- Total April 2016 Tampa Bay Rays home attendance: 237,820
- Average attendance per game: 15,854
- Highest attendance: 31,042 on April 3th (Opening Day)
- Lowest attendance: 10,117 on Wednesday, April 13th
- Average April game time: 2 hours, 46 minutes
- Highest attended series: 73,172 vs Blue Jays, April 3-6
- Lowest attended series: 31,115 vs Indians, April 12-14
- Competing events:
- Tampa Bay Lightning home games on April 13, 15, 27, and 30 (Attendance 19,092).
- UFC on FOX 19 @ Amalie Arena (Attendance: 11,273) April 16
- Tampa Bay Rowdies @ Al Lang Stadium (Attendance: 4,429) April 16
- USF Football Spring Game @ USF Campus (Attendance: 4,418) April 16
- Total Tampa Bay Minor League April attendance: 82,140
- Tampa Bay Minor League attendance per game: 1,867 (44 games)
Comparing April 2016 with previous years
The following chart compares April 2016 average attendance to other recent years.
The average April 2016 attendance was 9.6% worse (1,690 fans per game) than the April 2015 per game average. April 2016 was the worst April average since April 2005.
Since 2007, every time the Lightning made the playoffs, Rays average April attendance was below 20,000. When the Lightning are not in the playoffs, Rays average April attendance was above 20,000. The impact of the Lightning on Rays early season attendance is indisputable.
Every year Rays average attendance was below 20,000 per game, the Tampa Bay Lightning were in the NHL playoffs and played games at the same time as the Rays.
- 2007: 3 Lightning playoff games
- 2011: 4 Lightning playoff games
- 2014: 1 Lightning playoff game
- 2015: 2 Lightning playoff games
- 2016: 4 Lightning playoff games
Additionally, in 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2016, Rays average April attendance was under 18,000. Those years there was more than one Lightning game played at the same time as a Rays game.
Weekdays vs Weekends
Let’s now look at the Rays April attendance on weekdays (Mon-Thurs) and weekends (Fri-Sun). As I have pointed out many times, the Rays usually have one of the biggest differences in Major League Baseball in regards to weekday versus weekend attendance.
This chart shows the Rays average weekday attendance in April since 2007. I have removed Opening Day attendance from this chart.
Although they played more weekday games in 2016 than any time since 2003, weekday attendance in April 2016 was the lowest since 2006, when the Devil Rays averaged only 12,116 for three weekday games in April.
The following chart shows Rays average weekend attendance in April since 2007.
A slight bit of good news. April 2016 weekend average attendance was 1,014 per game above April 2015 average attendance. April 2016 weekend average attendance was higher than 2015, 2011, and 2007 April weekend average.
April 2016 compares well with April 2011:
In 2016, the Rays played 15 home games in April, as they also did in 2011. In April 2016, as in April 2011, four Rays home games coincided with Tampa Bay Lightning games. Comparing April average attendance in 2016 to average attendance in April 2011, we see a drop of 1,521 per games. However, we might be able to explain that:
April 2011
- Weekday home games: 7
- Weekend home games: 7
April 2016
- Weekday home games: 9
- Weekend home games: 5
Besides less weekend games in 2016, Tropicana Field held more fans in 2011 than it does in 2016. So the Rays Opening Day sellout in 2011 was larger than the Opening Day sellout in 2016.
In 2011, Rays average attendance in April was their second worst attended month of the year behind only August. We will see how April compares to other months in 2016.
Conclusion
It was well-reported on my site and other many others that the Rays were going to try different promotions to get people to Tropicana Field in 2016. So far, however 2016 has not been a success, at least from a numbers perspective. Of course, attendance is rarely a short-term sprint. It is a marathon. And the Rays have miles and miles to go.
I do wonder however, what new Rays front office personnel think of the current attendance and the impact a Lightning playoff run has on the amount of Rays fans willing to make a trip to the Trop.
Before the season began, Rays front office personnel were quoted as saying "the ballpark is the only place in the Tampa Bay area where 15,000 people routinely gather on a given night." With 15,855 on average at the Trop through April, they were pretty dead on accurate.