The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are hoping to put a good team on the field this season, and create a good fan experience off of it.
The team opens its season at Delta Dental Stadium in Manchester on Friday with some new perks, including a “hot dog happy hour” and live music before the game, as well as better wifi around the stands and in corporate suits. There’s also a new $400,000 jumbotron in left field.
“What we want to do is a vibe,” Andrew Marais, the club’s assistant general manager, told reporters during a media day event in Manchester. “I want you to come into this ballpark and have a great time.”
The team is also rolling out new concessions, while keeping budget-friendly kids meals and some under-$5 items on offer. There are also a steady stream of game night promotions, and 19 planned fireworks shows, double the number from last year.
“I want you to step through these gates, and, instantly, it is smiles on your face,” says Marais.
Since purchasing the team in late 2023, Diamond Baseball Holdings, a New York-based firm that owns minor league franchises across the country, has invested in the fan experience, trying to bolster attendance numbers that have dragged over the past 15 years.
In 2025, the club sold about 207,000 tickets, according to Baseball America, about the same as in 2024. That’s well down from 2009, when nearly 387,000 fans came through the gates.
Unlike in the pros, where star players like Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge help boost ticket sales, most of the players on the roster for the Fisher Cats are relative unknowns. But the Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, who came within a game of winning the World Series last year, has regularly seen its players get called up to the majors.
John Tamargo Jr., the team's first year manager, has deep roots in the Toronto farm system, coaching at various levels, including the Dominican Summer League. He told reporters that he’s worked with most of the players on the Fisher Cats roster previously.
“It's a really good team. They're going to hit. We're going to pitch. We're going to play hard,” he said. “Hopefully the fans get behind that and see the enthusiasm that the team has and they come out and watch us.”
Friday’s first pitch is scheduled for 6:03 p.m. with fireworks scheduled following the game.
