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MLB

Solid April Shows Growth for RailRiders

Multiple Benchmarks from Last Home Season Shattered
By John Sadak
May 1, 2013

Moosic, Pa. - When wondering how things might go in the future, some turn to superstition. No knock on the Magic 8 Ball, but baseball teams more than almost any other entity know that facts and figures usually yield more reliable results. With that in mind, when predicting if the 2013 season for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (Triple-A/New York Yankees) will be a good one at the gates, shaking the data indicates "signs point to yes".

Coming off the franchise's highest April attendance since 2008, let's dive into the digits.

  • The RailRiders drew 63,747 fans to PNC Field on the month. In 2011, when the team last called the park home, it did not reach that number until its final home game in May of that year on May 24.
  • Including only merchandise sales during home games, the franchise sold as much gear as it did by June 22 of that 2011 season.
  • When the 23rd child enters the new Family Fun Zone at PNC next homestand, he or she will help eclipse the total number of entrants in 2011.
  • The average April temperature in Scranton - 59 degrees. The team's median first-pitch temperature was just 53, including multiple day games.
  • In 2011, the SWB franchise drew the second-fewest total fans in the 14-team International League. In April 2013 it drew the sixth-most total fans in the loop.
  • The RailRiders sold more than 4,700 $1 Bud Lights and Pepsis over their first two Thirsty Thursday games.
  • They also sold nearly 3,000 $1 hot dogs over their first two Dollar Dog dates.
  • The team has already raised nearly $1,800 for the Boys & Girls Club courtesy of the Kost Tire and Auto "Hurl the Pearl" promotion.

"We are pleased to see a solid April in the books," said team president/GM Rob Crain. "As the weather warms and word spreads throughout our community about the feel and the fun at the new PNC Field, we are confident that we can take that next leap from solid to great."

The RailRiders are in the midst of a nine-day, eight-game road trip before returning home for an eight-game homestand on Monday, May 6. It starts with the first of four against the Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh Pirates) at 6:35 p.m. Fans will be able to dine on just a few dimes with dollar hot dogs all night long at PNC Field. Great ticket packages, group deals and single-game tickets are available. With no upper deck at PNC Field anymore, every seat in the ballpark provides the supreme views and intimacy that make minor league baseball so special at incredibly affordable prices. For more information, please visit the team's official website, www.swbrailriders.com, or call 570-969-BALL (2255).

- SWB RailRiders - All Aboard! -