It’s Labor Day weekend, so I’m not going to delve into politics a whole lot aside from going to the Wicomico County Republican Club Crab Feast later this afternoon. (If you’re wondering why they scheduled it during Labor Day weekend, it’s because we had this uninvited house pest named Irene last weekend when it was originally supposed to occur.)
But I wanted to point out something I find a little bit disturbing as a Shorebirds fan. Unless they draw a little over 13,000 fans to their final three home games of the season Delmarva will have their worst attendance since they began play in 1996. The 2009 club drew 214,525 and that’s the lowest number I’ve found.
Admittedly, there’s no suspense of a pennant drive to bring fans out because we’re mired in last place. A season that began with a promising 16-9 start faded to a middling 35-35 first half and threatens to be the worst in the league as they are 55-82 going into tonight’s game. But we should try and support our hometown team, for there’s a lot of cities and towns dotting the countryside which would love to have the opportunity to have their own minor league franchise. What else would explain the drive for independent baseball teams and leagues?
So come on out and support the boys in orange and black this weekend. Cheer them on so they can at least escape the SAL basement. Game times are 7:05 tonight, 5:05 tomorrow, and 2:05 on Monday – those players have a long drive home so they’ll want to be out by Monday night. After that it’s cold turkey until April 12, 2012.
Let’s not go the way of the Kinston Indians. Remember, we were once the Albany Polecats until people stopped showing up there.
