Posted on 05/04/2008 3:36:26 PM PDT by melt
There is a very good reason why most Yankee fans don't care how much their team spends on baseball players. One of the best reasons is that their team keeps asking them - at least the most well-heeled of them - to spend more and more to help pay the freight.
There is a guy I know who has tickets behind the Yankee dugout, has had them for awhile. Last season each seat cost $150 per game. This season, because it is the last season at the old Yankee Stadium, the cost went up to $250. Next season, if he wants to keep the same seats when everybody moves across 161st St. to the new Yankee Stadium, the cost will go to $850 per seat.
If he wants to keep his current seats, he has to sign a minimum four-year contract, and they want a third of the cost of the first year up front. If he goes for that deal, they say the most they can increase him over the term of the contract is 4% a year.
"I told my friends who are going this season, ‘Enjoy yourselves, because you'll never be this close again,'" my friend said Saturday.
Now this isn't the old Lawn Tennis Association out of the 1950s, where everybody was just supposed to play for the love of the game. The Yankees are the biggest baseball business in the world, and running the business costs money. The Mets aren't going to be giving away their "premium" tickets at Citi Field, either. But they haven't set next season's ticket prices yet, perhaps sitting back and tracking the baseball market in the Bronx. Well, it's either a market or a shakedown.
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
On first read, what with it being late and all, and probably a bit because I’m a non-sports person, I just *knew* you must be mistaken. Surely, you misread and it was $150.00 per seat per season. Right?
So I re-read the article and my jaw dropped. 150 dollars per game? 12,150 per seat per year?
Really?
No way.
How can a family ever afford even a tiny fraction of that? Who is populating the stands?
But prices have crept upwards, in some cases skyrocketing. KC has 2 baseball teams: The KC Royals, and the KC T-Bones. I've just checked the web sites of the 2. The highest price Royals ticket is now $240 a seat, for "Crown Seating," which is field level, between the dugouts. Prices drop pretty dramatically, as the next most expensive ticket is $45 for Dugout Box seats. And the prices drop to the lowest price ticket, being $9 for GA. What may be the most "fun" are where a limited number of tickets are sold for "All You Can Eat" nights for $45! "This exclusive area sold out fast in 2007, so don't wait to reserve your game dates! AYCE seats are now available for EVERY Royals home game (excluding Opening Day) and include unlimited ballpark fare. That means all the hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, peanuts and soft drinks you can handle - for one low price. You'll also receive a free souvenir cup to take home!" What, no Beer? Then add on $9 for parking.
On the other hand, T-Bones tickets range from $15 to $6 for grass seating GA, though you can get a 6 seat picnic table for $42! It's also quite family oriented, where they have "Kids Run the Bases" and "Post Game Catch" on the field for the kids a number of times over the season. They've also got some family specials, like one where you get 4 bleecher or berm tickets, 4 hot dogs, 4 sodas, and 4 peanuts for $39! Not a bad deal. I think that parking is free, but I could be wrong.
Mark
The last time I went to a movie theater here in KC, they had a "special" on a hot dog and a soda for $7.50, but the single purchase prices were about the same, maybe slightly cheaper.
Mark
Before you come, be sure to check with the KC FReepers to find the best places to check out and eat... They've reopened Strouds for the world's greatest Fried Chicken, but if you ask about BBQ, be prepared for a flame war... We've got the best, but some people are opinionated, and everyone else is wrong.
Mark
LOL! I've heard from a lot of folks who either lived in or traveled to KC that I need to roll by Arthur Bryant's for BBQ, but I have heard some very dissenting opinions about that. :)
FWIW, when it comes to baseball I've been following the Giants as long as I've been following the Raiders, and Kauffman Stadium is one place I've wanted to see, since my Giants road trip is typically on Father's Day weekend, during Interleague play. I never thought I'd look forward to going to Kansas City...:)
Bryants is a KC institution. Some people love it, others, not so much. Frankly, I've never been there, but I've meant to go. If you do, I've heard that you really need to go to the original, at 17th & Brooklyn (just down the street from where the original KC Municipal Stadium used to be, @ 22nd and Brooklyn - I was there for the KC Royals home opener against the Twins in 1969!). There are 2 others, one out near the NASCAR track, the other at a casino, but from what I hear, you get the best food, and a dose of atmosphere (and what ever else they serve there) at the original. http://www.arthurbryantsbbq.com One item of note: The size of your sandwich depends on the size of the hand of the man who servs up your order. Check THIS out... I hope you like white bread! lol
Mark
The Reading Phillies and the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs have the same sorts of deals. We take the kids to a few games every summer.
I hung out @ the stadium in the late 70’s....Got in for free for every game and I was there almost every night (knew the security guards)...bought $4.50 bleacher’s and sold them for $20.00 during the 78 world series..(a much better team back then)...Only paid for parking.....Haven’t been there since....Not paying for any ball players salary...
My family usually goes down to at least one game a year, and the most we ever paid for tickets was in the $40.00 a seat range. And those were great seats.
The Blue Jackets do that too, for $35. It is a very good deal. Basically sitting in $27 face value seats and gorging for $8.
Tonight is Dime-A-Dog night at the Columbus Clippers game.
If you like them cold and soggy, it’s a better deal than the product Columbus puts on the field.
This is also the last year the Cowboys are going to play at Texas Stadium. I wonder what ticket price$ are going to be, if the entire year of single game tickets hasn’t already been sold out. Sad to see the end of two classic and historic stadiums. It’s been a nice run at both places.
You said this in your reply:
Corporations pay no taxes. YOU pay them in the price of their product and services.
Yes, that’s correct. Corporations include in the price of their products and services what they should pay the government in taxes. The money (part of which is to cover taxes) is collected from the consumer and should be passed on to the government.
That’s my point. Instead of the corporations giving the money (they got from the consumer for tax) to the government, the corporations use loop-holes, such as entertaining EXPENSE to avoid passing on the money (they collected from the consumer) to the government.
Do you consider that to be a bad thing? It seems that you do. Why?
Yes, I consider tax loop-holes by Corporations to be a bad thing.
If they collect money from the consumer (added to cover tax), then they SHOULD pay the tax to the government, not pocket it.
In effect, we have corporations taxing us on consumer items, and government taxing us on income.
Yes, I consider it a bad thing that corporations are allowed to include ENTERTAINMENT (such as big-ticket sports events) as an expense item against their bottom line.
Fans don't have to buy tickets, it's their choice, but the taxpayers are stuck. We are the real losers in this bribery system.
No truer words were ever spoken. I go every year.
The amusing thing about all this, is the only reason they are building the new stadium is to get out of paying profit sharing to the league for a while... Another great scam out of NY..
They are going to destroy the house that Ruth built, for no good reason... Forgive me if I enjoy watching them choke again.
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