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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 14, 2011 8:14:55 GMT -5
Heading for NOLA tomorrow early a.m. then to Tampa-Clearwater on Thursday afternoon. A couple of weeks ago I checked for Phillies spring training game tickets (they train in Clearwater); there were still seats left for both the Red Sox and Yankees games while I'll be there, but the prices were over the top! $85-$125 for STANDING ROOM! Same for the few remaining seats! Baseball has just priced itself out of my league. Hate to sound like the old geezer I am, but I clearly recall the days when a day at the ballpark was the cheapest family outing in the world, and the baseball teams and their TV/radio announcers constantly made that pitch. I'd hate to think what it would cost a family today.
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Post by Jim Boylston on Mar 14, 2011 11:34:34 GMT -5
Wow. In the eighties, when the Twins trained here in Orlando, games cost $4. Unbelievable.
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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 14, 2011 12:26:48 GMT -5
I remember friends of mine going to spring training games in the 50s in Florida who said they could roam around freely, talk to players, get autographs, watch the games -- no big deal. I don't know what the players were paid then, but if you're paying everyone from the scrubs to the stars in the millions, with multi-year contracts, someone's got to pay for it.
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Post by Jim Boylston on Mar 14, 2011 12:53:14 GMT -5
Allen, I was still doing it in the mid-80's. The players were accessible and would sign most anything but baseball cards, which they knew dealers were selling for high prices at trade shows. Of course, those were pre-Ebay days.
I got most of the Frank Viola-Kirby Puckett era Twins to sign a baseball with no problem.
Jim
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Post by Hiram on Mar 14, 2011 14:52:21 GMT -5
I used to wish San Antonio had a major league franchise, but no more. Even if they did have a team I couldn't afford to go more than once a year.
The San Antonio Missions are the AA team for the Padres. Ticket prices range from $7 to $10 each. They run special promotions all the time and offer Dollar Night on Thursday home games (all concessions $1.) Parking is $5.
I take my kids or go with some friends and we have a great time. Minor league ball is still a tremendous value. The players are unpretentious and accessible.
I frankly don't know how families can afford to attend a MLB game with these skyrocketing ticket prices.
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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 14, 2011 16:23:45 GMT -5
I agree. There are a couple of minor league teams around here and the prices are very cheap, and you can see some good baseball.
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Post by Hiram on Mar 15, 2011 22:33:38 GMT -5
I signed up recently with a new ticket service (sports and entertainment) at scorebig.com. I found out about it from a sports writer I know.
There is a waiting list to join, but once you're in, you can bid on tickets to events and can save anywhere from 10% to more than 50%. There are no service fees and no delivery charges. There is no fee to join.
I have not used the service as of yet, but if I go on a baseball trip this year, I will definitely use it. I've used Stubhub in the past, but their prices are set by the ticket holders and not the bidders.
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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 15, 2011 23:31:58 GMT -5
I signed up recently with a new ticket service (sports and entertainment) at scorebig.com. I found out about it from a sports writer I know.
There is a waiting list to join, but once you're in, you can bid on tickets to events and can save anywhere from 10% to more than 50%. There are no service fees and no delivery charges. There is no fee to join.
I have not used the service as of yet, but if I go on a baseball trip this year, I will definitely use it. I've used Stubhub in the past, but their prices are set by the ticket holders and not the bidders.
Thanks for the lead, John; I may look into this. However, considering the performance of the Nats and Os, I wonder if even a 50% discount is worthwhile!
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Post by Hiram on Mar 15, 2011 23:45:18 GMT -5
Allen, my Redbirds will be in Baltimore late June. I've been to Memorial Stadium, but never Camden Yards. Right now they're showing seats available just below the press box and seats down the 1st base line and 3rd base line. Retail value about $45.00 a ticket. Sounds intriguing so far. Be nice to knock about $10 off each ticket. Hmmmm...
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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 16, 2011 17:48:22 GMT -5
I'll have to check on that when I get home; sounds like a reasonable deal these days. I like the inter-league games, too.
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Post by Paul Sylvain on Mar 29, 2011 19:52:48 GMT -5
Ticket prices are in a different galaxy when it comes to Fenway Park in Boston. Last I knew, Fenway still had one of the highest prices on average for a ticket. Factor in outrageous parking rates and concessions and you'd have to mortgage the farm and kids to take a family of four there. Nuts.
By comparison, my wife and I had box seats for four games at Ranger's Ballpark in Arlington, Texas last summer (one with the Yankees and all three with the Red Sox) for what it would have cost us for ONE GAME at Fenway. I haven't gone to a game at Fenway since 2001.
Minor league games are more fun, affordable. I love it. We have a AA affiliate of the Torornto Blue Jays (the Fisher Cats) in Manchester, NH, about eight miles from me. The Cats play the AA Red Sox affiliate Portland (Maine) Sea Dogs in Manchester several times a year. Good baseball, too. These kids are hungry for the Bigs, and don't have that major league big-headed attitude. It's all about the fans.
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Post by Allen Wiener on Mar 29, 2011 20:01:09 GMT -5
The bigger the payroll, the higher the ticket prices, I guess. I agree about minor league play; it's fun and good, solid baseball. The big leagues have become a mixed bag, but I still can't resist the game. Anyone see that article in Sunday's "Parade" magazine with the picture of Mantle? Couldn't really argue with the writer.
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Post by Paul Sylvain on Mar 29, 2011 20:41:16 GMT -5
You're like me when it comes to baseball. It goes back to my youth -- growing up with players like Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Ted Williams, and so on .... I remember the home run battle between Mantle and Marris to this day. Every kid in my part of New England had to be Ted Williams when we played sandlot baseball. I was too short for basketball, and too light for football, but Baseball? Heck, yeah. I could and did play that.
The only other "sport" I enjoy is NASCAR.
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Post by Bill Yowell on Mar 30, 2011 14:41:47 GMT -5
It was great being a kid in the fifties and early sixties. I was a Dodger fan myself, and just lost my favorite all time player "Duke Snider" a week or so ago. I live within and hour of the Arlington ballpark, but it is now priced out of my comfort zone and I just dont go. My first pro game was an exhibition game at Burdette Field in the D/FW area. I saw the Brooklyn Dodgers play the Milwaukee Braves. Spahn and Newcomb pitched and there were seven home runs. One by Duke. Oh to be a kid again.
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Post by Paul Sylvain on Mar 30, 2011 19:23:06 GMT -5
That's so funny because compared to prices at Fenway, Arlington is cheap. I was there for five months through baseball season in 2008 and again for 18 months starting about two years ago, and saw a bunch of games there.
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