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Almost 11,000 people sold out NBT Bank Stadium to watch three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer pitch for the Syracuse Mets. Syracuse native Michael Deviro brought his son to the game, just as Deviro’s dad brought him to Syracuse Chiefs games when he was young. 

Scherzer allowed one run and struck out seven batters in 3 ⅔ innings against the Buffalo Bisons. Deviro said the crowd reminded him of the atmosphere that would envelop the stadium when he was a kid. 

Last season, the Triple-A Mets drew an average of 4,793 fans per game, up 24.6% from 2021, recording its largest attendance number (335,490) since 2013. Syracuse drew 19 crowds of over 6,000, with three sellouts, according to David Kronheim’s minor league attendance report. 

Yet, the Syracuse Mets’ average attendance was under 5,000 for the seventh straight year, disregarding 2020 and 2021, after reaching that figure each season from 1997 through 2013. When owner Steve Cohen bought the organization in 2020 and Syracuse finished family-friendly stadium renovations, the Syracuse Mets began to gain back the attendance and fan engagement of years past.

“I think the key for baseball is you need to grow revenues, and it can’t be through constantly raising ticket prices. It’s got to be getting more attendance, getting more interest in the game,”  Cohen told the Associated Press in February.

The billionaire hedge fund manager bought the New York Mets for $2.4 billion on Nov. 6, 2020. The Mets have been top two in payroll to start both seasons under Cohen’s control, spending a combined $124,353,331 over the salary cap. 

In 2022, the Mets’ 101-win season drew 122,205 more fans than the last “normal” attendance year in 2019. This season, the Mets have the highest payroll in baseball by over $65 million, already impacting how they treat the Triple-A talent. 

Syracuse started the season with four of the Mets’ top eight prospects on the team: Francisco Alvarez, Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Mark Vientos. The lineup drew a crowd of nearly 6,000 fans on April 4 as they beat the Rochester Red Wings 5-0 in their home opener. After Alvarez (the No. 1 prospect in baseball) and Baty (No. 19) were each called up in under 10 games, the average attendance dropped to 3,144 per game, according to baseball reference. 

Benjamin Hill of milb.com said that Cohen is a businessman, and he’s confident the owner can draw big crowds to the ballpark, even with significant roster turnover. 

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Cohen’s preference to spend money on veterans rather than promote from within means players stay at their respective levels longer, creating ties to the community that increase fan engagement. Spencer, a season ticket holder in Syracuse, enjoys traveling with his family to New York to watch the prospects in the majors. He said it’s always special to see the local talent succeed, more so than other players. 

With inconsistent weather and kids in school until June, Syracuse won’t get a steady attendance until summertime. Because of those factors, Hill said MiLB playoff games fail to draw large crowds. In Syracuse, the weather can also cause problems in the beginning of the season. 

“It’s not so much the players that are the problem but the weather is terrible,” said lifelong Syracuse resident and baseball fan Jason Spencer. “I know there’s days that I don’t even want to come here, but I support the team.”

In a long-form observational study, Seth Gitter and Thomas Rhoads determined that new stadiums increase attendance by 1.2 million fans at the AAA level. While Syracuse didn’t build a brand new stadium, it catered its ballpark experience to the local fans.

Lifelong Mets fan Ark Naugin, who now lives in Scranton, said the product Syracuse puts out is superior to what Scranton produces for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate. Naugin referred to the stadium renovations, including grass areas along the outfield lines. Every game, young fans use the hill to play games while still being close to the action. 

Naugin also said Syracuse has more promotional nights than Scranton, which he attributes to Cohen’s business acumen. When he attended the game on May 6, veteran NFL running back Latavius Murray threw the ceremonial first pitch and hosted an autograph-signing session. Murray attended Onondaga Central High School and recently signed a deal with the Buffalo Bills.

“This is better, and not just because I’m a Mets fan,” said Naugin, who drives to Syracuse regularly for games. “You can see the growth… People actually show up [now].”

Published on May 11, 2023 at 2:41 am

Contact Wyatt: [email protected]