As of Tuesday morning, the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum had a capacity of 35,067 for baseball. But with a stroke of a pen and a yank of a tarp, the Athletics added more than 12,000 available seats in the upper deck.
A's announce they're taking down the tarps. They will be removed in time for Friday's game.
— Jane Lee (@JaneMLB) April 11, 2017
That means approximately 12,000 more seats will be available for A's home games. 🤔
— Jane Lee (@JaneMLB) April 11, 2017
Tickets sold in the newly uncovered sections will cost $15 apiece, with half of proceeds from those seats during the upcoming 10-game homestand going to Oakland Promise, an organization that helps students in the city reach and graduate from college.
Here’s a clip of new team president Dave Kaval beginning the un-tarping process.
"We're taking off the tarps!" @DaveKaval announces View Level seats are now available. https://t.co/Q58tjcc7Oy pic.twitter.com/eJq3mkotHO
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) April 11, 2017
What’s a bit bizarre about this is that the A’s have no need for more seats. Last year, Oakland finished 29th of 30 MLB teams in attendance with 18,789 fans per game (only the Rays drew fewer). Through four games so far this season, attendance is about the same.
Still, un-tarping the upper deck has apparently been a common request from fans who desire more options at the park or want to buy cheat nosebleeds seats so they can sneak down to field level.
Dave Kaval says: "The fans have spoken." The tarps are actually coming down right now.
— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) April 11, 2017
Kaval says in release, "The best fans in baseball deserve the opportunity to experience the whole stadium."
— Jane Lee (@JaneMLB) April 11, 2017
With this announcement, the A’s are probably hoping for a spike in ticket sales during their upcoming homestand, when the Astros, Rangers and Mariners come to town. After that, we can assume attendance will be roughly what it has been, just a little bit more spread out around the stadium.
In the end, the A’s still play at a 51-year-old football stadium in a dreary neighborhood, with a massive wall of seats (which will remain tarped) blocking any semblance of an outfield sightline. But at least fans can now sit in the upper deck.
