A general view inside Tropicana Field during Game 1 of the wild -card series for the 2023 MLB playoffs between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Texas Rangers. Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Rays had historically small crowd for AL wild-card opener

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 10/3/23

Attendance issues are nothing new for the Tampa Bay Rays, but they may have reached rock bottom for Tuesday's American League wild-card opener against the Texas Rangers.

The game — which Tampa Bay lost 4-0 in a sloppy, error filled contest — had an announced attendance of only 19,704 fans.

For most teams, that would be a small crowd on any random Tuesday.

For an MLB postseason game, it is shocking.

It is also historic.

It is the smallest crowd for any Major League Baseball postseason game (excluding the COVID year games) since Game 7 of the 1919 World Series.

Here's some perspective on today's attendance of 19,704 at the Trop: according to @Stathead, it's the lowest (non-Covid year) attendance for a postseason game in 104 years. Last one below 19,704 was Game 7 of the infamous 1919 World Series in Cincinnati.
— Tyler Kepner (@TylerKepner) October 3, 2023

There are a lot of factors at play here. Everybody knows the stadium situation in Tampa is not ideal, from both the quality of the stadium — it is a dump — to the location that makes getting to it problematic for locals. It is also a mid-day, mid-week game.

But even with all of those factors at play that is still an absolutely shocking attendance number for a postseason game. Day playoff games are nothing new in Major League Baseball, and other teams routinely sell them out or at least come close to it.

The only good news for Rays fans is that more of them were not there to see that mess of a game in person.

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