Chaos on tap
The Indians' attempt to sell more tickets turned into the worst promotion in Baseball history.
Have you heard the one about…
…Stroh’s for a dime?
It began, as so many bad ideas do, with the best of intentions.
The Cleveland Indians simply wanted to sell more tickets.
They had tried just about everything. Tightrope walkers. Comedy softball exhibitions. Family nights. Cash giveaways. They even talked about bringing in Evel Knievel.
Then someone suggested selling Stroh's for a dime.
Cheap-beer promotions weren't unusual in the early 1970s. What happened in Cleveland was.
More than a half century later, 10-Cent Beer Night remains at or near the top of any list of worst promotions in Baseball history. It has become part of Baseball folklore, a story told and retold every summer whenever a team announces another gimmick to try to boost sagging attendance.
As for that night in 1974, the cheap beer gets most of the blame.
And it probably deserves it.
But that’s only part of the story.
