Reading brags about attendance
The R-Phils drew 436,789 fans to FirstEnergy Stadium in 68 openings, good for an average crowd of 6,423 fans per games. Reading has led league in one or both categories for seven consecutive seasons.
The R-Phils were second in overall attendance in 2004 (478,611 by Akron to 478,257) and average attendance in 2005 (6,895 by Akron to 6,702) but otherwise have been first in both categories since 2002.
The Reading Phillies have led the league in total and/or average attendance 16 times in the team's 42 seasons: 1967-68, 1975-76, 1978, 1981, 1991-93, 2002-2008. Since baseball began being played at FirstEnergy Stadium in 1952, over 10.6 million fans have passed through the gates, tops in the league.
On Labor Day, the last day of the regular season for the majority of the domestic Minor Leagues, the industry set it's own attendance record for a 5th consecutive season when the total number of fans to visit affiliated ballparks reached 43,112,881.
The record total will increase as the New York-Penn, Northwest and Pioneer Leagues play out their few remaining games. 2008 marks the first time the 43 million plateau has been topped.
Minor League Baseball's unprecedented run of attendance records began in 2004 when its 15 leagues and 176 clubs attracted 39,887,755 fans to eclipse the mark that had stood since 1949. The industry subsequently drew 41,333,279 fans in 2005; 41,710,357 in 2006; and 42,812,812 last year.