MACON, Ga. — Macon Bacon president Brandon Raphael says they're coming off of a successful second season with more people heading out to the old ballgame at Luther Williams Field and selling merchandise to people in every state.
In their second season, Raphael says the team hit a home run for attendance and this season was even better then the first, which is unusual.
"Typically 30 to 40 percent of (teams) see a drop in year two. All the fans come, had a great time, tried it out, great, let's try something else, but we saw a growth," Raphael said.
He says they have sold out 12 of their 25 games this year and more than 58,000 people attended the games.
Some attendees left comment cards.
"The feedback from our fans, the folks that are coming to the game, is either I'm not coming because it's too hot out there or I'm not coming because there's no air circulation," Raphael said.
Raphael presented Macon-Bibb County Commissioners with a plan to spend up to $38,000 to add large electrical fans to the ballpark.
"Our plan is to be here for a long time and to exceed other teams that have come and gone and with our 10-year lease. We want to be able to do that," Raphael said.
The Macon Bacon leases the ballpark from the county for $50,000 a year. Rafael says the agreement says they can ask the county to make capital improvements using those funds.
"One of our sister properties, you could say the biggest rival the Savannah Bananas, we've been to their ballpark and they have the fans that circulate. We just want our fans to be comfortable," Raphael said.
In case those Bacon skillet hats aren't enough to beat the heat, those fans might be the thing to do the trick.
Rafael says last year they added a tiki bar and a kids zone on their own dime, but these fans would make a difference in the overall experience for year 3.
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