Will Stephen Strasburg Mania Hit Cleveland?

By Sunday afternoon we may have a much better sense of just how large the national interest in Stephen Strasburg really is. Sure, any once-in-a-generation phenom can sell out his own park for his debut. But what about his second start, on the road, appearing in a wholly random interleague contest, in a depressed city that has more or less turned its back on baseball? We’re about to find out.

Strasburg indeed will make his second start this Sunday in Cleveland. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer the Indians have already sold 4,300 tickets to the game this week. That may not sound like much, but remember, we’re only one day into the post-debut portion of Strasburg hype at this point. The good people of Cleveland still have two full work days plus a Saturday to hear about all things Strasburg.

Cleveland fans might be tough to win over. The Indians are one of the worst teams in the American League, and there is legitimate enmity directed towards the franchise after the trades of CC Sabathia, Cliff Lee, and Victor Martinez. The Indians are last in the American League in home attendance, averaging under 16,000 per game. Since their home opener, the largest crowd at Progressive Field this season came in late May, when 25,531 showed up to watch the Tribe take on the Reds. Given that Reds-Indians is a real rivalry that fans care about and that the Reds have spent much of the season in first place, this might be the upper bound for what a Indians game that doesn’t involve the Yankees or Red Sox can possibly draw.

If Strasmas Part II draws 25,000 or even 30,000 on Sunday we’ll have good evidence that there is real interest out there in Strasburg. A nice crowd in Cleveland will show that his exploits have captured the attention, at least briefly, of not just hardcore baseball fans, but the general public as well.