The Marlins have had an attendance problem for the majority of their existence. Some peers—irresponsibly—extrapolate the numbers to criticize the loyalty and fanbase quality of South Florida as a whole. Regardless, we can agree on the obvious: the crowd size at home games is not sufficient for a franchise aiming to contend long term and entertain. And yet, while finishing dead last in Major League Baseball in 2019 attendance, we find encouraging signs.
Two points should be made to preface this discussion:
- Due to revenue sharing, attendance is no longer the primary piece of the profit pie chart it once was.