Baltimore Orioles Get Pathetic Turnout For Primetime Matchup

Where were all the Baltimore Orioles fans on Sunday night?

Jun 30, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles second base Jorge Mateo (3). / Reggie Hildred-USA TODAY Sports

For the most part, 2024 has been a banner year for the Baltimore Orioles' attendance. The Orioles have already drawn over 1.2 million fans to Camden Yards this season, putting the team on pace to surpass 2 million paying customers for the first time since 2017.

New owner David Rubenstein is putting a great product on the field, and Baltimore fans are flocking to the ballpark to see it (and his dance moves) in person. After winning 101 games and the AL East last year, the Orioles have one of the most exciting teams in baseball and are loaded with young stars like Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman and Corbin Burnes.

While Baltimore fans have done a great job supporting their team this year, they were noticeably absent during one of the biggest games of the season on Sunday.

The Orioles closed out their brutal June schedule with a Sunday Night Baseball showdown against the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers -- the same team that knocked Baltimore out of the playoffs last year. The Orioles were going for the sweep after winning the first three games of the series and needed a win to stay ahead of the New York Yankees, who'd already won earlier in the day with an 8-1 rout of the Toronto Blue Jays.

With school out for the summer and Baltimore heading out of town for a six-game road trip, the stage was set for an entertaining evening at Camden Yards.

Unfortunately, someone forgot to tell Orioles fans. Only 23,439 people showed up for the nationally televised game, roughly half of the ballpark's capacity (44,970). It was the lowest attendance for a Sunday game at Camden Yards since March 31 against the hapless Los Angeles Angels.

Orioles won 100 games last year, will win 95-100 this year, have a lineup full of exciting players, & are currently playing on ESPN Sunday night baseball vs the team that knocked them out the 2023 ALDS (& went on to win the WS)……why is Camden is half empty rn???

— Emily Nyman (@EmSheDoesIt) July 1, 2024

In Orioles fans' defense, the weather was hardly ideal. Sunday was a hot, humid day in Baltimore with temperatures in the 90s and a chance of thunderstorms in the forecast. Many fans have work on Monday, while others may have already left the city for Fourth of July vacations.

Still, Sunday's dismal turnout capped a surprisingly slow week at Camden Yards. The ballpark was less than half-full for all three games against the first-place Cleveland Guardians, who own the third-best record in the American League. Saturday's game was the only one on the six-game homestand that topped 30,000 fans.

The Orioles got crushed 11-2 on Sunday, so fans who stayed home didn't miss much. However, they probably noticed a lot of empty seats on TV.