The Miami Marlins have been dead-last in attendance over the past two seasons, averaging an embarrassing 10,000 attendees per home game (the Tampa Bay Rays averaged over 4,000 more fans per home game, as the next-worst team in attendance). Attendance has always been a huge problem for the Marlins, and having the National League’s worst team in 2018 and 2019 certainly didn’t help things in that department.
Well, the Marlins are once again projected to be the worst team in the NL (according to FanGraphs and Pecota), and now their stadium won’t even include the nightclub and swimming pool that have been beyond the left field wall since Marlins Park opened in 2012.
The Clevelander nightclub is closing ahead of the 2020 season, according to the Associated Press.
The club beyond the left field wall at field level has closed. It included a swimming pool, dancers and DJs, and had been a staple at the ballpark since it opened in 2012.
The space will still be accessible to fans with different seating and without the pool, but the bar remains.
Marlins Chief Revenue Office Adam Jones said in a statement that the organization “is excited about the future use and potential of the field-level space as a fan destination within Marlins Park for a wide variety of audiences.”
That would make more sense if there were actually a lot of people in attendance to make use of the extra space.
Since Derek Jeter took over as the organization’s CEO in 2017, the Marlins have done their best to remove any semblance of fun from Marlins Park. That includes both the baseball product (which included a pathetic firesale and has been followed by terrible play on the field) and changes made around the stadium. The Marlins removed their glorious home run sculpture beyond the center field wall after the 2018 season, and now the nightclub and swimming pool will be gone before the 2020 season starts.
