Blue Jays attendance numbers could be vital going forward

The Blue Jays are enjoying a second consecutive competitive season, and the people of Toronto are proving once again that “if you build it (a contender), they will come”.

At the end of play on Wednesday, August 11th, the Blue Jays (65-50) atop the AL East with the Baltimore Orioles (63-50) one game behind. At the same time last year, the Jays weren’t yet in first, but they were in the midst of a 48-23 second half that would eventually land them there.

Of course, last year’s playoff run was keyed by many factors, perhaps most significantly by the deadline additions made by then-GM Alex Anthopoulos and company. In case you’ve forgotten, the club added Troy Tulowitzki, David Price, LaTroy Hawkins, Ben Revere, and Mark Lowe before July 31st, and also Cliff Pennington after the non-waiver deadline.

The Jays did spend on the rotation this offseason, re-upping with the unexpected All-Star in Marco Estrada for two years and 26 million, and also bringing back J.A. Happ for a three-year, $36 million dollar pact. New GM Ross Atkins didn’t have many holes to fill for the returning club, and those two moves in particular have paid off, far beyond expectations.

Very few expected the Jays to make the same type of moves for this year’s deadline because of the success of the rotation, but also due to a lack of minor league resources, and as always the dreaded payroll word.

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The Jays didn’t add a David Price this year, but they didn’t have to with the current club. The pieces they did add (Francisco Liriano, Scott Feldman, Melvin Upton Jr., Joaquin Benoit, Jason Grilli, Mike Bolsinger,) may not bring the impact that Price and Tulo brought with them, but they are significant for a number of reasons. Already we’ve watched the bullpen get stronger with the additions, Feldman’s early struggles not-withstanding, and Upton has been pressed into full-time duty with the injury to Kevin Pillar.

But this year’s additions also represent something else for the Blue Jays, something that may be as important as the contributions they bring during the pennant race. This year’s deadline signalled that ownership has noticed the attendance bump with a competitive team, and want that to continue.

The Jays entered last night’s game sitting in 4th in the MLB attendance rankings, averaging 40,501 fans over 58 home games. Just shy of 2.4 million fans through the gates already with another 23 home games (and hopefully playoff games…), and you’re looking at significantly increased revenue. By comparison, the Blue Jays finished 8th in 2015 with an average of 34,504, and 17th in 2014, averaging 29, 327. Last year the Blue Jays saw the significant spike once their pennant push began. In 2016, the fans have been filling the house nearly all year.

2014:      2.375 million fans (full season)
2015:      2.794 million fans (full season)
2016:      2.349 million fans (through 58 games)

As a result, Ross Atkins and president Mark Shapiro were able to pull the trigger on a couple quiet, but significant deadline deals. They paid the remainder of Jesse Chavez‘s contract to ship him to the Dodgers, took on the remainder of Feldman’s $8 million contract for this season, as well as the Liriano’s, and the 13.67 million owed to the former Pirate next season.

All told the Jays added around 10 million to their costs for this season, likely in hopes of continuing the excitement around the club, and continuing to fill the seats. There may not be an ace added to the fold, but the moves are certainly significant.

What does this mean for Jays going forward? The club could see a significant turnover in the lineup next year, with the impending free agencies of Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, Michael Saunders and more. There could be cheaper solutions to be had both in house and possibly in free agency, but will ownership be more willing to spend this offseason given the results of the last season and a half? Personally, I’ve always felt ownership was reluctant to spend more than they had to, but I’ll admit I was encouraged and impressed at this year’s deadline.

In the case of Bautista, Encarnacion and Saunders, they could be exactly the type of free agent the Blue Jays look to sign this offseason. None will require a ridiculously long contract (my guess is none get more than four years), and all three have been key to the success of the club over this run of contention. The Blue Jays are clearly in a win-now phase of the franchise, and losing all three of these players would be a significant blow to their 2017 chances.

Next: 2017 Blue Jays Free Agents: Stock Watch

By no means am I suggesting that the Jays will go on a ludicrous spending spree prior to next season, but the longer the team is in contention and the seats are full, the easier it is for ownership to spend. Maybe it was creative accounting or long term planning we’re not privy to yet, but this year’s deadline left me feeling encouraged that the Jays will spend when the time is right.

For the moment it appears that time is now, and hopefully the good times continue into 2017 and beyond.