Monday’s home opener was likely the last game of a long sellout streak at Fenway Park. Credit: David L Ryan/Globe/Getty Images
After 794 regular-season games, the Red Sox sellout streak at Fenway Park appears to be over.
Team officials expect to sell about 30,000 tickets for Wednesday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles — about 7,000 shy of capacity.
The Red Sox calculate attendance based on the number of tickets, not how many fans actually go to the ballpark. Roughly 800 tickets are given away for each game, which the team counts, even if those seats are empty.
The streak, which began May 15, 2003, is the longest in baseball history. Counting postseason play, it stretches to 820 games.
But after several disappointing seasons, season ticket sales have dropped by more than 10 percent.
“It’s hard to be anything other than grateful after more than a decade of sellouts,” Red Sox chief operating officer Sam Kennedy told the Boston Herald. “It’s a reflection of an amazing era in Red Sox baseball, and it’s a reflection of an incredibly passionate fan base. Those of us who have worked elsewhere know you can never take Red Sox fans for granted. It’s not like this in other places.”
The Portland Trail Blazers hold the record among major US sports teams, with 814 straight sellouts between 1977 and 1995.
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