Ogden Raptors on Track for Success; More in Store for Fans, Team President Says

OGDEN — As the Raptors opened a three-game series against the Idaho Falls Chukars on Wednesday night at Lindquist Field, the newly independent Ogden professional baseball club was feeling on top.

The Raptors entered Wednesday five games in first place of the Pioneer League South Division with 15 games to go in the first half. At 22-11, Ogden was one game behind Idaho Falls and Missoula (both 23-10 in the North Division) for the league's best overall record.

Ogden sported the league's best hitter by average (David Maberry at .464), the league's top home-run hitter (Jakob Goldfarb with 10), and the league's top pitcher by ERA (Mitchell Miller at 4.08).

And, when it comes to team president Dave Baggott, he's especially aware of Ogden's spot atop the attendance table in the Pioneer League, one of the things helping his Raptors move forward successfully after affiliation with Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball ended earlier this year.

Entering Wednesday, the Raptors were averaging 3,037 fans per night over 14 games, about 500 per night ahead of Billings and Boise. Idaho Falls joins those three in averaging more than 2,000 fans per home game. This season is about six weeks old, where previous league schedules once began in mid-June.

"The fan experience is the same, if not better. The crowds are still coming out to the ballpark, and that’s been pleasantly positive. And the baseball has been great," Baggott said. "I would say overall, it’s exceeded my expectations."

Attendance is down from 2019 across the league — to be somewhat expected given the league's now-independent status and general hangover from the long time when COVID-19 restrictions meant nobody was going to sporting events anywhere, if they were even happening. Only MLB played in 2020, after all; no Minor League Baseball leagues staged seasons last year.

Ogden is down from just more than 3,900 per night in 2019, which was a club record over 27 seasons.

Baggott said up until the final weeks before the season began on May 22, the team did not know if it could have more than 800 fans per game. As a result, many of the promotions the Raptors use to attract interest from both fans and corporate sponsors simply had to be put on hold.

Now, things are ramping up.

"I’m not complaining with 3,100 people per game. It’s great," Baggott said. "But we’ll add more promotions as the season continues and we’ll get back to where we need to be and lead the league in attendance for the 24th straight season."

Between fan support, corporate sponsors and playing 10 extra home games compared to previous schedules, Baggott said the Ogden club is well on track to hit and exceed the benchmarks it needs to be a successful business and keep baseball in the Junction City into the future.

"Things are looking good and I don’t have a complaint in the world," he said.

Independence has even opened doors for new fan experiences. With licensing and promotional restrictions from MiLB now gone, Baggott says the Raptors are sourcing new merchandise through local producers, meaning souvenir stands have more options than before — some lower-priced than fans might be used to, some the same.

The club has a YouTube series called Inside Raptors Professional Baseball that helps fans access the team in a way that simply wasn't possible in MiLB days. In episode 6, which published Tuesday, the club highlights assistant coach Evan Parker, who is an Ogden native.

Fans with some cash to burn can spend $1,000 to be a guest manager for a day, which means a uniform, time with the team before the game, and watching from the dugout. That money goes 100% into the player salary pool, the club says. And, local businesses can pay to sponsor the game balls so, when balls are fouled into the crowd, fans see that company's logo stamped on the ball (Wednesday night's ball stamp: local pest control company Mosquito Joe).

"I’m thankful for all the fans, the sponsors and our government leaders for allowing us to be," Baggott said. "I’m proud to be in Ogden and plan to be for years to come."