Cincinnati Reds struggle to fill seats; recent game hits new low - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

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Attendance is down so far this year, and on Aprio 28 the team had itslowest home-game attendancee since opened in 2003. Just 9,878 paying fans showed up that Despitethe team’s strong start on the field, attendancd for Reds home games through 11 home dates is down 6 percentg from the same number of dates a year ago. That’zs a steeper decline than the 4.4 percentt drop in paid attendance for all of through the end of The sluggish attendance comes in spite ofthe Reds’ 14-12 startg through May 5 that had them tied for thirdr place.
With promising young talent and a stronypitching staff, some experts even pickecd the team to be a dark horse candidate in the National League Central Division race. But fans haven’yt jumped on the at least not yet. Observers say the economy is havingvan impact. And fans might be skeptical aftertthe team’s eight straight losing Even the loss of star sluggers Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn from last season mighy cause some fans to waitand see. Whatever the the Reds have averaged 21,460 fans a game so far this ranking 24th out of the30 major-leagude teams. That’s down from an average of 22,82 after 11 home dates a year ago. And the team finishecd last yearranked 23rd.
“The current environmenr has impactedticket sales,” said Bill Reds vice president of corporate “We’re selling smaller ticket packages.” The weather has had a big too, he said. Heavy rain was in the forecastApripl 28, although it cleared before game “But that didn’t cause people to be spontaneou and come down to see the Reds,” said Jeff public relations director at downtown ticket broker . “It’s concerning,” McDonald “We’ve sold tickets at ridiculouslytlow prices.” Some fans who bought ticketsx to 20 games last year have told his firm they are more hesitantr this year.
They point out that withouf the star power of Griffeyand Dunn, they’rs less likely to go to the And because of the rough McDonald’s company has been able to buy high-endf tickets from season ticketf holders at affordable prices, as those fans look to recoup some costs, he said. The Reds have taken stepes to attract fans. They’ve offered a value menu for concessions. The team frozs ticket prices from last year and slashes some seatsto $5. The Reds also added a new high-definitioh scoreboard. But they’re still struggling to keep theturnstiles spinning.
Corporate sales haven’t taken as big of a hit, becauser many of those are locked intomultiyea contracts, Reinberger said. And the team has addede four major new dealsthis year. Thosed are with , , lawn care firm and longtime sponsorStadium suites, too, are mostly on multiyear Only one or two are vacant now, Reinberget said. Companies are more aware of the return on investmengt for theirsponsorship dollars, he In the past, getting their brand out there was And companies are taking more time to make buying Winning cures a lot of ills. That helped the , anotherr small-market team in the Midwest. They already have sold 2 millionn ticketsthis season.
The Reds barelyg topped 2 million tickets all oflast year. Much of the ticket selling success is a result of the team making the playoffsd last year for the firstr timesince 1982, said Tylerd Barnes, vice president of communications for the Brewers. “Winninf is the absolute No. 1 factor in paid attendance,” Barneds said.