Hey Red Sox Nation: your sellout streak is nice. In a quaint, small-scale kind of way. One day, if you’re truly committed, you can show devotion like the fans of the Dayton Dragons have done for the past 11 years.
Eleven years in which they have sold out every single home game. That’s 815 games in a row. Every game they’ve played since they moved to Dayton in 2000. When they get their 815th, they’ll break the all-time professional sports record, currently held by the Portland Trailblazers.
OK, fine, tickets for the Dragons aren’t quite as pricey as they are at Fenway, so I’ll grant that there is an apples and oranges thing going on here. But you can’t deny how impressive the Dragons’ streak is. Especially in an area like Dayton, with an economy that can be charitably referred to as “beyond crappy.” There’s a season ticket waiting list for the Dragons. A wait list for season tickets to a Class-A team. It’s around 9,000 names long. In a park that holds just over 8,000. Seriously, someone could kill every single current season ticket holder for the Dragons this afternoon, and you’d still be wait-listed.
The key is really the ballpark. It’s fun. It’s accessible. They keep it really clean and well-maintained and are huge on customer service there. Reds’ prospects come and go, but people always have a reason to go to Fifth Third Field.
Or maybe they’re just coming out to see Delino Deshields. He’s the manager. And I just think that’s neat.