MARLINS TO GET NEW STADIUM

[Dave Gray]

The roof is a help.

The biggest way to make baseball popular down here is to make it an impulse buy.  You need to make it as convenient as possible for potential customer to decide "Hey, we should go to the game today" on the fly.  I think that moving the stadium to that part of the city is a big detriment in that respect.

Brian and I are different types of fans.  He buys his tickets in advance and plans for it.  I go at the last second.  The team needs to find a way to make it enjoyable for both of us.

[SportsChick]

I like the idea of the roof (speaking as someone who got massive sunburn on a sunday afternoon. I still shudder thinking about it)

[Brian Fein]

I have a picture of her with her legs tomato-red, taken almost a week after viewing a sunday afternoon game at the Pro.

Dave, I totally agree with you.  I would like to see the new stadium draw more season ticket holders, too.  Places like Fenway, Wrigley, etc, you can't get a ticket unless someone dies.  I would like to see the Marlins offer more attractive partial season ticket packages, because no one wants to commit to going to 81 games. 

I think the Marlins have the ability to win fans over NOW, by doing the right thing with guys like Uggla and Ramirez - the all stars and fan favorites.  People need continuity, and sustained competition will get asses in the seats long term.  Florida is very fair weathered.  People here don't pay to have a bad time.

[BingeBag]

This had been said time and time again, fans just don't want to come out. This isn't because noone cares. The Marlins always sit in the top 10 for television viewership for mlb teams year in and year out.

 I was hoping and praying for this stadium to go through, but I think its such a dumb idea on Miami-Dade's part. They screwed up and will be paying for this for a while.

[Dave Gray]

This is another half-assed solution.  They wanted a stadium so bad, that they didn't care that they got it in the right place.  This just moves the problem somewhere else.  I think that Ft. Lauderdale was the only way that this would really, truly work.

[Phishfan]

^^^ Did Ft. Lauderdale even make a push for them though? I keep hearing you say it is a great place for them, but the city needed to make a move for them if they wanted them. The team can't just say where they want to play and that be the end of it.

[Brian Fein]

I keep asking, where in Fort Lauderdale?  You wanna knock over a 50-story office building?  Maybe they could just bulldoze Beachplace and A1A??  How about taking a stick of dynamite to Riverfront?

There's no available land enough to build a stadium in Fort Lauderdale.  And besides, they're not building it so that Dave Gray will go to games, they are and will always be appealing to the Latino community, and this is right in their backyard.  If you don't believe me, go look at the "Super Saturday" performance schedule for this season....

[Dave Gray]

It's not about me, personally.  I'm probably not going to games either way.  I think Ft. Lauderdale is the best working population center that we have in South Florida.  It's also within a reasonable distance of our other two population centers down here, West Palm and Miami.  I don't know where in Ft. Lauderdale it could go, but there's always room, if you're willing to remove something else.  I'd prefer that it be within walking distance of downtown.   ...and that the stadium be really, really small.

I don't know if the city of Ft. Lauderdale made a push or not.  But I've heard the idea mentioned at different points throughout the years.

[Brian Fein]

I don't know where in Ft. Lauderdale it could go, but there's always room, if you're willing to remove something else.  I'd prefer that it be within walking distance of downtown.   ...and that the stadium be really, really small.

I agree Fort Lauderdale would be ideal but I think this is the flaw in your point.  The IS no room.  The only thing they could remove to put a stadium is crack houses in the hood.  Probably not the best place to build a stadium.  If you look at a detailed map of downtown Fort Lauderdale, there is no place to just drop a ball field, even a "really, really small" one.

I'm curious about your definition of small.  Is it because you want the Marlins to be able to sell out the stadium or because you want a more intimate baseball experience?  I would think the Marlins would not want to limit their money-making potential and by having only 10,000 seats in their swanky new stadium doesn't make good business sense.  Most ballparks are, I'd estimate, 28-45k seating (I could be wrong, I'm guessing here).

[Dave Gray]

I think a small park is a good idea because sellouts breed sellouts.  Limited availability makes people more interested.  ...and I think that an added intimacy would help separate baseball from other sports options down here.

[RJINTAMPA]

I think a small park is a good idea because sellouts breed sellouts.  Limited availability makes people more interested.  ...and I think that an added intimacy would help separate baseball from other sports options down here.

great post and that is very true, look at tickets to hard sporting events as reason for your claim

[stinkfish]

I'm just glad that they're moving out of Dolphins stadium.

[Phishfan]

  Limited availability makes people more interested. 

I don't agree. The Lions created a smaller stadium with Ford Field than they had with the Silverdome. Winning creates interest. It has nothing to do with how many seats are available.