Derrick cheering on the Snakes. No surprise there!

Anyway, when I was watching the WBC Classic last week, Derrick Hall did an interview with MLB Network after the brawl between Canada and Mexico. Hall had some good points about the safety of the ballpark and baseball as a whole in the Valley. It got me thinking: Is Arizona a hot bed for baseball? I’m starting to think it is. Scottsdale is home to arguably one of the most beautiful spring training parks in the league at Salt River Fields. If you head west on the 10 towards Glendale, you end up at my favorite spring ballpark; Camelback Ranch. Chase Field has transformed itself into the clean, sedona red-splashed ballpark that we see in downtown Phoenix today. The Arizona Diamondbacks and the league in general are doing a great job at keeping these ballparks fairly active all year round. From spring training to the Arizona Fall League, chances are that there is a game going on in central Arizona. In an interview earlier this off season, Hall said:

“It’s going to be nice to host Team USA at Salt River Fields. To me, it’s like an open-house sales opportunity for us, showcasing what I think is the best Spring Training facility to players who have never been there. Chase Field is going to be home to the big games.”

It’s a great move to make all of this baseball so accessible to fans from across the world. To me, a spring training game is still one of the best bargains around. There is a vivid trickle-down effect of baseball in this state. Due to the climate, baseball is being played all year and by all different ages. From T-ball to junior college, baseball is being played. If you add Arizona State and GCU baseball to the mix, it can be a very fun year. Want to travel to Tucson? You’ve got U of A baseball to watch there. Let’s not forget, the wildcats are the defending NCAA champs.

Hi-Corbett Field is the new home of the Arizona Wildcats.

See what I mean? Baseball is everywhere you look in the state of Arizona and being a big baseball nerd, I like to keep it coming as much as possible. After college, my plan is to live in Arizona and the fact that all this hardball will be around me is only that much more enticing. To all of you Arizonians? Arizonites? Baseball fans? Enjoy that state because I know I sure will.

Follow @venomstrikes on Twitter because well, you just should!

Whatever it was, the Diamondbacks didn’t see much of a jump in attendance following their success a year prior- even with an exciting playoff series against the Brewers. The Diamondbacks finished 13 of 16 in National League [home] attendance, beating only the Padres, Pirates and Astros.

Here are the team’s last six seasons in attendance at Chase Field:

2006: 2,091,685 (14 of 16)  Home Record: 39-42  Overall: 76-86 *Tied for last place (3-way)

2007: 2,325,249 (13 of 16)  Home Record: 50-31  Overall: 90-72  *1^st in N.L. West – Lost in N.L.C.S

2008: 2,509,924 (11 of 16)  Home Record: 48-33  Overall: 82-80  *2^nd in N.L. West

2009: 2,128,765 (11 of 16)  Home Record: 36-45  Overall: 70-92  *5^th in N.L. West

2010: 2,056,697 (13 of 16)  Home Record: 40-41  Overall: 65-97  *5^th in N.L. West

2011: 2,105,432 (12 of 16)   Home Record: 51-30  Overall: 94-68  *1^st in N.L. West – Lost in L.D.S.

2012: 2,177,617 (13 of 16)   Home Record: 41-40   Overall: 81-81  *3^rd in N.L. West

As you can see, the success and disappointments of the Dbacks haven’t changed the attendance all that much over this six year span- never sitting higher than eleventh or lower than 14^th in attendance in the N.L. In my opinion it’s because the club has struggled to be consistent over multiple seasons. The fans have definitely seen some good times as the Dbacks won the West in 2007, then swept the Cubs in the Division Series before falling to the red hot Rockies in the League Championship Series in less-than dramatic fashion. But 2008 was a disappointment, just as 2012 was following their 94 wins in 2011.

Arizona Diamondbacks mascot Baxter the Bobcat points to a fan during a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field. Image: Jennifer Stewart-US PRESSWIRE

Phoenix is a unique city in that a large amount of their residents are transplants who arrived in the valley of the sun already enamored with a sports team from their home town. Hence why you’ll go to a Cubs game in town and have more fans for the away team. So while some cities can afford losing seasons without losing fans, the Dbacks are not one of them. It’s been an uphill battle for President Derrick Hall and the organization as a whole and they’ve done everything possible to make the fan experience a memorable one.

One thing that fans cannot use as a crutch for not going is that it is too expensive. In fact, the Dbacks have some of the cheapest tickets in the sport (or ANY sport) and avoid raising ticket prices whenever possible. They offer $1.50 hot dogs at all games, $4 beers and a whole menu of value items that make the family experience much lighter on the budget. The stadium is one of the nicest in the major leagues, includes a kid zone with a mini-field for kids to play baseball and a jungle jim that rivals any city park around. Generally speaking the product on the field has been fun to watch over the last three seasons as they’re eleven games over .500 at hitter friendly Chase Field.

Another added bonus that probably goes unnoticed to most is the 6:40 p.m. start time as opposed to 7:10 p.m. like most stadiums. I appreciate this more now that I have a two year old as it pretty much ensures we will always be out of the ballpark before 10 p.m. or even home by that time. A 7:10 p.m. start means we aren’t getting home until 10:30 or later and basically means we’d be leaving early. ~sidenote: we left early from one game (of about 20) all season and the team battled back from a five run deficit in the sixth to have Ryan Roberts hit a three run walk-off homerun to win it. Doh!

If the Diamondbacks can offer a consistent product over more than one season and continue to produce all-star players from within their farm system they should see an increase in attendance during the coming years- something Mr. Hall and Ken Kendrick deserve in my opinion. How they manage the organization and how the players produce will be the underlying factor but the fans can be a part of their successes by showing their support attending games when possible.

Hometown hint: For the best seat in the house for the best bang for your buck: Section 316 row 1-15 seats 9-13. Tickets are $14-$18 each (depending on opponent, night of week) and you have a dead center view from home plate to the outfield.

Follow me on Twitter at @ndougherty313 and our team at @venomstrikes.

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