I love mornings like this one. Some days I wake up not sure what I’ll do with the site (I usually have a few ideas saved like my photo-trip to Modell’s I haven’t used yet) and today was one of those days.
Then I checked the email! Pete sent over a picture of one of the Lost Arks of Metsdom (no not the mule but just as cool) which I will get to today, Ryan posted a critique of the site in the comments which I will reply to as a post….but the natural seems to be to comment on what many of you found in your inbox this morning.
The Mets emailed the Flushing Flash distribution list to remind us that our “exclusive” pre-sale continues through today.
I guess no harm comes from reminding folks about the sale. That’s why they have the database. It’s not to send us fluff articles about Wright, it’s to easily target likely consumers. Makes sense. Smart business.
However, as I tend to do, and with absolutely no facts, I wonder how ticket sales went. From my small community here it seems as if the type of super-fans who choose to read what some dopey blogger (that’s me) has to say, those fans have demonstrated less interest than in the past. Sure we all want to go on Opening Day and maybe some weekends but that’s it.
Is that to say that we won’t get excited by our first place team and decide to buy more tickets? Of course we will. I’ll probably be the first one to do it.
However, the vibe seems to be “prove it.” The fans I hear from, and to be fair to the Mets maybe y’all are kooks like me, is that there is zero desire to lay out the money in advance. Is that anger? Let’s look at the pennywise pound-foolish moves made in 2009.
Remember when the Mets slashed ticket prices in the second half of 2009? It killed the secondary market, and it taught fans to wait. Why buy in March when tickets might be half off in August? They won’t raise prices mid-season so what’s the risk? Are you worried about 81 sellouts? I’m not. So I wait.
Back to the business side of it. As much as it might distaste me, I think that variable pricing like what the SF Giants are doing is the wave of the future. Knowing that Shannon is going to wait until a sunny Saturday to walk up and buy tickets, that’s when the Mets could try to squeeze a few bucks. It actually makes sense to me.
Yet that works both ways. I don’t have to pay the jacked up prices. I can choose not to go much like I choose to park on 112th street and not pay $19 for parking. $19. Nineteen.
There’s a presale still happening today. If you want tickets buy them. I dropped from 30 to 6. Now I have learned not to jump at the 6 (although I don’t mind one a month). Now you get to decide for yourself if you want tickets. I’m going to be very interested in the attendance for game 2.
April attendance is going to be bad. There is no doubt about it. (But that’s April, it’ll be “bad” at Yankee Stadium too) Of course, i’m going to two games the first week, but whatever.
It’s interesting though. I think many fans may end up regretting waiting. It was a common complaint last year that it was hard to walk up and buy tickets (fyi: find the stub hub window/sales..not sure how/where that is) for a reasonable price. They do seem to reserve a couple of ‘cheap seats’ for day-of sales, but they go fast. You already noted how Promenade Infield is the first section most people go for, and it’s probably Prom Out next. It doesn’t take much for these to sell out, so suddenly if the Mets are good and you decide you _do_ want to go buy tickets, you may be stuck spending more.
I wonder how ticket sales are doing too, but who knows. I don’t think they’re doing that badly based on premium-pack availability.
Tickets were going for something crazy like 10 cents on the dollar last year day of game via stubhub and come mid season you could get lower level seats for around the prices of upper reserved tickets, direct from the Mets because of the heavy discounts. If the Mets had to discount these seats early and often last year, common sense would tell you they are going to have to do even more this year.
The only thing that may change this year is higher prices on stubhub because less people bought tickets up front, but when we’re talking higher, we are looking at 50% off face value.
If I were a betting man, I’d say with an average season they get 1/2 the fans they had last year. Why go to the Mets when you can pay $5 to go see the Yankees? Somethings backwards when the team that’s won umpteen championships is priced less (cheap seats) than the team that finished somewhere near last in MLB.
The bleachers are barely ‘cheap seats’, and there aren’t a lot of the good seats there. after that price skyrockets and the seats are crappy taht are affordable. It’s in the Bronx. There are a lot of Mets fans that just don’t want to see the Yankees. the Mets are infinitely more affordable.
There is no way they’re under 2-2.5 million, and I’ve already said I suspect they’ll sell more than last year.
I received two pre-sale invites, one from FF and the other from SH. Of course, the cheapest seats available were upper deck boxes in left field. About $55 each for what used to be $15 back in the day. I’ll bite for opening day, but it’s strictly secondary market the rest of the season. Go Newark Bears!
I laughed earlier this week when I got my “exclusive” FF pre-sale e-mail, then laughed really loud when I got the “exclusive” SH pre-sale e-mail. This morning’s reminder e-mail made me smile as well. Sales have to be down, though I’d bet they’ll find a creative way to report that they are up.
I had a mini-tantrum earlier this week when it really hit home how bad the Mets abuse us with these tickets. I’d already resigned myself to the fact that I couldn’t shell it out for season tickets this summer, but my brother and I compromised on a 15-game plan. While I was waiting for a call back from my ticket rep (a legacy “benefit” from having owned seats last year), I did some research on season tickets around MLB. At least 26 of the 30 MLB teams give some sort of discount to season ticket holders — including the Yankees. The four who don’t? The Cubs and Red Sox don’t show their season ticket prices, because there are wait-lists to get those seats. As Shannon points out, the Giants have a funky variable pricing scheme, so while you’re likely to save by buying a season ticket, there is no guarantee.
And of course, our beloved Mets. Because, I suppose, their product is SO great that they don’t need to offer any discount. Instead, they offer a special season-ticket holder “exclusive pre-sale.” You know, so I can buy more seats to games I’m already going to.
I’m not sure I’ll be ordering that 15-game pack after all. I’m going to see what it’s like to be on the other side of that cents-on-the-dollar transaction on StubHub.
Do the Yankees really offer a discount? I always thought that was an illusion based on them actually raising the prices for day-of sales.
Looked it up: They do both. They do offer a season ticket/plan discount, but then they raise prices on you day of game.
oh, and more on the $5 tickets that Scott mentions. Those are only the seats where half the field can’t be seen. I don’t know where the cutoff is, but generally those seats are twice as obstructed as any of the Citi ones. Otherwise it’s $14 to sit in the bleachers.