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Baltimore Orioles: Thoughts about Putting the 2020 FanFest On Ice

By Nelson Barnes II

BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 14: Fans watch the game in the rain between the Baltimore Orioles and the Chicago White Sox in the sixth inning against the at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 14, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 14: Fans watch the game in the rain between the Baltimore Orioles and the Chicago White Sox in the sixth inning against the at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 14, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /
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Recently, it was announced that the Baltimore Orioles were bringing FanFest to a close. While some might find this disappointing, maybe it was just time.

If you happen to stop by the Baltimore Convention Center in the month of  January 2020, you will most likely see tumbleweeds. According to MASN’s Roch Kubatko, the Baltimore Orioles are bringing FanFest to the end.

The Orioles are considering changing the entire concept of the FanFest or may just scrap the whole idea altogether. This could be another strategy from the new front office to shake up and usher in a new era.

Here are some honest thoughts as to why this fest is coming to an end and what this means for the future of Baltimore Orioles baseball.

Breaking Tradition

News of ending things like this usually is met with resistance and potential resentment. However, the big picture is the fact that this is a new front office coming in to leave their own mark.

The Mike Elias era is about change and efficiency. Keeping an event around just for the sake of tradition is not going to be a strong reason in this regime.

What will happen is ushering in new taste for every aspect at both Camden Yards and outside the warehouse. Expect more familiarity to be repurposed and rebranded elsewhere.

Shrouded in Controversy

The previous iterations of FanFest have fallen on tough times. Attendance has gone down and in 2018, current fan-favorite athletes in Manny Machado and Johnathan Scoop skipped out on the event.

Regardless of their reasons to be no-shows, their actions were just one of many straws that led to the end of the Showalter/Duquette era in charm city (not to mention that historical losing season.)

Holding a massive event where fans gather just to not see marquee players not show up could also factor into the beginning of the end and a change of plans.

Flashforward a year and a half later and all the big names are gone and potentially the numbers could go down. All the more reason to shut down shop and think this process over.

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