MLB baseball games are very expensive

[RhondaHonda]

Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en
I follow the Detroit Tigers religiously from home and I refuse to give a single dime to support the lavish lifestyles of so many players these days. Prices on everything should be adjusted, so that no (employee) pro athlete or business executive makes more than a couple million dollars per year. That 1-2M generous salary is still more than 10X what most-all Americans earn.


Well you better not watch them on tv either. The tv contracts are where the revenue comes from to pay these players. Don't be jealous you don't have a unique enough skill-set to make more than $2 million a year. The players get paid what they're worth.

 

[Bgallagher]

Originally Posted By: 2015_PSD
Agree! The Boston Red Sox are my team and when they came to Houston to play last week, the ticket prices which are normally in the 40s and 50s jumped to the 80s and 90s. I took my sons to the Friday night game which has fireworks after (dedicated to Prince) and although it was expensive it was a great time. A few days ago, I grabbed the MLB package and have been watching all of the games at home.


Try watching the same game in Fenway haha. Upper level seats would have run for 100 with a 12 ounce bud going for $12 and a hotdog for $8. Parking if you can even get to the garage would run $40-$55. Better of taking public transportation which is a whole different rant. I stopped going to Sox games purely because of how badly they @#%@$ you. I heard good things about Pittsburgh. I would love to go there for a game.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Originally Posted By: RhondaHonda
Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en
I follow the Detroit Tigers religiously from home and I refuse to give a single dime to support the lavish lifestyles of so many players these days. Prices on everything should be adjusted, so that no (employee) pro athlete or business executive makes more than a couple million dollars per year. That 1-2M generous salary is still more than 10X what most-all Americans earn.


Well you better not watch them on tv either. The tv contracts are where the revenue comes from to pay these players. Don't be jealous you don't have a unique enough skill-set to make more than $2 million a year. The players get paid what they're worth.


What part of me not giving MLB a dime, don't you understand? I can still listen to the games for free on the radio - then view all the game highlights on videos at MLB.com for free and use Gameday internet feeds (inning by inning / pitch-by-pitch) for free.

 

[SeaJay]

I fondly remember in the very early 1980's (yes, it was a long time ago) the time I used a $20 bill to take 5 of my friends to a game at Yankee stadium, paying for their tickets ($2 for general admission) and subway fare ($0.50 each way).

I could have saved a few bucks if the Mets had been in town that day, as Shea stadium general admission tickets in those days were $1.50 a seat.

Throughout the 1980's attending baseball games (also true for basketball and hockey) was not trendy like it has been since then. Many, many unused corporate tickets found their way to doormen as tips, and to my buds who were friends with some of those doormen. Many of those tickets were down low and very close to the action.

Those were the days to be a middle income sports fan in NYC. No more.

 

[TWG1572]

Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
It's big difference between in stadium to watch a live game and TV, and you are paying for the difference.


I've gotten to the point where my TV game experience is better than in-person. Better food/drink, the bathroom is 10 feet away, and I'm comfortable and not jammed in next to my neighbor. Then you throw in surround sound, HDTV, and the ability to pause and rewind. Plus you can actually see what's happening on the field. I've just reached the point where the cost/aggravation factor is higher than my threshold.

I get why people go in person, and I go to 3-4 college football games a year. But it's more about the group of guys I tailgate with than the actual game.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

It would also help pro sports if the longest contracts allowed were limited to three years and no signed contract is guaranteed, when injuries occur that are disabling.

Let these injured players collect the standard workmens compensation or disability payments, thru their personal health insurance...... like the rest of us do.

 

[Cujet]

Consumer price calculator

Might be interesting to see how the cost stacks up compared to what us old timers used to pay, back in the day...

For example, rock concerts at the Colosseum were $5 in the early '70's. The Rolling Stones came along, and prices were increased to an outrageous $14!

That $5.00 concert comes out to be about $30 today.
That $14.00 concert would be $82 today.

I will bet that the cost increase for MLB is not too far off the overall inflation rate.

No question the "tolls" have far outstripped inflation. Coupled with the fact that the bridge(s) have been paid for many times over, and are poorly maintained.

 

[JustinH]

I can't figure out why ballparks can't have decent food.

We have the AAA affiliate of the Texas Rangers here, nice ballpark. They just redid a bunch of the concession stands.

Paid $10 for a greasy sausage on a bun with no onions peppers available and warm ketchup that I could pump on myself. Then paid $11 for a frozen margarita yard for my wife. She took two sips of it and said it was gross and we ended up throwing it out.

Seats were $10 each, and parking was $10. Next time I'll just cook at home then go to the game afterwards.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: JustinH
I can't figure out why ballparks can't have decent food.

We have the AAA affiliate of the Texas Rangers here, nice ballpark. They just redid a bunch of the concession stands.

Paid $10 for a greasy sausage on a bun with no onions peppers available and warm ketchup that I could pump on myself. Then paid $11 for a frozen margarita yard for my wife. She took two sips of it and said it was gross and we ended up throwing it out.

Seats were $10 each, and parking was $10. Next time I'll just cook at home then go to the game afterwards.


It's rather simple, those guys have to pay a big fee to be in the park. The only way they can make it up is to charge those prices. The only reason they can charge those prices is that people keep paying them. They're also there for a limited amount of time, there's only so many days they can sell, not like a regular store that can be open year round.

 

[RhondaHonda]

Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en
Originally Posted By: RhondaHonda
Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en
I follow the Detroit Tigers religiously from home and I refuse to give a single dime to support the lavish lifestyles of so many players these days. Prices on everything should be adjusted, so that no (employee) pro athlete or business executive makes more than a couple million dollars per year. That 1-2M generous salary is still more than 10X what most-all Americans earn.


Well you better not watch them on tv either. The tv contracts are where the revenue comes from to pay these players. Don't be jealous you don't have a unique enough skill-set to make more than $2 million a year. The players get paid what they're worth.


What part of me not giving MLB a dime, don't you understand? I can still listen to the games for free on the radio - then view all the game highlights on videos at MLB.com for free and use Gameday internet feeds (inning by inning / pitch-by-pitch) for free.


Radio, tv, Internet...doesn't matter. Advertisers are paying to keep the platforms going which trickles into the player pockets whether you think you support that or not.

 

[CarbonSteel]

Originally Posted By: Bgallagher
Originally Posted By: 2015_PSD
Agree! The Boston Red Sox are my team and when they came to Houston to play last week, the ticket prices which are normally in the 40s and 50s jumped to the 80s and 90s. I took my sons to the Friday night game which has fireworks after (dedicated to Prince) and although it was expensive it was a great time. A few days ago, I grabbed the MLB package and have been watching all of the games at home.
Try watching the same game in Fenway haha. Upper level seats would have run for 100 with a 12 ounce bud going for $12 and a hotdog for $8. Parking if you can even get to the garage would run $40-$55. Better of taking public transportation which is a whole different rant. I stopped going to Sox games purely because of how badly they @#%@$ you. I heard good things about Pittsburgh. I would love to go there for a game.
Oh, Minute Maid Park is not giving away the concessions either. Three hotdogs and three cokes was $47, parking was $30, and three tickets was $258 for a grand total of $335 for myself and two sons to go. I went to college at BU so I have a soft spot for the Sox and the boys love baseball (one of them is a die hard Astros fan) so it was worth it, but it is not something that I would do on a regular basis. I stopped in at Fenway and picked up some Sox caps when I was in Boston last time. I would love to see a game there.

 

[OneEyeJack]

If you go to an LA Dodger's game you'd better not get caught in the parking lot wearing the wrong colors. Fans have been badly beaten and some permanently disabled. The cost of going to a Dodger game can be way beyond just a dent in your pocketbook.

 

[bdcardinal]

Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
If you go to an LA Dodger's game you'd better not get caught in the parking lot wearing the wrong colors. Fans have been badly beaten and some permanently disabled. The cost of going to a Dodger game can be way beyond just a dent in your pocketbook.


I've worn Yankee apparel plenty of times to Dodger Stadium plenty of times with no issues. Even when they played each other. I firmly think that situation on Opening Day a few years ago had blame on both sides.

 

[qwerty1234]

Whats the big deal? I grew up 2 miles from Wrigley Field. If you can't afford the tickets then you really can't afford the $7 beers and $5 hot dogs. Stay home and watch the game on TV.

 

[Andrew1972]

I lucked out spending $10 x2 (chaperone+daughter ) for a stem funded education school trip to park via school bus that included a Red Sox vs rays game. i don't like baseball on tv but really enjoyed it at Fenway with seats over bull pen.

 

[Patman]

I'm a Toronto Blue Jays season ticket holder and it's not that expensive up here at all compared to many US ballparks. Our tickets cost us $14 each, they are in the highest section of the park but in the third row and along the first base line (closer to home actually) and are fantastic seats with a great view! We found a large indoor parking lot that's just a 15 minute walk away and only costs us $6 for the night games and $11 when we park there on weekend day games. We bring our own food and drink since it's super expensive inside the stadium. We don't go to every game, so for those other games we have been selling them to friends for face value and later in the season if they are in a pennant race again, we'll put those unused tickets on Stub Hub and make a profit that we can put towards post season tickets and the next year's season tickets. My wife and I are huge baseball fans so it's worth it to us to be season ticket holders, last year we went to 30 games in total (including all 6 home post season games the Jays were in) We also like to go to one different ball park each year (we do it when the Jays are the visiting team), this year it will be Oriole Park on August 29th and last year it was Comerica Park, the year before was Yankee Stadium. Those trips always cost us a lot but are a lot of fun.

Baseball is much more fun to watch in person than on TV! Especially a post season game where the crowd is super loud and energized! I was there for game 5 of the ALDS when Jose Bautista hit that 3 run home run off Sam Dyson (Texas Rangers) and did the infamous bat flip. Best (and craziest!) game I've ever seen!