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The Pirates' season-ticket base is on pace to decrease by 18 percent from last season, but team officials are expressing optimism that overall attendance in 2007 will remain about the same.

Tim Schuldt, chief marketing and sales officer, yesterday described season-ticket sales this offseason as being "ahead of the pace for 2005," when the total for full-season equivalents was 9,251. If that number is matched next season, it will represent a loss of 2,069 from the 2006 total of 11,320.

Still, Schuldt called that "a good pace," given that the Pirates no longer have the lure of the All-Star Game to help sell season tickets.

"Look, we know that there were some people who bought season tickets last year just to make sure they could get All-Star seats, and that obviously isn't there anymore," he said. "At the same time, we're not seeing any accelerated decrease that goes beyond that. If anything, we've been pleased with what we've seen so far. Very pleased."

It would not appear to be a fun winter to sell tickets for the Pirates.

In addition to not having the All-Star Game -- for which customers needed to commit to partial plans in 2005 or full-season plans last season to guarantee seats -- the team has generated almost no buzz this offseason, still not having made a significant signing or trade since finishing 67-95 for its 14th consecutive losing season. By contrast, it was this time last year that there was some excitement -- misguided, perhaps, in hindsight -- about the high-priced acquisitions of Sean Casey, Jeromy Burnitz and Joe Randa.

Several factors could help overall sales, though:

Prices for all season tickets, group sales and advance individual-game tickets will remain the same for a fifth consecutive year. There is no word yet on the cost of day-of-game tickets. The Pirates' average ticket price of $17.08 last season was the sixth-lowest in Major League Baseball.

The number of tickets needed to qualify for group discounts has been lowered from 30 to 20, part of what Schuldt called an emphasis on group sales by his staff. "We want to appeal to small businesses, and we thought 20 was a better number to suit them," he said.

The eight-pack season ticket plan -- where buyers of seven games received an eighth for free -- will be expanded to one in which buyers of eight games get two free. The Pirates sold roughly 8,000 eight-pack plans last season.

The prime selling time is in the month ahead, with the Pirates engaging fans in person at the traveling Winter Caravan and the annual PirateFest, which last year drew 15,361 to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. The Caravan starts Jan. 14, and PirateFest is Jan. 26-28.

Luxury suites, which were "essentially sold out" last season, according to Schuldt, are on a similar pace this offseason.

Schuldt said the feedback he and his representatives have received from customers who have renewed their season tickets is that they feel upbeat about the team because of its 37-35 record after the All-Star break last season, its first winning second half since 1992.

"That, to me, is the biggest factor," Schuldt said. "I can't tell you how much that second half has helped us."

Overall attendance last season was 1,861,549, up slightly from 1,817,245 the previous year, and Schuldt said the Pirates' goal is to keep that number "generally flat." The average crowd last season was 23,269.

Schuldt said that the team's marketing campaign -- still anchored by the "We Will" slogan -- will continue to focus on baseball. The promotional schedule will remain heavy, he added, but with no significant additions to the number of fireworks nights or bobblehead giveaways, the two most popular events.