The 2023 attendance thread

[seak05]

I got through the gate at 5, was in line 4:45ish? And got a hoodie. It was pretty packed. Think some people just went for the hoodie though and then left early. 
 

it was a different vibe at the ballpark, totally full, but people were just chilling and having fun, not really paying attention to the game, since the game itself didn’t mean much 

[LA2]

'On September 18 [1977]...the Orioles had a "Thank Brooks Day." A crowd of 51,798 streamed into Memorial Stadium to honor him. It was, up to that time, the largest regular-season crowd in Baltimore history.

For the game on the following day, the Orioles drew 3,325.'

--Ira Berkow, It Happens Every Spring (Triumph Books, 2017)

(Berkow was one of that generation of New York Times baseball columnists who regularly wrote with respect, insight, and humor about the great Orioles teams.)

[Going Underground]

On 9/30/2023 at 9:15 AM, Going Underground said:

43,000 or so at today's sellout and 31,000 or so tomorrow 1,930,994?

Season attendance is 1,936,798.

[Fan4Life]

4 minutes ago, Going Underground said:

Season attendance is 1,936,798.

That's awful. Wow

[Frobby]

16 minutes ago, Fan4Life said:

That's awful. Wow

Up 550,000.  I’d hardly call that awful.  You can’t lose 100+ games three times in four years and have a pandemic in the other and expect to recoup all your attendance from the last time you were a playoff team in two years.  

[mojmann]

11 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Up 550,000.  I’d hardly call that awful.  You can’t lose 100+ games three times in four years and have a pandemic in the other and expect to recoup all your attendance from the last time you were a playoff team in two years.  

Third best per-game improvement in MLB.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/2023-misc.shtml

[Going Underground]

3 hours ago, Frobby said:

Up 550,000.  I’d hardly call that awful.  You can’t lose 100+ games three times in four years and have a pandemic in the other and expect to recoup all your attendance from the last time you were a playoff team in two years.  

They only had 78 gates in 2022. Still a nice improvement. 

[Going Underground]

7 hours ago, mojmann said:

Third best per-game improvement in MLB.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/2023-misc.shtml

The Orioles end the 2023 season with a total attendance of 1,936,798 -- a per-game average of 23,911. That's a 41.5% increase over 2022, but it still ranks just 21st in MLB. In 2014, the last time the Orioles won the AL East, Camden Yards drew 30,426 fans per game.

 

Be over 2 million next year but be how much?

[Fan4Life]

9 hours ago, Frobby said:

Up 550,000.  I’d hardly call that awful.  You can’t lose 100+ games three times in four years and have a pandemic in the other and expect to recoup all your attendance from the last time you were a playoff team in two years.  

Maybe you can't expect it, and I completely agree with your sentiment, but not surpassing 2 million in a year the team matched the greatest top 3? in all of Orioles history is awful to me.  

 

Certainly nothing to be proud of:

Edited October 2, 2023 by Fan4Life

[foxfield]

1 hour ago, Fan4Life said:

Maybe you can't expect it, and I completely agree with your sentiment, but not surpassing 2 million in a year the team matched the greatest top 3? in all of Orioles history is awful to me.  

 

Certainly nothing to be proud of:

I think this criticism is fair, but it doesn't take into account the whole picture.  The Orioles are taking the baseball world, and Baltimore, by storm.  No one really expected this and while the 1.9 MM is not anything special to get excited about, the fact that they closed strong reflects that the community is coming around.

If next year isn't close to 2.5, I think that would be disappointing.  That would boost the O's to slightly above 2014.  But I assume the lag in ticket sales continues to be erased as the teams fortunes rise.  A WS trip will accelerate that even more.

It's the biggest increase of any team in the MLB....that is a fact.  It's disgustingly low...also a fact. It's a tale of two cities....It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

If you win...they will come Fan4Life.

[Frobby]

3 minutes ago, foxfield said:

 

If next year isn't close to 2.5, I think that would be disappointing.  That would boost the O's to slightly above 2014.  

I’ll go on record as saying I do not expect the O’s to surpass 2.3 mm next year, though if the O’s make it to the WS this year, I may change my mind.  

Just looking at the recent past, the O’s in 2012 drew 2.102 mm, and with the boost from that surprise season, increased to 2.357 mm the next year, which also was a contending season.  So, as a base, I’m expecting a 250 k increase next year, putting them just a touch below 2.2 mm.   I think they might do better than that if they’re a playoff team again in 2024.  But I’m not expecting another 550 k jump, based on the 2012-13 pattern.  
 

[foxfield]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

I’ll go on record as saying I do not expect the O’s to surpass 2.3 mm next year, though if the O’s make it to the WS this year, I may change my mind.  

Just looking at the recent past, the O’s in 2012 drew 2.102 mm, and with the boost from that surprise season, increased to 2.357 mm the next year, which also was a contending season.  So, as a base, I’m expecting a 250 k increase next year, putting them just a touch below 2.2 mm.   I think they might do better than that if they’re a playoff team again in 2024.  But I’m not expecting another 550 k jump, based on the 2012-13 pattern.  
 

I think that is probably fair, if we consider 2012-2014.  But at that time, while that  climb was again, somewhat unexpected, it was a clear window.  This feels different.   While the climb into contention has been quicker than expected, the idea that this is the ground flooring just the beginning, is different.  While I am not expecting....expecting a WS appearance or a win, getting there or winning would be a game changer.  And I think a strong appearance could be as well even if they fall short.  We will see.  

 

[Tony-OH]

I know some people don't want to acknowledge this, but again, Baltimore's current reputation with a lot of people who don't live in the city hurts the attendance. Even with all the winning, some fans still don't feel safe in Baltimore and before you start telling me all the reasons why it's safe, I'm just telling you what I still hear quite often. 

Just to make sure this does not get political, I'm just going to leave it at that.

I'm doubtful the Orioles will ever cross the 2.75 million point again no matter good they become because of the city's reputation, the affordability of big screen high definition televisions, and other entertainment options available via the internet. 

Now, could much needed upgrades to the stadiums, better close parking options, and better close eating, entertainment, and bar areas push it back over that if the team continues to win, perhaps. 

Either way, the attendance this year wasn't that bad overall considering where this team has come from over the last two seasons. But it's going to take some sustained winning and some fan friendly upgrades to the stadium and surrounding area to really bump the totals back up significantly past 2.5 million. 

 

 

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, Tony-OH said:

I know some people don't want to acknowledge this, but again, Baltimore's current reputation with a lot of people who don't live in the city hurts the attendance. Even with all the winning, some fans still don't feel safe in Baltimore and before you start telling me all the reasons why it's safe, I'm just telling you what I still hear quite often.

I have zero doubt this is true, even though I feel perfectly safe when I go to games and park several blocks away.  It doesn’t matter whether people who don’t feel safe are right or wrong about the risk.   The fact that they feel that way is all that’s needed to impact attendance.  

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, foxfield said:

I think that is probably fair, if we consider 2012-2014.  But at that time, while that  climb was again, somewhat unexpected, it was a clear window.  This feels different.   While the climb into contention has been quicker than expected, the idea that this is the ground flooring just the beginning, is different.  While I am not expecting....expecting a WS appearance or a win, getting there or winning would be a game changer.  And I think a strong appearance could be as well even if they fall short.  We will see.  

 

Well, I do think that even though the O’s made the playoffs three times from 2012-16, there never was a season where going in the team was expected to make the playoffs.  The pundits were always skeptical and the Orioles never did go two years in a row.   I do not think the pundits will be that skeptical about the Orioles next year, and I think fans will have higher expectations going in than they did at any time during 2012-16.   So, that should help.