The Silver Knights record Education Day crowd set the tone for a franchise best average attendance in 2023. Ths year there are two Education Days in early June. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

NASHUA – They endured the worst regular season in their 13-year history that had produced six Futures Collegiate League championships in 12 years.

Yet the fans still showed up at Holman Stadium to cheer on their Nashua Silver Knights, which bodes well as season 14 is set to begin Friday night at Holman Stadium.

The team had its highest average attendance ever, drawing 1,624 fans per game in what was a low total of 30 dates.

“I know,” Knights general manager Cam Cook said. “The overall attendance was down because we had rain all the time and no playoff games, so we had less openngs (dates). But the average attendance was the best since I’ve been here. If we had the same team we had in 2022 and had two or three home playoff games the numbers would’ve been off the charts.”

So the franchise heads into 2024 hoping for better weather, a better team, and hopefully bigger fish. The Knights are big game hunting not just on the field but off it, hoping to either fortify their current corporate relationships or begin new ones.

One thing seems certain,there will be plenty of fans in the seats. The tone was set a year ago with its best Education Day ever, drawing over 4,000 on the last day of May, a promotion common for summer collegiate as well as minor league teams as the game is used as a field trip for local schools. This year the Knights will have not one, but two Education Day games, back-to-back on June 4-5, both 10:30 a.m.starts vs. Brockton. The first one is sold out, and Cook says 1800 tickets have been sold for the second one with more expected.

“It’ll be a stretch to get that one sold out but if you look at it we had 3,000 kids last year, we already have that this year, and it made sense to add another game.”

Because on a Tuesday or Wednesday evening in early June, the team wouldn’t come close to those numbers.

The Knghts and other teams around the league were dealt a little bit of a curve when the schedule release was delayed until mid-February, impacting most of all group sales, mainly large company outing sales.

“The season tickets and ticket plans and luxury suites are always kind of fine,” Cook said. “But getting the schedule that late makes it kind of hard to get the big company outings. A company of 500-1,000 or 2,000 for an outing takes a lot of planning, a lot of red tape to get taken care of, so having a schedule would have helped. We had about three less months of planning. Some companies nail that stuff down right after the new year. So we’re still working at it.”

But, that being said, Cook says general ticket sales are up overall from last year are up. “We do well with the AAU baseball programs, youth sports,scouts and things like that,” Cook said. “But what we want to be really good at are the BAE’s, St. Joseph’s Hospital, just more of that. We’re still hunting big whales.”

But it’s not like they haven’t had them before. “We’ve had groups of 100 to 500, feed them in the tents (in right field) and one year there was a kickball game on the field before the game,” Cook said. “So we want more of that. We seem to add one or two every year.”

The key with that, Cook said, is that once fans come out in groups, they will be enticed to come back on their own.

Some staples return, including what has become a popular event – the 11 a.m. July 4 home game. The city partners with the team to allow a percentage of tickets to be free and the rest at a reduced rate. Already 300 tickets have been scooped up.

There is signage throughout the ballpark, but new this year: the luxury suites are sponsored. The middle box which the city has first choice for remained untouched, but some companies – while not buying the suite – have their signage in them.

“They’re themed,” Cook said, adding there are decorations and even little gifts for the groups who rent them. It’s extra revenue for the club, “and the luxury suites will pop a little bit.”

The city has done some work on the facility. The field looks immaculate, and in the off season, the left field brick wall as well as the brick in front of the first base party deck has been replaced; the retired numbers of Jackie Robinson, Don Newcombe and Roy Campanella have yet to be put back on it but Cook said that the city has told him they will be up by the opener. Cook says that picnic area has also been redone and “It looks great where we can get creative and do some activities out there as well. We’ll probably come up with a few things throughout the season. That is going to be a really nice spot to watch a game. Everything’s redone.”

With owner John Creedon, Jr. having sold his initial FCBL franchise, the Worcester Bravehearts, that could mean more resources for Nashua. Cook said the team food and beverage staff is one the team’s larger ones, “which is great so we can keep concession lines moving, etc.

“John is a little bit more keyed in on what we’re doing week to week, and he has good advice for us and a little bit more guidance at times. I think where it’s really going to start to show will be in-season, when he’s one of the busiest guys I know. We’ll see more of him because he doesn’t have to balance two schedules.”

THE SCHEDULE

What’ new on the schedule? The team does have a special exhibition on July 25, playing a team composed of active military members called “The War Dogs”. The Knights actually play a game that morning at Worcester, and this will be an evening start with several military-related ceremonies, etc. planned.

And, the Knights schedule has many consecutive home dates. They’re home next Friday (opener), Saturday and Sunday; they have consecutive weekends with Friday-Saturday-Sunday home dates June 21-23 and 28-30. They are home against the Rox the entire weekend of July 26-28 and their final regular season home games are three straight nights, July 31-Aug. 2. They finish the season August 3 and 4 at Vermont.

Mondays, other than Memorial Day, are off. Memorial Day they are at defending FCBL champion Norwich at 4 p.m.

There are some other odd days off thanks to the fact Pittsfield took the year off because of the situation at Wahconah Park. As explained in last weekend’s Telegraph, the league’s travel team takes the Suns road schedule, but the games teams were originally slated to travel to Pittsfield are off days. That includes two Tuesdays, a Friday and a Saturday, all in July.

The unfortunate thing for Nashua is it has just one Friday Fireworks Night – it’s biggest draw – in July. But they close the home schedule with one in August, and there are four in June, including next Friday.

“There’s a little bit more roadblocks in getting people out here,” Cook said.

Start times remain the same other then the three morning games: 6 p.m. weeknights and Saturdays, and 3 p.m. on Sundays. The gates for the evening games open at 5 p.m.

In any event, Year 14 is here, and the Knights continue to be the longest running franchise the stadium has held.

Thus, given what has been done so far, does Cook project an increase in revenue?

“Ticket sales throughout the season and interest continuing to grow throughout the season, will definitely help,” Cook said. “But coming into the season, it’s been a big bump up. A lot of the sponsors are happy.

“Last year’s (revenue) was good given the weather. The winning matters because we get three more home games if we go to the championship.”

Players will arrive for noon workouts on Wednesday and Thursday.

“We hit the ground running,” Cook said.

And if they hit, period, they may get those extra games. The 2024 Silver Knights season is upon us.