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Texas Rangers losing attendance, money to an unafilliated minor league team?
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Fort Worth Cats, an American Association ballclub
Though it would be a small dent, NBC5i.com published a story today saying that the Fort Worth Cats are doing better than ever in terms of attendance, despite their proximity to the Rangers and another AA team.
How could this be happening?
Winning may definitely have a say in it. While the Rangers have finished last in the American League West seven times in the last eight years, the Cats have won three consecutive championships between two different leagues, the last two coming in the American Association. They won the first half of the 2008 season, clinching a fourth straight playoff appearance.
That makes so much sense, it's almost a stupid thing to point out. The team that wins consistently is drawing in the better relative attendance. According to ESPN, the Rangers are currently averaging just 24,468 fans per home game. That's just under half of The Ballpark's capacity.
Meanwhile, the Cats are enjoying crowds that are significantly more than LaGrave Field's capacity (5,100)
According to the Cats' attendance figures, the team has averaged over 5,900 in attendance in the last six games alone. They set a new single-game attendance record in that stretch, drawing 12,457 on the Fourth of July.
Does this mean that the Rangers are in any danger of losing significant funds to the Cats? Probably not. But this should be viewed as a big blow to the collective ego of the Rangers front office.
In theory, local fans should choose the MLB team over the local, UN-affiliated minor league club located 15 minutes to the west.
Turns out, though, that winning does make a difference.
