems like MLB needs to make a more consistent effort to win over people on this side of the Atlantic.
A proposed series in Paris in 2025 was canceled late last year, and there are currently no plans for MLB to return to London Stadium.
Maybe Rob Manfred should consider Bryce Harper's suggestions.
Ahead of this weekend's matches, Harper said: “They obviously love their football here, and being able to go to a different country and play in front of a new fan base will be a really fun time for us, and a fun time for them.
“I wish Major League Baseball would bring four teams here, make it a round robin and stay for a week and a half or two weeks, just so UK baseball fans can get around it.
“It's very quick in and out, and it'll be fun to drive around the country a little bit, take trains to different places and see it all. I think it'll be a lot of fun.”
Speaking to TalkSport, Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo was in favor of Harper's proposal.
“Once you adjust to the time change, you might as well spend a few weeks here and play in some different cities and move on and come out of it.
“It's going to be great. I think the biggest part is those first 24 hours, and once you get through it, you're sitting in a much better space physically and mentally.”
“So I would like to see that, I think it would be good for the game and I think it would grow in a positive way. So I think it's a great idea.”
What then?
Hopefully, an announcement will be made later this year that MLB will return to Europe. Six big-name teams have already been fielded, and there are no clear competitions if they decide to head in 2025 or 2026.
Whether or not this is the beginning of a longer European adventure for Major League Baseball, existing fans have been treated to six games over six seasons (thanks to the pandemic). That's something to be grateful for – fingers crossed we're not left waiting too long for MLB action.
