Photo of an almost empty Oracle Park during a San Francisco Giants home game.

Image Credit: Mike D - Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

What goes up must eventually come down. Oracle Park, formerly AT&T Park, would frequently draw some of the best attendance numbers in Major League Baseball since opening in 2000. Between 2010 and 2017, the San Francisco Giants boasted a seven-year sellout streak amid three World Series crowns in 2010, 2012, and 2014. The San Francisco Giants are now averaging just over 32,000 fans per game after averaging nearly 40,000 per game during the same time span in 2018. Major League Baseball as a whole, are also seeing a decline in overall attendance.

In an effort to help increase attendance, the San Francisco Giants have introduced several attractive ticketing options geared towards younger fans. One such option is the “Ballpark Pass” which provides baseball fans with a standing room only ticket for every Giants home game for $35 per month. With the Ballpark Pass fans have the ability to roam the ballpark and take in the game from various standing room only areas. The San Francisco Giants have also introduced earlier start times for weekday games and provided 20% off concession and merchandise items for fans that purchase various ticket packages. If Oracle Park’s season attendance falls below 3 million fans in 2019, it will be their lowest single season attendance draw since the 2009 Major League Baseball season. Although losing 98 games during the 2017 season, the San Francisco Giants were still averaging more than 40,000 fans at Oracle Park each game.

Declining attendance is the last thing a ball club wants to experience after recently spending millions of dollars on upgrading the ballpark. The most notable upgrade was the addition of Major League Baseball’s first 4K scoreboard in the outfield. The scoreboard offers twice the resolution of the previous scoreboard and is three times larger. The San Francisco Giants also added a gathering area in the outfield called “The Waterfront”. These upgrades were all implemented with the hopes of improving the fan experience at Oracle Park.

How the San Francisco Giants will remedy their sagging attendance is tough to answer so early in the season. The team is still boasting attendance numbers much better than other Major League Baseball teams, including the Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, and Baltimore Orioles. Perhaps the answer lies with how expensive the cost of living in the Bay Area is. Many Bay Area baseball fans simply don’t have the budget to attend several San Francisco Giants games each season. The San Francisco Giants are also currently in last place in the National League West and nothing fills stadiums like a winning team.

 

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