Others in the running include the Texas Rangers, Boston Bruins, Stewart-Haas Racing and Sporting Kansas City (MLS). In the award’s five-year history, the Dragons are the only minor league franchise considered.
The Cincinnati Reds’ low-Class A affiliate became a national story last summer by surpassing the Portland Trail Blazers’ North American record for consecutive home sellouts. The number stands at 844 going into their April 5 Midwest League opener against West Michigan.
“I think one of the hardest things you can do in sports is to sell a ticket,” Murphy said. “It’s also the most important thing you do. The streak gets people’s attention, but none of this happens without the level of support we have in this community. People have really stepped up.”
Single-game tickets go on sale today with Murphy confident of another 70 sellouts. The two party decks and most of the suites are already taken, he said.
Every home game since the team’s 2000 debut has been a sellout, at least on paper. To guard against slippage, Murphy said the Dragons bulked up their sales staff with a few hires and re-assignments this offseason.
“I guess I would say we’re paranoid marketers,” he said. “If you don’t have your act together on ticketing well before this, you’d be in a very bad place.”
The SBJ award winner will be notified in May, by which time the Dragons figure to be well on their way to a 13th sold-out season.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2408 or smcclelland @DaytonDailyNews.com.
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