6/3/2012
By Ivan Pereira
Yankee fans, your eyes aren’t deceiving you — there are indeed more empty seats at the stadium this year.
The Bombers are averaging 40,950 fans this year, down from 42,885 at this time last season, and are seeing their lowest attendance since in their new ballpark, which opened in 2009.
Although the difference may not seem like much, the Yankees have drawn under 40,000 a game 10 times this year, having done that once in the prior five seasons.
“I think some of the novelty has worn off,” Benjamin Kabak, managing editor of the Yankees blog River Avenue Blues, said of the new stadium. The Yankees declined to comment.
Dom Cosentino, a contributing writer for Deadspin, also attributed the decline to the team’s lackluster performance.
The Yankees have a 29-24 record and are third in the AL East. The soggy weather hasn’t helped either, according to Cosentino.
“No one wants to see a team with lots of injuries that’s barely above .500,” he said. “Especially if it’s a Tuesday night and it’s raining.”
Cosentino said the fans will return if the team plays better.
“If they go into August and find themselves 20 games above .500, they won’t have this problem, but if they’re out of the [playoff] race, no one’s going to come,” he said.
