The most I've ever paid for a Nationals ticket was about $60 when the Red Sox came to town last year. At the start of the season, the Nationals announced that there would be a "ticket lottery" to determine who'd have the chance to buy single-game tickets to the Red Sox series, stressing, of course, that the only way to be guaranteed entrance to what the Nats were all but hyping as a once-in-a-lifetime event, was to buy a season ticket package. Not long before the Red Sox arrived, there were tons of single-game tickets available due to lack of demand, and the Nats just pretended that the whole ticket lottery business had ever happened. So I figured, "Hey, it's the Red Sox. Why not?" and ponied up the dough.
A couple of weeks ago, when Stephen Strasburg fever was really ramping up around here, lots of people were targeting June 4th as his likely MLB debut. It made sense: He wasn't going to start before then, and by that point, he'd have completed the number of innings in the minors that the Nationals had said they wanted him to pitch, and by starting him June 4th, he'd be able to pitch two home games in a row against less-than-stellar opponents. So even though my plan had been to wait until the official announcement to buy tickets, so as not to end up going to see a just a regular Strasburg-less game, I knew that they'd start selling out fast once word filtered around. So I went ahead and pulled the trigger, getting some really good seats for June 4th.
And sure enough, people started buying. As of Wednesday morning, there are still seats available, but all the cheaper options are gone, and unless you're going alone or with a big group, it appears as though Ticketmaster's making it hard to pay anything less than $63 a ticket.
Of course, the problem is that even though June 4th is the presumptive date (I've noticed that over the past week on PTI, whenever there's a Strasburg story, Wilbon has started referring to it as if it's set in stone), the Nationals refuse to make it official, leading people like me who have tickets for that game wondering whether or not they just wasted their money on seeing a Cincinnati Reds game.
I wish I could be Mr. Loyal Hometown Fan, here, and say that the important thing is just being able to root for my team in person. But screw that. I want to see Strasburg.
I don't go to that many Nats games, because frankly, I'm not a die hard baseball fan. I went on opening day. I'll probably go on Ryan Zimmerman bobblehead night, and maybe one or two more games this season. But on the whole, it's just not worth it once the initial thrill of being in the stadium wears off after the third inning or so. The fact that decent seats cost a lot more than they probably should, given the Nats' performance, also has a lot to do with it. Maybe all those seats along the third base line wouldn't always be so empty if they didn't cost $70 each.
(Incidentally, I might be going to a Potomac Nationals game this weekend. You know how much it costs to see a minor league game while sitting in approximately the same location that would cost $300 at Nationals Park? $12. There are days where I'd happily ship the Nationals out to Woodbridge or Bowie if it meant getting the P-Nats or Baysox closer to home.)
Do the right thing, Mr. Kasten and Mr. Riggleman. After so many missteps from this franchise over the past few years, just do this one good thing for the fans, and start Strasburg on June 4th. (And of course, by "fans," I mean just the ones that already bought tickets. I don't really care about the ones who haven't.) Start him on June 4th, because from a business point of view, it makes sense for you guys. Hell, start him on June 4th because June 4th looks a lot like July 4th, and what do we celebrate on July 4th? America. So by not starting him June 4th, you're basically spitting on this country a month before its birthday.
Hey, whoa, no, stop. Don't think about my logic. Just accept it, okay?
A couple of weeks ago, when Stephen Strasburg fever was really ramping up around here, lots of people were targeting June 4th as his likely MLB debut. It made sense: He wasn't going to start before then, and by that point, he'd have completed the number of innings in the minors that the Nationals had said they wanted him to pitch, and by starting him June 4th, he'd be able to pitch two home games in a row against less-than-stellar opponents. So even though my plan had been to wait until the official announcement to buy tickets, so as not to end up going to see a just a regular Strasburg-less game, I knew that they'd start selling out fast once word filtered around. So I went ahead and pulled the trigger, getting some really good seats for June 4th.
And sure enough, people started buying. As of Wednesday morning, there are still seats available, but all the cheaper options are gone, and unless you're going alone or with a big group, it appears as though Ticketmaster's making it hard to pay anything less than $63 a ticket.
Of course, the problem is that even though June 4th is the presumptive date (I've noticed that over the past week on PTI, whenever there's a Strasburg story, Wilbon has started referring to it as if it's set in stone), the Nationals refuse to make it official, leading people like me who have tickets for that game wondering whether or not they just wasted their money on seeing a Cincinnati Reds game.
I wish I could be Mr. Loyal Hometown Fan, here, and say that the important thing is just being able to root for my team in person. But screw that. I want to see Strasburg.
I don't go to that many Nats games, because frankly, I'm not a die hard baseball fan. I went on opening day. I'll probably go on Ryan Zimmerman bobblehead night, and maybe one or two more games this season. But on the whole, it's just not worth it once the initial thrill of being in the stadium wears off after the third inning or so. The fact that decent seats cost a lot more than they probably should, given the Nats' performance, also has a lot to do with it. Maybe all those seats along the third base line wouldn't always be so empty if they didn't cost $70 each.
(Incidentally, I might be going to a Potomac Nationals game this weekend. You know how much it costs to see a minor league game while sitting in approximately the same location that would cost $300 at Nationals Park? $12. There are days where I'd happily ship the Nationals out to Woodbridge or Bowie if it meant getting the P-Nats or Baysox closer to home.)
Do the right thing, Mr. Kasten and Mr. Riggleman. After so many missteps from this franchise over the past few years, just do this one good thing for the fans, and start Strasburg on June 4th. (And of course, by "fans," I mean just the ones that already bought tickets. I don't really care about the ones who haven't.) Start him on June 4th, because from a business point of view, it makes sense for you guys. Hell, start him on June 4th because June 4th looks a lot like July 4th, and what do we celebrate on July 4th? America. So by not starting him June 4th, you're basically spitting on this country a month before its birthday.
Hey, whoa, no, stop. Don't think about my logic. Just accept it, okay?
1 comments:
i got to see his debut at altoona. funny, the altoona curve were about the only team to actually hit against him in AA. still worth the hype though
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