The Houston Astros opened their Wild Card Series at Daikin Park on Tuesday with a 6-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox, and the story wasn’t just the score. Announced attendance was 34,011 in a stadium that holds 40,963, leaving wide swaths of empty seats in the upper deck for a playoff game. When Houston fell behind 3-0 in the first two innings, boos came down from the fans who did show up.

The players noticed. First baseman Christian Walker said it’s extremely frustrating as a home player, adding that the team needs cheers and energy, not boos. Reliever Bennett Sousa said this group laid a lot on the line to reach the postseason and wants the fans’ support. Houston finished the regular season 81-81, making it the first division winner at .500 or worse in a non-shortened season, and the club missed the playoffs entirely last year.

The crowd size also raises a league-wide issue. MLB has struggled for years to fill ballparks for afternoon wild-card games, and the combination of a workday start time and a sub-.500 home team made for a quiet October afternoon in Houston. Locally, it’s a contrast to what we see around Waxahachie, where Friday night football, the county fair, and the rodeo pull crowds without much arm-twisting.

So what do you think? Should a .500 team get a playoff berth, and is it fair to boo them when they fall behind early?