Another Huge Crowd in Miami

[wvkeeper]

I mean Miami Gardens, my bad...

[wvkeeper]

What is there like 1,000 people there?

[brewcrew82]

What is there like 1,000 people there?

Not that it really means anything but the official attendance was 10,809. I haven't seen the game so I'm not sure if there was less that that but I do believe attendance goes by tickets sold and not people physically attending the game.

Either way, not a great number by any stretch but I did see the Cubs in 1983 have an opening day attendance of 4,802 and the next day drew just over 10,000.

[Silver Blaze]

If you build it, they will come.

[wvkeeper]

10,431 today...

[Silver Blaze]

10,431 today...

Would you be willing to pay MLB prices to go watch a AAA team? Wait, I'm talking to a Pirates fan - never mind.

[Knick9]

10,431 today...

Those numbers are probably too good to be true.

[Milwaukee T]

Seriously

How can people actually think that a new stadium is going to fix this? People aren't going to the beach and going to clubs and enjoying southern Florida as whole just because of this stadium.

Has talk of saving the money and just moving the team started yet?

Let's take baseball back to Montreal.

[BravesFanForever]

Maybe it is because the payroll is 21 million.......kind of crazy. I miss the days of the Marlins having Lee, Becket, Cabrera, Pudge, and so on. I think that if the team constantly stayed good with better quality they would bring more people in. Sure, If I was a Florida fan, I would love to see Hanley play, but what about the rest. On the other hand, I dont think they had too many people there even in 03. But, then again, they made the wild card that year. I do feel bad for them though, I wish more people would support them. Personally, I thought they were CRAZY for getting rid of Joe as well, I thought he did a great job in his first year of coaching.

[Steve Jeltz]

Maybe it is because the payroll is 21 million.......kind of crazy. I miss the days of the Marlins having Lee, Becket, Cabrera, Pudge, and so on. I think that if the team constantly stayed good with better quality they would bring more people in. Sure, If I was a Florida fan, I would love to see Hanley play, but what about the rest. On the other hand, I dont think they had too many people there even in 03. But, then again, they made the wild card that year. I do feel bad for them though, I wish more people would support them. Personally, I thought they were CRAZY for getting rid of Joe as well, I thought he did a great job in his first year of coaching.

Even when Lee, Cabrera and the rest were there, the Marlins still drew flies in 2003. It only filled up once the playoffs started. Miami is a Dolphins town.

[1927Marlins]

This all stems from the 1997 firesale..from our innagural season to our first World Series victory, we had a very strong turnout in attendance, but then Huzenga decided to ship all of our beloved players out, and in 1998 experienced our worst season. As a result, the next few seasons fans stopped going because they felt betrayed now that they didn't recognize anybody on their team. From our second championship to 2005, our attendance was improving..but alas, another firesale. If the new stadium means more financial stability and a higher payroll, we'd be able to retain our better players for multiple years, where fans will be allowed to feel attached to players and not fear them being traded away for prospects. Yes, the stadium may not guarentee a sell-out every night, but it will guarentee a better product. Imagine, with how impressive the Marlins have been doing with their current payroll what they can do with double or triple the money. Their are fans out there (our TV ratings remain strong throughout the Marlins brief exsistence) and if you just give them a good, reliable product and they will return the favor in loyalty and tickets.

[agredon]

I've been to several games this year. Both the Exhibition games against the Yankees were 30,000+ (per the official numbers). There were supposedly nearly 40,000 (high 30s) at opening day. Super Saturdays seem to draw a few thousand more people (~18,000) than weekday games (~10,000), though I cannot figure why (Who the hell are Hansel y Raul ???, Only 1 division rival pre AS Break, No games vs. Braves, Player Autograph Sessions are for under 18 only according to the AD in the Sun-Sentinel, etc...)

I would expect attendance to increase considerably should they still be in playoff contention come August/September. But, given Dolphin Stadium's enormous capacity (60,000+ if they open the seating in Center and Leftfield) I don't expect a sellout, unless they make it to the World Series or Uggla stays hot long enough to make a run at the single season HR record.