The Salt Lake Bees’ attendance is lagging at their new ballpark. Here’s what the team is doing about it.

After moving from Salt Lake City’s Ballpark neighborhood to Daybreak in South Jordan, attendance for Salt Lake Bees games is down 13% on average this season compared to last year.

Those numbers, calculated through June 6 for both the 2024 and 2025 seasons, show that Miller Sports and Entertainment is not experiencing the new ballpark bump that might’ve been expected so far this season.

Fans cite higher ticket prices, the distance of the ballpark from the center of the Salt Lake Valley, and a lack of nearby amenities as top reasons why they’ve attended fewer Bees games this year.

The Bees, however, say they’re happy with their attendance numbers so far.

“Gratefully, we are exceeding our early expectations on attendance and revenue, and the feedback from our fans, the Bees, visiting teams, and MLB has been exceptional,” Jenny Teemsma, a spokeswoman for the Miller group, told The Salt Lake Tribune.

But the team is also looking at ways to reduce prices and get more fans in seats this summer.

Analyzing the data

The Tribune compiled attendance numbers reported in the box scores for the games held between opening day and June 6 for both the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

The Bees averaged 4,844 in attendance to this point last season compared to 4,197 this year.

Of course, attendance numbers can vary for a variety of reasons. For one, the new Ballpark at America First Square has a lower capacity (8,000) than the shuttered Smith’s Ballpark (14,511).

The Bees had two games with an attendance greater than 8,000 in the first two months of last season, including more than 11,000 fans who came to a Thursday kids game. (The Bees have not hosted that same promotional game so far this season.) If you remove these games from the sample, the average decline in attendance would be 8% from last year.

The median drop in attendance is 7% from year to year.

The Bees have yet to have a full-capacity 8,000 attendance game at the new ballpark.

Weather also plays a major role in minor league baseball attendance — but weather has probably been warmer on average in 2025 than in 2024. The average daily high temperature during Bees games in the studied period of 2024 was 67 degrees; it was 75 degrees this year.

Last year, there were 14 games on days when the temperature never got above 65, while there have been just three such games this year.

To see a downturn in attendance after a new stadium is opened is rare, even with a move out of downtown. The Las Vegas Aviators, for example, also moved stadiums from an aging downtown ballpark to a new suburban stadium in 2019. Their attendance nearly doubled in their first season at the new ballpark, going from average attendances of 4,700 to 9,300, before settling down to around 6,500 fans per game in the last four years.

Prices too high for some fans?

So why the decline here in Utah?

One factor is the distance between the Daybreak neighborhood from much of the rest of the Wasatch Front. While UTA opened a Trax stop on the Red Line behind the ballpark, those who drive have complained about traffic and the relative distance of the new facility from Interstate 15.

“Not driving to the southwest valley to overpay for minor league baseball,“ one Twitter user said. ”I’ll wait for the MLB power district experience."

But likely the biggest key factor is increased ticket prices at the new venue. While the team does sell $13 tickets on the outfield grass, the berm is limited to just the right field area, cutting the space for the cheapest general admission tickets to a third of what it was at Smith’s Ballpark.

Meanwhile, tickets for the 6,500 seats at the Daybreak ballpark cost more than they did in Salt Lake City. Tickets on the baselines generally cost more than $40 each. Tickets behind home plate are suites only, requiring an even larger significant ticket premium.

“I took my entire family to a SF Giants game for much cheaper than it would cost to take them to a Bees game. That’s not right,” another Twitter user said.

Bees expect attendance to rise

Miller Sports and Entertainment officials say they are beginning to lower the price of tickets through a number of promotions.

For example, the team has started a “Steal of a Deal” text line, where fans can buy last-minute seats for $5-$15. They also touted their baseball subscription pass, a $30 monthly pass that includes three games.

As a result, Bees officials say they expect attendance to rise throughout the rest of the year. They explain the downturn via construction pains and a limited promotional calendar in the 2025 season.

“We haven’t been overly aggressive in promoting ticket sales these first two months as we focused on fine-tuning operations associated with opening a brand-new venue,“ Teemsma said. ”As summer begins and kids are now out of school, we look forward to seeing fans of all ages continue to enjoy summer nights at The Ballpark, cheering on the Bees. To support this, we are ramping up our promotional offers and expect to drive even higher attendance during the summer.”

Among the promotional nights planned: fireworks displays on July 4, 11, 12, 13 and 24, a “Superman night,” a “country weekend,” a drone show, a Star Wars night, and a princess night.

The team’s management also touted the opening of restaurants and retail in the square surrounding the ballpark over the summer. They say Moena Café and Hires Big H will open in the summer, with Nomad Eatery, Rockwell Ice Cream Company, and Naraya by Sawadee in the fall.

Finally, the Ballpark will gain another attraction with the Megaplex theater (which will also contain “luxury bowling”) opening at the square in July. The Bees have also started a concert series at the stage behind the park, with concerts from Ben Folds and Howard Jones among the highlights.

Whether it’ll be enough after a rocky start is still to be determined.