Bay Sox did not boom in New Bedford

Copyright Rep-American
How closely did you follow your New Bedford Bay Sox this season?
That close, huh?
Your Bay Sox, once upon a time known as the Torrington Twisters, tore up the New England Collegiate Baseball League’s Eastern Division with a 17-24 record, then were swept by the Newport Gulls out of the playoffs. The final chapter of the season that never was in Torrington came Monday, when the Sox received the final boot from the Gulls, 4-0.
Your Bay Sox ended their first traitorous season in New Bedford with a 17-26 record.
Did you miss them? Did you wonder how they were doing in the Massachusetts paradise of New Bedford? Let us take a look:
Your Bay Sox were 11th out of 12 teams in batting (.220), 11th in runs (145, 3.5 per game), but first in strikeouts (9.3 per game). The team did some things well. Your Sox were fifth in team ERA (3.34) and third in doubles (62), but also third in caught stealing and second in hitting into double plays. In other words, you did not miss much.
Here is what you really want to know: Did New Bedford support the Bay Sox better that you supported the Twisters?
The disingenuous ownership group yanked your team out of town for two reasons: lack of fan support and weenie sales. Baseball is important to the people of New Bedford, or so said team owner Robin Wadsworth when she announced the move. “If it is not in the fabric and makeup, then it is all for naught,” she told the New Bedford newspapers. Months later, we still ponder the meaning of that statement.
Wadsworth said the team needed an average attendance of 1,500 to break even. The New Bedford media, gleefully jumping on the trashing of Torrington, noted that the Twisters drew fewer than 1,000 fans in 16 of its 21 home dates in 2008. In 2009, the Bay Sox drew less than 1,000 fans in 13 of 19 home dates.