From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
Birmingham has been ranked number five as the best baseball city in the midsize category according to WalletHub.
According to the study conducted by WalletHub, the determination for the best cities for baseball fans was through comparison of 360 of the most populated cities in the U.S. The study was also based on 31 key metrics listed below and is graded on a 100-point scale – with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for baseball fans. For the sample, WalletHub chose cities with at least one Major League Baseball (MLB), Minor League Baseball (MiLB) or college baseball (NCAA) team then grouped the cities by division and assigned weights to each divisional category according to its popularity among fans. Finally, each city’s weighted average across all metrics was determined to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order their sample.
For the ranking by city size, we grouped and ranked the cities based on the following population-size guidelines:
- Large cities: More than 300,000 people
- Midsize cities: 100,000 to 300,000 people
- Small cities: Fewer than 100,000 people
MLB – Total Points = 70
- Number of Teams: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)
- Performance Level of Team(s): Full Weight (~8.24 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated by dividing the number of wins by the total number of games played. - Number of Championships Wins: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)
- Number of Division Championship Wins: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
- Number of Hall of Fame Head Coaches: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
- Franchise Value: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
Note: This metric measures the team(s) estimated value in dollars. - Average Ticket Price per Game: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)
- Fan Engagement: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)
Note: This metric measures the number of Twitter followers and Facebook “Likes” per capita. - Number of Coaches in Past 10 Seasons: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
Note: “Past 10 Seasons” include seasons 2008–2009 to 2017–2018. - Stadium Capacity: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated using the following formula: Stadium Capacity / City Population. - Attendance: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated using the following formula: Average Home-Fan Attendance / Arena Capacity. - Popularity Index: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)
MiLB – Total Points = 10
- Number of Teams: Full Weight (~1.33 Points)
- Performance Level of Team(s): Full Weight (~1.33 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated by dividing the number of wins by the total number of games played. - Number of Championship Wins: Full Weight (~1.33 Points)
- Number of Regular Season Championship Wins: Half Weight (~0.67 Points)
- Number of Hall of Fame Head Coaches: Half Weight (~0.67 Points)
- Minimum Season Ticket Price: Full Weight (~1.33 Points)
- Fan Engagement: Full Weight (~1.33 Points)
Note: This metric measures the number of Twitter followers and Facebook “Likes” per capita. - Number of Coaches in Past 10 Seasons: Half Weight (~0.67 Points)
Note: “Past 10 Seasons” include seasons 2008–2009 to 2017–2018. - Attendance: Half Weight (~0.67 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated using the following formula: Average Attendance / Arena Capacity. - Stadium Capacity: Half Weight (~0.67 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated using the following formula: Stadium Capacity / City Population.
NCAA Baseball – Total Points = 20
- Number of Teams: Full Weight (~2.86 Points)
- Performance Level of Team(s): Full Weight (~2.86 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated by dividing the number of wins by the total number of games played. - Number of Championship Wins: Full Weight (~2.86 Points)
- Number of Regular Season Championship Wins: Half Weight (~1.43 Points)
- Number of Hall of Fame Head Coaches: Half Weight (~1.43 Points)
- Minimum Season Ticket Price for a Game: Full Weight (~2.86 Points)
- Fan Engagement: Full Weight (~2.86 Points)
Note: This metric measures the number of Twitter followers and Facebook “Likes” per capita. - Number of Coaches in Past 10 Seasons: Half Weight (~1.43 Points)
Note: “Past 10 Seasons” include seasons 2008–2009 to 2017–2018. - Stadium Capacity: Half Weight (~1.43 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated using the following formula: Stadium Capacity / City Population.