The Portland Sea Dogs have been around for 21 years, and continue to draw fans and win games.

Some might think the idea of being in Portland, Maine, and watching a Sea Dogs baseball game is about as good as it gets in the summer.

A New York-based financial advising company, SmartAsset, would agree.

Portland is the “Best Minor League Baseball Town in America,” according to the company that ranked 159 minor league baseball towns, compiling a set of variables, and factoring in the statistics about the city and the team.

The company put together a quality of life score based on economic and crime statistics, along with the number of dining and entertainment establishments. The team score focused on win-loss record, the competitive level and the stadium experience.

This was a good year for the Sea Dogs to be analyzed because they finished with a franchise-best record of 88-54. Portland, a Boston Red Sox affiliate, competes at the second-highest level (Double-A) of the five levels analyzed.

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For stadium experience, the report relied on the rankings of stadiumjourney.com, which rated Hadlock Field in Portland as offering the 17th-best minor league baseball experience in the country.

Among quality of life issues, the report noted Portland as 16th-highest disposable income and 15th-lowest unemployment rate among minor league towns, with no figures cited.

“We are fortunate to call such a beautiful city home,” Sea Dogs General Manager Geoff Iacuessa said in a press release, touting the ranking. “We are very grateful for the way the community has embraced this baseball team.”

While no one doubts the success of the Sea Dogs, the report is certainly subjective in the criteria it selects. Attendance was not mentioned. The Bowie (Maryland) Baysox are ranked seventh in the report even though its attendance is the thirdlowest among the 12 Eastern League teams. Portland had the third-highest attendance in the league.

Also, the Connecticut Tigers in Norwich were ranked sixth even though Norwich couldn’t attract enough fans to keep a Double-A team and now plays in the short-season New York-Penn League.

The Potomac Nationals of Virginia were ranked No. 2 although the report cited its base as Alexandria. The team is located in Woodbridge, 19 miles from Alexandria.

Other Red Sox affiliates that were ranked in the top 25 included advanced Class A Salem, Virginia (12th) and short-season Lowell, Massachusetts (17th). Besides Portland and Bowie, other Eastern League teams in the top 25 were Altoona, Pennsylvania (19th) and Manchester, New Hampshire (25th).


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