On Monday night, the Phillies played in front of a paying crowd at Citizens Bank Park that was less than capacity for the first time since a three-year sellout streak began on July 7, 2009. Their impressive streak spanned 257 regular season games and is the longest ever in the National League, according to the team. The Red Sox currently maintain a 772-game streak (or DO they?), and the Indians sold out 455 times straight from 1995-2001. During the Phillies' streak, the total paid attendance was 11,585,952, with an average of 45,082 per game.
With the Phillies losing 6-1 on a hot August night after officially waving the sellers' flag last week, it's understandable that not every seat was paid for—and still fairly impressive that the announced number was 41,665. We can probably expect more of the same as the club evaluates talent for next season and likely shuts a guy or two down as the remaining months wear on. And, let's be honest. The paid number is one thing. The place hasn't been completely full on plenty of nights this season. The streak was fun while it lasted—think of how amazing some of the games and moments were... but it's no surprise to see it end.
More unsettling than on the night is a seventh straight loss to the Braves, which also happened to be the 60th loss of the season. In 2011, during which every game was at capacity, the Phillies lost only 60 all year.
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