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The Infamous Baseball Promotion That Caused a Riot
A dark day in baseball’s long history
Promotions are dreamed up every day by mid-level staffers working for organizations of all kinds. The idea to hold a bobblehead giveaway of the local baseball team’s manager’s dog originates within the bowels of a municipal building somewhere near (or in) the stadium. Thinking up promotions, funding them, and executing them is a very viable career held by thousands of people. And yet, every once in a while, you get a visionary that doesn’t want to dabble in children’s banks or condom-thin tote bags. Every once in a while, someone doesn’t just want to throw a promotion. They want to throw a promotion.
That is what happened in 1974 at a baseball game between the former Cleveland Indians and the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Field.
The 1970s were known for many things, but a strong economy was not one of them. In order to combat slumping ticket sales, some unnamed staffer in charge of promotions decided to host a 10 Cent Beer Night. Even in 1974, ten cents for a brewski was incredibly cheap. Unsurprisingly, the promotion worked. People flocked to the stadium by the thousands to partake in cheap beer.
The formula was ripe for disaster. Crowds plus cheap beer equaled chaos.
