Will alcohol sales affect home environment for UK baseball? ‘Tell them to come on.’
It was difficult to tell much difference between the first UK sporting event with alcohol sales in general seating areas and previous Wildcats baseball home openers.
But if Tuesday’s 6-3 win over Evansville was a sign of things to come, Coach Nick Mingione is all for anything that brings more fans to Kentucky Proud Park.
“We want you to come out and support us,” Mingione said after the win. “Get rowdy.”
The Wildcats continued their early season momentum on the mound with another strong pitching performance and strung together just enough hits to move to 3-1 on the season, but for at least one game there was more interest in what was happening in the stands than on the field.
Last week UK announced it was launching a pilot program to sell alcohol in the general seating areas at baseball and softball games. Tuesday’s game was the first home contest for either team since the program was announced.
At the two Kentucky Proud Park concessions stands, fans could pay $9 for a 16 ounce Bud Light and assorted Bud Light hard seltzers or $10 for a 16 ounce Michelob Ultra.
While the home opener featured unseasonably mild weather, the 4 p.m. midweek first pitch and lack of a marquee opponent probably factored in a small crowd, announced at 1,994. Still, many of the fans present did take advantage of the new alcohol policy before sales were cut off after the top of the seventh inning.
Per the rules of UK’s pilot program, there is a limit of two drinks per transaction with identification check required with each purchase. Alcohol sales will stop in the middle of the seventh inning in baseball and middle of the fifth inning in softball.
The SEC allowed schools to begin selling alcohol at sporting events in 2019, but UK had limited alcohol to only premium club areas at Kroger Field and Rupp Arena for football and basketball games. Now the the pilot program for baseball and softball games will help determine if alcohol is sold in general seating areas during football games in the fall.
“Obviously, that was an administrative level decision,” Mingione said. “It’s been talked about for a long time. The fact that it’s here and fans were able to do it, just thankful that we have people in the ballpark. If that brings more people, then so be it. Tell them to come on.”
Since the SEC changed its policy, Mingione and his team have faced the type of boisterous crowds alcohol sales can spur at other SEC venues. Archrival Louisville has long sold alcohol at Jim Patterson Stadium, home of its baseball team.
The true test of whether alcohol sales will boost Kentucky’s baseball attendance will probably not come until the weather warms up and SEC play starts, but he credited the crowd with an assist on a collision among Evansville defenders.
“The reason why those people ran into each other was (the fans) got rowdy and they were screaming,” Mingione said. “Does that have to do with alcohol? I have no idea. I wasn’t checking, but if that makes them cheer louder, then so be it.”
This story was originally published February 22, 2023 at 7:58 AM.