In August the San Diego Padres made the surprising announcement that an FM station, 94.9, would broadcast games rather than 1090, the flagship station for the team since the opening of Petco Park in 2004. On the surface, the move makes little sense, but even less when the details emerge.
Thanks in part to only five winning seasons since the move to Petco, the fan base has dwindled. While most teams that host the All Star Game benefit from an increase in attendance, the Padres actually saw a decrease of more than 100,000 tickets sold.
With this decrease in mind, the decision to switch from a 50,000 watt station that can be heard as far north as Santa Barbara to a 25,000 watt FM station makes little sense.