World Baseball Classic: Miami Marlins see an opportunity to capitalize on success

MIAMI — Hosting the World Baseball Classic is nothing new for the Miami Marlins. But there is a wrinkle this year as LoanDepot Park is the designated sight for all rounds through next week’s championship game.

What’s so encouraging to the Marlins and Major League Baseball is that the marquee international event is off to a rousing start in South Florida.

Pool D play opened with doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. Already a whopping 126,859 fans have been in attendance, an average of 31,715 per game. Three of the four contests officially were sellouts.

“We are thrilled to see the crowds that we've had,” Marlins president of business operations Caroline O’Connor told The Palm Beach Post. “It was what we had hoped for, and are really glad that everybody came out as expected.”

Miami embracing WBC:World Baseball Classic: Miami embraces MLB's international showcase with emotion from players, fans

Team Israel:World Baseball Classic: Team Israel and its five Floridians hope to shock opponents

Saturday alone was spectacle, with a pair of energized sellouts.

In the opener, Puerto Rico beat Nicaragua before 35,399. In the nightcap, which was the most anticipated game in the pool, Venezuela defeated the Dominican Republic in front of 35,890. The combined 71,289 crowds made Saturday the largest single attendance day in all the years Miami has hosted the WBC.

“The crowd just makes this event,” O’Connor said. “It’s really rewarding to see them come out and support their teams. We want to see them come out and support our team.”

In terms of fan enthusiasm, the only other day that rivaled Saturday came on March 11, 2017. That night, the Dominican Republic rallied past Team USA, 7-5, with 37,446 screaming fans overfilling the ballpark. In the earlier game that day, 17,209 witnessed Canada and Colombia. The two games combined for 54,655.

With so much excitement, it's easy to see why players enjoy this event. Otherwise, they would be going through their regular routines in Spring Training.

“You see the players and how excited they get, and how it really fuels them, and the pride that they play with,” O’Connor said. “It’s exactly what we want for our Marlins’ fan base.”

As optimistic as team officials were that the global appeal of the WBC would lure fans into South Florida and through the stadium turnstiles, the fact that people did indeed come, has officials beaming.

WBC players enjoying big crowds at their games in Miami

At the same time, the players in the tournament are feeding off the large crowds.

“It means a lot to me,” said Marlins infielder Luis Arraez, who is playing for Venezuela.

Arraez states the obvious when asked what will bring out the fans to Marlins games?

“Winning games,” Arraez said. “If we start winning games, then people will start coming to the ballpark. I think we’ve got a good team. We just need to wait for the season, and then play baseball.”

The Miami/South Florida market has long been considered a sleeping baseball giant that just hasn’t had enough reasons to wake up. Marlins attendances traditionally has lagged near the bottom of MLB.

The next challenge for the club is capitalizing on the Classic, and converting fans with strong rooting interests for their respective countries to become Marlins’ fans.

“I think it’s something that we can strive for,” former Marlins’ legend Mike Lowell said. “When the product is something that excites the fans, I think they will come out and see. This [WBC] is kind of the Olympics of baseball. You’re going to get extra excitement because there is a very limited number of games. But there are baseball fans in this area.”

One of the most popular all-time Marlins, Lowell is a voice of reason and perspective. An All-Star on the 2003 World Series championship team, Lowell grew up in Miami, and attended Florida International University.

On Sunday, Lowell and his family were at the park rooting on Puerto Rico, embracing their heritage.

According to the Marlins, in the first weekend of the Classic, two-thirds of the fans at the ballpark reside in South Florida.

“We’ve had travelers from all over the world,” O’Connor said. “We talked with travel companies that were putting together packages for people to come to see the World Baseball Classic.

“It’s been a real vacation destination. A lot of people made it a destination stop for them. But we also had a lot of local fans here, and that’s really promising for us. We know these fans are here. They love baseball and they are passionate about it. We think the opportunity is there for them to have a great time through the World Baseball Classic, and to come back for Marlins games.”

From a preparation perspective, O’Connor and her staff have covered all the bases when it comes to accommodating large crowds. The club got the word out early, warning of traffic congestion near the park. Alternate parking lots with shuttles are available.

Marlins pushing ticket sales to fans at WBC games

Once they are in the park, on the concourse level, there are teams of Marlins employees, dressed in blue shirts which read: “Ask me about Marlins tickets.” They are available to answer questions and assist those interested in purchasing tickets for the rest of the WBC as well as Marlins' tickets for the regular season.

“There is a special offer for people here at the World Baseball Classic to purchase Marlins tickets,” O’Connor said. “We have incentives in there. We want to make it as easy as possible for people to come back for a Marlins game.”

As for travel, the Marlins have partnered with Brightline, and fans are arriving from the West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale stations. Shuttles have been running on the hour to and from the Miami station to LoanDepot Park.

“The Brightline is a great option, and they are great partners to us,” O’Connor said. “We take the Brightline all the time going back-and-forth to Jupiter. It’s a great way for us to get our work done while we’re on the train, but also to have an enjoyable ride.”

Per the Marlins, there were more than 1,000 Brightline riders over the weekend.

With the WBC running in conjunction with Spring Training, team officials have been using the Brightline to get up to the Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium complex in Jupiter. Marlins manager Skip Schumaker and outfield coach Jon Jay actually took the train to Miami on Sunday.

On-site parking, concession and merchandise sales all have been going smoothly.

“There was so much positive feedback about peoples’ experiences,” O’Connor said. “We were really pleased with all that hard work and how it turned out.”

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Marlins hope to benefit from hosting MLB World Baseball Classic