To be fair there are a lot of young fans (definitely younger on average than at a Leaf game) and many of those young ladies are real lookers.scouser1 said:
Blue Jays 2009
- Thread starter salsamarc
- Start date
The guy on CTV sports said that a whole bunch of Jays are available for the right price. Maybe, Aaron Hill is the only untouchable. He also said that nobody wants Vernon Wells.
I remember watching the Jays playing in Washington DC a month or so ago & i was thinking that the atmosphere in DC is even worse than the one in Toronto!! It was like being at a damn funeral!shack said:
So, what happened to Windows??
You've got a short memory!ckupets04 said:
Toronto was and still is a good baseball town even though not a large market...
As long as management (Labatt's, CIBC, etc.) was committed to putting a team out on the field that was competitive and fun to watch, the fans supported the Jays. We set attendance records at the Skydome(!) in the early '90's... between 1982/3 and 1995, most people had baseball tatood inside their brains during the season!
When management and management philosophy changed and they started feeding us a steady diet of inferior product with big hype, the fans got pissed off.
Put a competitive team on the field consistently today and the fans will return in droves.
Of course, we also have the misfortune of playing in the East division which, with big budget teams like Boston and New York dominating, makes things very difficult... perhaps the leagues should be realigned because teams not much better than the Jays over the years have fairly consistently made the playoffs in other divisions.
Perry
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Actually, Toronto is quite a large market. I believe the only larger markets demographically are NYC, LA and maybe Philly and DEtroit. Chicago is split into 2 teams. Boston is a far smaller market than TO, but baseball is a major obsession in that part of the country and so the team always draws exceptionally well.
The issue is that there has not been a contending Jays team for a decade and a half and it's pretty hard to get excited about a weak product.
The issue is that there has not been a contending Jays team for a decade and a half and it's pretty hard to get excited about a weak product.
Perry Mason said:
I'm aware of the attendance records back then. I think everyone is aware of that. I dont really think that proves anything though. In 50 years if the Blue Jays are not drawing crowds are we still gonna point to the early 90s and say "hey we set attendance records in the early 90s we are a baseball town". I know a lot of people that say they were turned off by the strike. Its been 15 years for gods sakes. Turned off by the strike? Maybe those people just dont want to admit that they are not baseball fans so they instead say its the fault of the strike. I can understand being turned off for a few years but its been 15 years. I dont wanna hear that some strike from 15 years ago is still causing disinterest in a sport. I wonder if those same people will stop watching their favorite TV shows b/c the TV writers were on strike a couple years ago.
Maybe there is an age-gap here but I am 30 years old and the vast majority of my friends dont even talk baseball these days or like baseball and it seems like I am the only guy in my circle of friends that like the game or even watch games on TV.
The Skydome was new back then and there were lots of people that just went there just because it was the in place to be not necessarily for the baseball. You also have to remember that when something is relatively new there is an initial novelty about it but after a while the novelty wears off and whats left is just the true fans.
Perry, what are the TV ratings for baseball in this town? I'm not talking about just Blue Jays games, Im talking about the FOX Games on Saturday, the ESPN Sunday Night and Monday Night games. What are the TV ratings for that in this city? My guess is quite low. I know I watch those games and I'm sure a few people do but I dont know too many. If you can honestly tell me that you know a lot of people in Toronto that watch the Fox games or the ESPN games then I will take your word for it , and if that is the case then maybe you are right and I am wrong.
By the way, which cities would you consider to be bad baseball towns. Toronto is a good baseball town in your opinion, which cities in the MLB are bad ones in your opinion?
O
OnTheWayOut
Excellent point. Remember when Ottawa got their AAA team? Set IL league attendance records out of the gate and it was all downhill from there. Great baseball town until the novelty wore off. Now there's an excellent ballpark sitting empty ..... very sad. In a great baseball town you have trouble getting tickets no matter what the team's record is.ckupets04 said:
Very well said. That strike excuse has gotten old, yet I heard a caller mention it earlier tonight on Bob McCowans radio show. Funny, I don't think I have heard anyone say they don't watch NHL hockey anymore because of the 2004-05 lockout that cancelled the Stanley Cup playoffs.ckupets04 said:
You only have to follow the discussions in this sports forum on terb to see how little interest there seems to be in baseball. It is pretty much Blue Jays or nothing. Then again, after a few losses, there are even few posts in that thread. Win a bunch of games and they come out of the woodwork to post. I have started MLB season threads the past two years and I bet that 75% of the posts in there are mine. Last year someone (a Blue Jays fan, BTW) posted how boring the thread was, mostly Boston info. Yet there was a thread there just waiting for discussion on any MLB team and all the poster had to contribute was how boring it was. Maybe I post about the Sox so much because other than them and the Yankees, I am not sure some people know much about any other teams. LOL.ckupets04 said:
I get that too. Reminds me of that tv commercial about the Miller beer delivery guy. People hanging out having a great time, with no idea who is playing. Here is the commercial. It is classic when he says 'can anybody tell me what inning it is?'. Silence. Then that's it, away goes the free beer. LOL.ckupets04 said:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_OxCHyLLkU
As a comparison, when the Indians opened up Jacobs Field in the mid 1990's, they started on a nice run of play-off years. During that time, they set a record of 455 consecutive sellouts. New ballpark, winning team, sellout crowds. Sound familiar? The only difference is that I would be willing to bet 'beer delivery guy' didn't have to take away their beer for not knowing what inning it was. LOL.
Tampa Bay is a bad baseball town. Thank goodness the Red Sox come in for 9 games a year, that's the only time they fill the place. Other nights they pack about 12,000 cowbell ringers into that dump.ckupets04 said:
One knock on Toronto used to be they had a sure fire hall of famer (at the time) pitching for them, two time Cy Young award winner in a Jays uniform. Yet, it didn't seem to do much for attendance on the days he would start.
I agree with you, a few years of 4 million fans in a brand new ballpark when the team was winning championships does not make it a baseball city.
And thats exactly why I had asked Perry Mason about what he thinks is a bad baseball town. According to his definition of a good baseball town Tampa Bay would be a good baseball town. Therefore Id have to say his definition is not a good one. After all they filled up the stadium when they put a winner on the field last year. It was only the years that the product was lousy that the attendance was poor. So by his definition Tampa is a good baseball town. I respect Perry Mason's opinion but I just think his definition for a good baseball town is too loose b/c by that definition almost every city is a good baseball town.blueline said:
Exactly! I'm not sure what is more ridiculous , the lunatics that call into Mccowns show with these crazy opinions or Mccown himself who doesnt seem to be much of a sports fan. Is it just me or does everything put his feet to sleep? "This game put my feet to sleep, that game put my feet to sleep" Hey Mccown, if sports puts your feet to sleep just stop watching and get off Sports radio.blueline said:
I’m tired of hearing of how Toronto is such a bad baseball town or that we are small market, blah blah blah. The lack of interest in the Blue Jays is a direct result of poor ownership (Interbrew) back in the mid to late 90’s, and not being able to field a competitive team (missing the playoffs for the last 16 seasons).ckupets04 said:
The Blue Jays always do quite well with TV ratings. I’m not sure about Sunday Night Baseball, but I think it’s safe to assume that it does just as well or better than most NBA broadcasts.ckupets04 said:
Clemons signed here right after a huge salary dump by ownership which saw fan favourites like Alomar, Olerud, and White leave town. It wasn’t exactly a renaissance period for the team.blueline said:
From '84-’88 the Blue Jays were in the top four in attendance in the AL playing out of Exhibition Stadium.
So, do you think Baltimore, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Minnesota, and Kansas City are bad baseball towns?
NBA ratings in this country are actually not that good. Thats why Sportsnet dropped the NBA. I love the NBA but the truth is the ratings say that not many people are watching NBA games in this country. Definitely not games that dont involve the Raptors.popodaki said:
If baseball is such a huge sport in Toronto then I dont understand why it is that everywhere I look I see hockey jerseys on the streets of Toronto. Walk down Yonge Street and count how many people you see wearing Blue Jays jerseys. Not many.
Are KC, Cleveland etc good baseball towns? To be honest I'm not fully qualified to answer that questoin because I've never lived in those cities and I dont personally know anyone in those cities. But I dont think Toronto is a good baseball town.
I am not saying you are not a baseball fan. I am sure that you are. I just dont think that Toronto is a good baseball town generally speaking.
If you say there are a lot of baseball fans in this city I will take your word for it. Unfortunately for me these baseball fans do not work with me , they did not go to school with me and none of them are in my circle of friends.
In 2009 they are 25th in average attendance at 23,663 (46.8% capacity). The only teams that trail on the list are TBay, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Florida and Oakland. It is hard to understand why they are so low this year, considering the terrific start they had. They ranked about 18th the past two seasons and then the rest of the years in this decade in the mid 20's again.popodaki said:
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