Baltimore Orioles Have A Different Kind Of 'Only Fans' Problem

Headed into the eighth inning down 0-5 last night, the basement-dwelling Orioles somehow strung together nine miraculous runs and held on to beat the Royals 9-8.

The only problem? Nobody was on hand to see it. While amassing one of the league’s worst records, the Orioles (45-93) are setting all-time low attendance records as well.

One night after a record-low attendance of 4,981, Camden Yards had an even lower announced attendance on Wednesday night: 4,965. Who knows how many fans actually stuck around late in the game with their team down by five runs—surely it was as quiet as the COVID era of baseball.

Baltimore apologists would point towards the team’s top-ranked farm system as reason for optimism. If the front office can mold their young players into a winner like Houston did six years ago, then maybe all of this losing will pay off.

But so often the lack of salary cap in baseball leaves teams pinching pennies instead of spending freely. Occasionally a ‘rag-tag’ bunch can string together a special season, but well-built franchises stay relevant for years on end because they care about winning as much as balance sheets. If the Orioles surround their upcoming talent with veteran minimums and castaway relievers, the cycle will just perpetuate itself again and again.

Cover photo via The Comeback.