How sad is this?

In the most picturesque stadium in all of baseball, just under 9,300 fans managed to show up to watch MLB's two lamest teams duke it out on a Monday night.  The Kansas City Royals won 4-3, but the telling story of the game is this shot from Jen Royle of MASN.

The small gathering in the 2nd inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards

Sad, indeed.

Horse Racing fans in Baltimore "Get their Preak On"

Last year, Preakness officials, eager to put an end to the "Freakness" party in the track's infield, banned patrons from bringing in their own coolers and beverages (read: alcohol).  The result?  A 30% drop in attendance for the 2009 race compared to 2008, the biggest one-year drop in Preakness history (from 112,222 to 77,850).

Fast-forward to Saturday's race, where Preakness officials launched a massive ad campaign to bring those patrons (and their money) back to the track by publicizing the return of the drunkenness and debauchery to the infield at Pimlico.  Entitled "Get Your Preak On," the campaign was met with more than its fair share of controversy.  One columnist from the Baltimore Sun called it an "embarrassment," "sleazy," and "pathetic."  On the opposite side, Baltimore sportscaster Scott Garceau called it edgy and well-targeted at 20 year-old, potential horse racing fans.  Maryland Jockey Club president Tom Chuckas insisted that the campaign's volatility was a great marketing tool in and of itself:

"Let's look at it real simple.  People like it.  People don't like it.  One thing's for sure, (the media) is doing a lot of stories and a lot of articles about it, which keeps the Preakness and racing at the front of everybody's minds."

Controversial ad campaigns for sports and sports figures help to get people talking - no matter where they stand - as the old saying goes: any publicity is good publicity.  And since the campaign made its way into the USA Today and the front page of Washington Post on Friday, no one can argue with the campaign's success in drumming up media attention.

All this notwithstanding, was the campaign effective in selling more tickets?  Well, coolers were still prohibited in the infield but organizers eased up on the previous year's crackdown and even offered some all-you-can-drink and $1 beer specials.  As a result, attendance increased by 18,000 people over last year for a total of 95,760 (about an 18% increase over last year), - but remained well below the attendance records during the "bring-your-own-cooler" era.

The question that remains, however, (and asked by Baltimore Sun blogger David Zurawik) do any of the people in the infield care about horse racing?  Or, in other words, can the marketing scheme and resulting media circus actually bring fans to Pimlico on any other day of the year?  If the answer is no, then who cares how classy the infield party is at the Preakness?  Let Missy Elliott run wild.  It's simply a separate, but simultaneous event to the second jewel of horse racing's triple crown.

I'm sorry, what?!!?

The latest advert for ESPN's World Cup coverage is here, again with some help from U2.

So, is the lesson don't watch this year's World Cup with your sister?

Could the Jets really be blacked out this season?

I've had a busy week away from TES, but I couldn't help taking note of the following bombshell dropped on Jets fans this week.  If the more than 10,000 PSLs for Jets seats in the new Meadowlands Stadium aren't sold by the first week of the 2010 NFL season, there could be Jets blackouts in the New York metro area.  Many of the unsold seats are located in the non-club seat sections of the stadium's lower bowl, with PSL prices between $4,000 and $20,000.

Plenty of ugly gray seats still available

But can you believe it!??! Blackouts!  In New York!  For a team that made it to the conference championship game last season.  For what it's worth, Jets owner Woody Johnson insists that the blackouts won't happen...but there is a slight chance that Johnson could wind up paying for a few of the remaining PSLs himself, in order to ensure the team makes it onto television.

So, just how desperate is Johnson to get these seats sold?  Check out the latest incredible offer from Jets brass sent to season ticket holders who have not yet purchased a PSL: no money down on a new PSL, free parking, and - get this - the pièce de résistance...a free DVD of the 2009 Jets season.  That Woody Johnson, a real closer.

Never doubt the passion of 20,000 hockey-mad Montrealers...

By defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference semifinals tonight by a score of 5-2, the Montreal Canadiens became just the second 8-seed to advance past the first round of the NHL playoffs (the Canadiens were just the 9th number 8-seed to advance past the first round).

The only other team to do it?  The 2005-2006 Edmonton Oilers, who ran a hot streak past the Red Wings, Sharks, and Mighty Ducks to reach the '06 Stanley Cup Finals.  The Oilers ended up losing that series to the Carolina Hurricanes (the Eastern Conference's number 2-seed) in seven games.

However, not even the Oilers can share in the incredulousness of the Canadiens' run because, by beating the Capitals in the first round and the Penguins in the second, the Canadiens defeated the President's Trophy winners and the defending Stanley Cup Champions in successive series.  And that's never been done by an 8-seed in the NHL playoffs.  Ever.

Canadiens fans inside the Bell Center celebrate a first period goal 

against the Penguins on Wednesday night.  Or maybe they just found out 

they could save up to 15% on their car insurance by switching to Geico.

As a result of tonight's victory in Pittsburgh, I'm sure the 20,000 fans who packed the Bell Centre in Montreal are going bananas.  That's right, tonight's game was a sellout hundreds of miles away in Montreal, where the Bell Centre sold out for fans willing to watch the game on the arena's Jumbotron.  According to this report from CTV, the Bell Centre sold out in about 40 minutes.  Tickets were sold by the team for $10 a piece, but scalpers reported that values had increased to about $40-50 at game time.

They love their hockey in Montreal but, in fairness, that is a 

pretty decent-sized HD screen.

When I see something like this, where a team can fill a stadium without even playing in it, I think about the power of sports - and also the power of media.  Because it's not everyday you can attend an NHL-viewing house party with 20,000 of your craziest hockey friends.

The Minnesota Twins are providing a history lesson...

After moving from a sterile space (the Metrodome), the Twins now have a place "with a soul," says one official.  One of the many, many examples is the team's lineup video introduction.  It provides a walk through the team's history - especially its outdoors legacy - and even uses some snappy CGI microfiche.

Interesting stuff.

World Record Crowd for Hockey Game

In Germany yesterday, the Veltins-Arena set the record for the largest crowd ever for a hockey game, hosting over 77,000 fans for an opening round game - between Germany and the U.S. - of the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship (it's like the Olympic tournament, but with fewer stars - since the NHL playoffs are underway - and more advertising).  The Germans, backed by a raucous crowd, won in overtime by a score of 2-1.

The stadium, located in the city of Gelsenkirchen, hosted several soccer games during the 2006 World Cup and is the permanent host of Bundesliga club Schalke 04, currently in second place in league play.

I'm impressed, mostly because 77k is a lot of people to watch an opening round game.