2018 Attendance Thread

[Ducksnort]

11,131 gives a pretty good idea of the season ticket base...if some could estimate actual fannies in the seats today.

 

http://www.espn.com/mlb/attendance

We will still be ahead of Pitt, Miami and Oakland...but will also be interesting to see if we go below 10k against Rays in dreaded April weekday games.

And of course the Sox go to Minnesota next weekend, when it's supposed to be near 70 in Chicago...

[caulfield12]

At least the Cubs have to suffer with us...until Thurs.

Of course, the story will be how their fans will still support the team in even the very worst weather conditions.

 

(But everyone now cares more about Astros, NYY and Ohtani anyway.)

Edited April 8, 2018 by caulfield12

[soxfan49]

Reportedly 947 people attended the game yesterday

 

https://www.si.com/mlb/2018/04/10/white-sox...flow_twitter_si

[caulfield12]

And it might have been even fewer for Tuesday's game...based on the lower announced attendance. Analyzing the profit/loss on opening the gates those two afternoon games would be fascinating for a sports management/facilities management course.

 

Getting quite a bit of national media attention, and not in a good way (like the Astros' 0.0 tv ratings in 2012 or 13).

[he gone.]

Reportedly 947 people attended the game yesterday

 

https://www.si.com/mlb/2018/04/10/white-sox...flow_twitter_si

I hate that Sox PR let this get out. This is spreading around the internet as a story now.

 

That game would be canceled 10 of 10 if it were against a division opponent.

 

10,000 paid to get in, that's all that counts.

 

I keep hearing this from my Cub friends. It's maddening.

[caulfield12]

Between "Cubs' Way" by Tom Verducci and this fascinating insight into how many Sox season/split ticket packages are being purchased...and the five losses in a row against two of the worst teams in the AL, not a great look for Hahn/Renteria, no matter how rosy the long-term picture looks.

 

Kopech/Jimenez theoretically are the light at the end of the dark tunnel that will be the first half of this season.

[greg775]

Reportedly 947 people attended the game yesterday

 

https://www.si.com/mlb/2018/04/10/white-sox...flow_twitter_si

I can't believe there were that many. It looked like 150-200 fans max. There's no way 1000 people were there.

[caulfield12]

Greg, they have tickers/turnstile counts...so, unless they ALSO counted the staff/security/vendors (highly unlikely, they have separate entrances), that's probably deadly accurate. Just because they were not in the seats doesn't mean they weren't on concourses, restaurant, suites, etc.

[Sleepy Harold]

Greg, they have tickers/turnstile counts...so, unless they ALSO counted the staff/security/vendors (highly unlikely, they have separate entrances), that's probably deadly accurate. Just because they were not in the seats doesn't mean they weren't on concourses, restaurant, suites, etc.

That's the smart play, heading right to the bar or stadium club inside so that you don't have to sit outside and freeze. I did that over the weekend while attending, lasted outside no more than a half hour before the lady wanted to leave bc it was too cold. If you're going and able to get in one of those areas why wouldn't you (considering the elements)?

[Dick Allen]

That's the smart play, heading right to the bar or stadium club inside so that you don't have to sit outside and freeze. I did that over the weekend while attending, lasted outside no more than a half hour before the lady wanted to leave bc it was too cold. If you're going and able to get in one of those areas why wouldn't you (considering the elements)?

Revolution Brewing room down the LF line isn't a bad hang out either although if you aren't there early, the line to get in goes down the stairs. Waiting in line while at a game sort of defeats the purpose of going to the game.

[Bob Sacamano]

Revolution Brewing room down the LF line isn't a bad hang out either although if you aren't there early, the line to get in goes down the stairs. Waiting in line while at a game sort of defeats the purpose of going to the game.

 

Yeah, home opener sucked this year.

[SonofaRoache]

Yeah my Cubbie friends sent me about 40 text messages talking crap. Weather had a lot to do with it but fans aren't coming out to see bad baseball, rebuild or not.

[SonofaRoache]

Revolution Brewing room down the LF line isn't a bad hang out either although if you aren't there early, the line to get in goes down the stairs. Waiting in line while at a game sort of defeats the purpose of going to the game.

 

 

That'll get sorted out eventually.

[bmags]

Yeah my Cubbie friends sent me about 40 text messages talking crap. Weather had a lot to do with it but fans aren't coming out to see bad baseball, rebuild or not.

 

Just want to reiterate that the game was rescheduled from a night game to a day game 4 days before. There was a lot more than weather working against it, and sox already guaranteed that voucher could be used later. Sox knew exactly what would happen.

[reiks12]

We will have terrible attendance until we are consistently good. There isn't any other way for this franchise to draw in a heap of fans, sorry to say.

[SoxFan2003]

We will have terrible attendance until we are consistently good. There isn't any other way for this franchise to draw in a heap of fans, sorry to say.

 

I agree. What I don't understand is why we take it so personally. I used to be guilty of it myself even though I personally go to 15-20 games a year.

 

[caulfield12]

Could Baltimore Orioles' $0 tickets (for kids under 9) be the antidote for baseball's attendance woes?

 

https://sports.yahoo.com/baltimore-orioles-...-142016925.html

 

 

It’s not going to bring back the days of 45,000-person crowds at Camden – not yet at least. This is a long-term play in a sport that has struggled to cultivate a younger base as the average age of its fan runs inverse with its attendance – up and up, to its current 57 years old.

 

It’s what made the crowd in Chicago of less than 1,000 recently so disconcerting. It wasn’t just the nasty weather that day. The White Sox barely broke 1.6 million total fans at home last year. The Marlins last year featured about 1,500 people at one game. Which makes the likely failure of their goal of to draw more fans than in 2017 all the more troublesome.

 

What Angelos hopes to glean from Kids Cheer Free, in addition to brand loyalty, is a new set of data. Will a baseball team with across-the-board reasonable concession items be able to do what the Atlanta Falcons did, according to ESPN, and make even more money than they did before slashing prices? Will families take advantage of the program and bring in kids older than 9? Does something like this engender even more loyalty to the team than the latest Cal Ripken Jr. bobblehead?

 

“It’s really a long-term-investment program,” Angelos said. “It’s a winner all the way around. If nothing else, you won’t walk into Camden Yards today, or five or 10 years from now, and say kids are priced out of the ballpark.”

 

A new generation of kids who love baseball isn’t going to form all by itself. The Orioles, the Diamondbacks, the Rockies – they’re at the forefront, along with a few others, reaching out to families, cutting prices, insistent the game won’t just to get back to the 79.5 million-fan threshold but exceed it. The responsibility is clear, the risk palpable, and yet John Angelos doesn’t feel that at all. No, it’s something more acute, something liberating, something that the tickets and concessions and everything else germinate in him. It’s almost like he’s … free.

 

 

[Dick Allen]

Could Baltimore Orioles' $0 tickets (for kids under 9) be the antidote for baseball's attendance woes?

 

https://sports.yahoo.com/baltimore-orioles-...-142016925.html

 

 

It?€™s not going to bring back the days of 45,000-person crowds at Camden ?€“ not yet at least. This is a long-term play in a sport that has struggled to cultivate a younger base as the average age of its fan runs inverse with its attendance ?€“ up and up, to its current 57 years old.

 

It?€™s what made the crowd in Chicago of less than 1,000 recently so disconcerting. It wasn?€™t just the nasty weather that day. The White Sox barely broke 1.6 million total fans at home last year. The Marlins last year featured about 1,500 people at one game. Which makes the likely failure of their goal of to draw more fans than in 2017 all the more troublesome.

 

What Angelos hopes to glean from Kids Cheer Free, in addition to brand loyalty, is a new set of data. Will a baseball team with across-the-board reasonable concession items be able to do what the Atlanta Falcons did, according to ESPN, and make even more money than they did before slashing prices? Will families take advantage of the program and bring in kids older than 9? Does something like this engender even more loyalty to the team than the latest Cal Ripken Jr. bobblehead?

 

?€œIt?€™s really a long-term-investment program,?€? Angelos said. ?€œIt?€™s a winner all the way around. If nothing else, you won?€™t walk into Camden Yards today, or five or 10 years from now, and say kids are priced out of the ballpark.?€?

 

A new generation of kids who love baseball isn?€™t going to form all by itself. The Orioles, the Diamondbacks, the Rockies ?€“ they?€™re at the forefront, along with a few others, reaching out to families, cutting prices, insistent the game won?€™t just to get back to the 79.5 million-fan threshold but exceed it. The responsibility is clear, the risk palpable, and yet John Angelos doesn?€™t feel that at all. No, it?€™s something more acute, something liberating, something that the tickets and concessions and everything else germinate in him. It?€™s almost like he?€™s ?€? free.

 

Family Sunday is among the best family bargains in professional sports. Cost used to be an issue with the White Sox, but not for several years.

 

White Sox fans just don't come out until the team wins a lot. They used to complain about the upper deck, then lower level tickets were $20 for Chris Sale starts. They couldn't even sell most of those.

Edited April 11, 2018 by Dick Allen

[caulfield12]

Family Sunday is among the best family bargains in professional sports. Cost used to be an issue with the White Sox, but not for several years.

 

White Sox fans just don't come out until the team wins a lot. They used to complain about the upper deck, then lower level tickets were $20 for Chris Sale starts. They couldn't even sell most of those.

 

Some of those came with free t-shirts too, right?

 

Well, we are still ahead of the Pirates, A’s and Marlins...after struggling to keep from announcing a number below 10k for three consecutive games.

 

15,325 avg

 

Fwiw, KC barely drew 14k on a much nicer day against the M’s, but they’re still holding onto a higher season ticket base three years after winning the World Series. Their average is around 19k. Minnesota only had 15,438 against the best team in baseball, the Astros. CLE is at 17,248 per game with a two-time playoff team and World Series contender.

 

With all this rebuilding going on...the “haves” (top 15 or so teams) are only getting comparatively richer.

 

 

Of course we have Ohtani Sept 7/8/9...when school is back. Thankfully, it’s a weekend series.

Edited April 11, 2018 by caulfield12

[he gone.]

This is off topic - but I can't seem tot get a response from Kimski at all ---- not going to lie, they have the WORST customer service.

 

Do any of you know if Kimski is open before weekday Sox games? I'm almost positive Maria's is, but not sure if Kimski is. I want to go before the Seattle series (Wednesday 1:10pm) day game.

I've called three time during open hours, emailed, and tweeted at them over the past two weeks to ZERO response.

 

Their site says they open at 5pm during weekdays, but was thinking there'd probably be an exception for Sox games?

 

 

[caulfield12]

Empty Jeet seats: Marlins outdrawn by Double-A affiliate

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/2313400...wednesday-games

 

Through nine home games, the Marlins are averaging 12,641 fans per game, which includes an Opening Day crowd of 34,000. That's compared to a reported average attendance of 24,996 for their first nine games last season.

 

But it might not be apples to apples.

 

Before the season, the new Marlins management said it would announce only sold tickets for a particular game, which is one reason this season's attendance seems even more paltry. Last season, the Marlins reported a home attendance of 1.65 million fans. However, the Miami Herald later reported that the number of fans who actually paid for tickets was about 820,000. That would put last year's paid average at 10,123 fans per game.

 

A troubling sign this season is that the Marlins' home games have been against some of baseball's most marketable teams: the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and the Mets, who at 10-1 have the best record in the majors.

 

 

 

[Dunt]

This is off topic - but I can't seem tot get a response from Kimski at all ---- not going to lie, they have the WORST customer service.

 

Do any of you know if Kimski is open before weekday Sox games? I'm almost positive Maria's is, but not sure if Kimski is. I want to go before the Seattle series (Wednesday 1:10pm) day game.

I've called three time during open hours, emailed, and tweeted at them over the past two weeks to ZERO response.

 

Their site says they open at 5pm during weekdays, but was thinking there'd probably be an exception for Sox games?

 

It is a pretty hard and fast 5 PM opening. It's pretty stupid, but the food is really good.

[35thstreetswarm]

I agree. What I don't understand is why we take it so personally. I used to be guilty of it myself even though I personally go to 15-20 games a year.

 

Even the Cubs were getting negative pub during their rebuild with pictures of vast empty spaces within Wrigley (though obviously never as empty as what we saw this week). This is a rebuild year. We'll be bad, and attendance will be bad. I thought everybody was clear on this.

[he gone.]

It is a pretty hard and fast 5 PM opening. It's pretty stupid, but the food is really good.

 

 

Merp. That's a shame. I love their food. I wanted to take my Pops there as he's about as Polish as they come. Maybe it will be a postgame activity instead!

I appreciate the response though. I'm not lying when I said I've called them at least 3 times...all during business hours. Not once did they answer the phone.

Edited April 12, 2018 by BrianAnderson

[The Gooch]

I hate that Sox PR let this get out. This is spreading around the internet as a story now.

 

That game would be canceled 10 of 10 if it were against a division opponent.

 

10,000 paid to get in, that's all that counts.

 

I keep hearing this from my Cub friends. It's maddening.

 

It was a night game moved to afternoon AND more importantly, the CUBS canceled their game that same day due to weather. Why you takin' that crap without mentioning that?