Passion for Red Sox igniting nationwide

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By Danny Daly THE WASHINGTON TIMES

A lot has changed for the Red Sox since they last visited the District in 1971. After excruciatingly close World Series losses in 1975 and 1986, Boston has finally broken out of its championship drought by capturing two of the last five titles.

The Red Sox also return for a three-game series with the last-place Nationals as arguably the most popular team in baseball, if not all of professional sports.

"Winning the World Series [in 2004] just lit it on fire," said Jeff Gooding, senior vice president of the Chicago-based sports marketing firm rEvolution. "Continuing to be good has helped to keep that burning."

Although Boston is known as a passionate baseball town, it hasn't always been this trendy to like the Red Sox. As recently as 1998, the team ranked in the bottom half of the American League in attendance.

Fenway Park is iconic but also keeps the team from selling as many tickets as other clubs. Built in 1912, it is the oldest stadium in baseball and, even after multiple renovations and expansions, features one of the smallest seating capacities (39,928).

But lately that has actually played into the Red Sox's favor thanks to the limited supply of seats and exponentially increasing demand.

"Less is more - always keep them wanting more," said Bill Sutton, the associate director of the DeVos Sports Business Management program at the University of Central Florida.

And considering the vast area that comprises Boston's fan base - about a half-dozen states - there is even more competition for the small number of available seats.

"They cover that whole northeast section from Providence up," Gooding said. "That's part of what feeds into Red Sox Nation - that huge number of people that grab onto Boston sports."

The last time the Red Sox did not play before a sellout crowd at home was May 14, 2003, a string of 504 straight games. Before the Yankees moved into their pricey new stadium this spring, Fenway Park also featured the highest average ticket price for 11 years in a row.