And yet Baseball complains that fewer and fewer fans are out there. Connection ? In any market, there is an optimum pricing for optimum profit in the long run. I’d say that it’s gone FAR beyond that point, and will eventually self-correct.
At what price to Baseball. . .who knows. . .
Baseball is drawing more fans than ever before. In the “glory years” of the 1950’s, few teams would draw more than one million fans. These days, many teams are drawing 3 million fans.
The $850 tickets are the exception rather than the rule. I have season tickets in Milwaukee. $27/seat (discounted from $36 face value) in the 7th row of the second level behind home plate. Even in Milwaukee, the higher priced tickets sell first. The $75 seats are always full, along with the $35+ seats, while the $14 seats are often empty.
Baseball is still the best bargan in major sports. Upper level bleachers are still $8 in Milwaukee. Fans can still bring in their own food and soft drinks.
The $850 tickets cater to the Wall Street hotshots who can afford the price. It isn’t something I could afford, but those guys help subsidize the reckless spending of the Steinbrenner family.