How Bobbleheads Became Baseball's Secret Weapon to Boost Attendance

Fans show up in big numbers for the giveaway

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Throughout the course of a baseball season, MLB teams give away a ton of promotional swag at select games: From replica championship rings, to T-shirts and jerseys, to tote bags, magnets and garden gnomes. If you can name it, a baseball team has probably given it away. But perhaps one of the most ubiquitous, and sought after, tchotchkes is the bobblehead.

Bobbleheads are a popular giveaway item for a reason: Depending on the team, they can lift game attendance by 15 percent to 30 percent, according to Jay Deutsch, CEO of BDA, a merchandise agency that supplies bobbleheads to MLB teams.

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