Posted on March - 28 - 2010
Cleveland Indians hope for attendance upswing in Arizona
In at least one area, the Indians hope for a repeat of 2009.
While last year’s big-league club underperformed on the field, it picked up box-office steam as spring training went along, dramatically increasing its attendance in its first season at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Ariz.
This year’s attendance, though, is off to another rocky start. The Indians, in four games, are averaging 3,936 fans per game at the 10,000-seat stadium.
But Indians officials aren’t without hope, and that’s because of last year’s uptick: After averaging 3,762 fans through four games in 2009, the Indians ended with a 5,452 average over 17 games, including five games over 6,000 and 10 at 5,000 or more.
Indians director of communications Curtis Danburg said teams that play in Arizona’s Cactus League depend more on day-of-game sales than their counterparts in Florida’s Grapefruit League due to the Cactus League’s concentration near Phoenix. Once the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks leave their spring training home of Tucson after this season, all Cactus League clubs will be within an hour of each other.
That proximity presents fans with many options, unlike in Florida, where teams are as far as three hours apart.
“In Florida, there wasn’t much competition for us,” Mr. Danburg said, referring to the Indians’ former spring training home in Winter Haven, which is in the middle of the state. “Here, there are so many opportunities; fans can decide on the day of the game where to go.”
Another Arizona issue the Indians are keeping their eyes on is the battle over the Chicago Cubs, with the city of Mesa attempting to keep the Cubs there as Naples, Fla., makes eyes for the long-suffering — and very popular — franchise. There currently is a bill in the state legislature that would impose taxes on every Cactus League ticket sold — including at Goodyear Ballpark — as a way to pay for a new, $84 million complex in Mesa.
The Cubs and Mesa officials are trying to sell the other Cactus League teams on the benefits of the team remaining, as other Cactus League clubs charge premium prices for games in which they play host to Chicago.
“We’re watching that, but staying on the periphery,” Mr. Danburg said. “We’re the new guys out there still.”
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