Dateline Dayton — Sometime ago, Forbes magazine listed Dayton as one of the dying cities in this country.
It’s true that in the almost fifty years I have lived in Dayton, the area has lost a lot of major companies: DACO, Frigidaire, General Motors, Mead and NCR, to name a few.
There are, however, some bright spots in Dayton: Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the University of Dayton, Wright State University, Sinclair College and there’s BASEBALL. Yes, Dayton has a baseball team.
After years of hard work and many arguments, a few civic leaders were able to convince the city fathers that we should have a ballpark, and it needed to be built downtown. As the saying goes, “Build it and they will come,” and come they did.
The Dragons came to Dayton in 2000. They were previously a franchise based in Rockford, Illinois, called the Rockford Expos (1988-1992), Rockford Royals (1993-1994), Rockford Cubbies (1995-1998), and the Rockford Reds (1999)
The Dayton Dragons played their first baseball game here on April 28, 2000. In attendance was Cincinnati Reds Hall of Famer Johnny Bench, who caught the ceremonial first pitch.
The team’s home park is Fifth Third Field, naming rights having been purchased by the Fifth Third Bank of Cincinnati. The Dayton Dragons are a Class A minor league team, affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds and play in the Midwest League.
During the team’s first season, the Dragons set a Class A baseball attendance record of 581,853. They were able to break that record in 2003 when 590,382 fans – ranking seventh in all minor league baseball.
The Dragons average 8,375 fans per game, or 116 percent of capacity. They have been the top Class A team in attendance every year of their existence.
What makes the Dragons so popular with the Dayton fans, even if they lose?
Tickets prices are reasonable – unfortunately being sold out every season, makes tickets hard to come by. Today the average wait time for tickets is six years, with a waiting list of about 9,000.
Food — although not inexpensive — is reasonable for a sporting event, and it’s tasty.
Lots of entertainment. Besides seeing a ballgame, you have a fun time.
Ease of parking –ample parking near the field, some free, and most inexpensive. Being that the parking is not concentrated in one spot, there isn’t much congestion, either before or after the game.
The fans – everyone is there to have a good time.
Dayton proved the saying, “Build it and they will come.”
Mr. Hennessey may be contacted at pmhenn@sbcglobal.net