Pirates vs. Marlins play to an embarrassingly small crowd at PNC Park
Not great for the brand
The Pittsburgh Pirates game against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday lacked an audience, to say the least. While the official attendance came in at 9,043 people, photos of the game showed barely anyone at PNC Park for the competition. Many MLB teams over the years have had attendance problems, but this example stands out.
A video taken before first pitch shows the place looking like there were more players on the field than there were fans in the stands.
I don’t run the Pirates. If I did, this look a couple minutes before first pitch would scare the hell out of me: pic.twitter.com/eA85K7RHaP
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) September 4, 2019
And it didn't get much better once the action started. The game was exciting for the fans who actually did show up, as Pirates center fielder Bryan Reynolds hit a walk-off single in the ninth inning. In the video of the winning hit, you can almost count how many people were at the game on one hand. Not a good look for the organization, who clearly seems to be struggling to get fans in the seats.
WALK. IT. OFF!!!#RaiseIt pic.twitter.com/EsZbpbVTzA
— Pirates (@Pirates) September 5, 2019
PNC Park is on the smaller side of MLB ballparks with a capacity of 38,362. In comparison, Dodger Stadium and Yankee Stadium are the largest, holding 56,000 and 52,325 respectively.
Selling out 81 home games is no easy feat, that's for sure, but an attendance like this on a night with beautiful weather -- at what is frequently mentioned as one of the nicer ballparks in the country -- should alarm the franchise. The team has had an issue with attracting people to their games all year and have the fifth worst attendance in the league this season so far.
The teams will meet again on Thursday night, hopefully in front of more people, to finish out the series
















