MLB fans are thoroughly enjoying the postseason after the Tampa Bay Rays‘ ALCS Game 4 win. However, the team’s victory against the Cleveland Guardians is being overshadowed by a watch party Tampa Bay held on Saturday night.
The Guardians are currently hosting their portion of the ALCS, including Game 5 set for Sunday at 5:08 p.m. ET. That didn’t stop Tampa Bay from welcoming fans to their stadium to watch Game 4 on the Jumbotron inside their home venue.
A Rays fan innocently posted his experience at the Rays watch party, but that’s since led to a lot of online jokes based on the size of Tropicana Field’s crowd.
Tampa Ray ranked 28th in the league this season with roughly 17,000 fans on average attending games. The only two franchises with worse attendance were the Miami Marlins and Athletics.
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Tampa Bay keeps catching strays
The Rays have been the subject of online discourse targeting the fanbase recently. That includes The Athletic even publishing a piece about their low attendance during the playoffs.
Tampa Bay won’t be shaking those allegations in the near future based on the video of Saturday’s fan fest experience. The Rays allegedly charged as little as $5 for their Game 3 watch party on Oct. 15, but the low price doesn’t seem to be helping draw supporters.
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It’s quite surprising that Tampa’s crowd remains a focal point considering the franchise is on the brink of reaching the World Series. In fact, the Rays have never won a World Series in franchise history.
The Guardians-Rays series will head back to Tampa Bay for Game 6 and potentially Game 7, if needed.
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