What's out: Major-league Baseball. What's in: AAA ball.
Filed under: Bargains, Extracurriculars, Shopping, Relationships
A couple of months ago, as the Yankees were finishing up their final season in the house that Ruth built, my wife, daughter and I decided to see our first (and last) Yankee Stadium game. Given that my daughter is a toddler, we bought tickets for the non-alcoholic section, which is located in the space below the scoreboard. I expected that our cheap seats would be miserable, but we actually had a great view of the field and, as my wife and daughter settled in, I ventured forth in search of provisions. The food was a little pricey: all tolled, the three Nathan's famous hot dogs, one knish, and two bottles of water that I came back with cost a little bit less than $30. Since we were in the non-drinking section, I didn't have to make the tough choice between a $9.50 Miller Lite and $12.50 Heineken.
After the National Anthem, the game started. And stopped. And started. And stopped. As the evening progressed, I noticed that the pitcher was lucky to get through two batters before play would pause for a few minutes. It didn't take long to figure out what was going on: the game planners were leaving room for commercial breaks.
By the time the fourth inning came around, I found myself resenting the whole set-up. Basically, I paid $40 for tickets, $30 for food, and $10 for backpack storage just so I could be background scenery in a game that was clearly being packaged for the home audience.
Over the years, I have been lucky enough to see quite a few major league baseball games. While these were all fun, my favorite baseball experience was undoubtedly watching the Salem Avalanche play in Southwest Virginia. Although my hometown stadium was far less impressive than the professional parks that I have visited, it was usually crowded with energetic fans, the food was better than the major league's offerings, and the beer was much more affordable (especially on 50¢ beer night).
More importantly, I found that AAA ball felt a lot more like baseball is supposed to feel. The guys on the field weren't steroidally-pumped supermen with million dollar endorsement contracts and multiple houses, and the guys in the stands weren't billionaires blowing a fortune on box seats. Many of the players were local boys, and they often had jobs outside of the game. While some of them undoubtedly went on to Major League stardom, most were probably at the peak of their sports careers. They were like us, and when they struck out, we felt their disappointment.
I don't know where professional baseball is headed, and I don't know how far it can go in its current, television-dominated direction. What I do know is that it has lost a lot of the intimacy and emotional connection that once made it great. I also know that the next game I go to will be in a smaller stadium with a more amateurish team.
And, hopefully, with cheaper beer!
Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. When it comes to professional sports, he's all about the food.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-21-2008 @ 4:27PM
philip said...
In commenting about Bruce Watson's blog, i feel his pain. However, i could have written this same article 20 years ago, thats when i bought my last major league ticket. Now I go to Single A baseball in Rancho Cucamonaga and have a great time for $30 total for two people, with food
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11-21-2008 @ 5:17PM
number8 said...
hello i attend the NH fishier cat games in manchester , we park for free the best seats in the house are $ 22.00 and go as low as $ 8.00 , the food and drinks are very resonable , and the between inning antics are funny , (here they throw out free hotdogs and shirts) not to mention the fisher cats are farm team to Blue jays , so we get to see and have seen alot of the Boston red sox younger players come through the ranks over the past years . Don't get me wrong I went to fenway this past year with my son ( his first trip), and we loved it , but it also cost me $ 264.00 for two tickets ( we could not see the jumbo-tron ) , $19.00 for four hotdogs and two beers for me $ 16.00 plus his drinks . Only two things made it right , I spent that kind of dumb money to see my father , my sons grandfather ,dance on native american night at "americas most beloved ballpark" Fenway Park . Oh and the second was "they were playing the yankees"
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11-21-2008 @ 10:01PM
RenoDavid said...
Are you sure they're going to commercial breaks during innings? I certainly have never seen anything like that during San Franscisco Giants broadcasts, unless there's a pitching change, or some other natural break in the action. I really don't think that sort of thing is even allowed, as they're supposedly trying to keep games down to a reasonable length.
I'll tell you though, if they start doing that, I'm outta there....
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11-21-2008 @ 6:53PM
J said...
Bruce, you should NOT be crying about spending $40 for two tickets and $30 for the food items you described. You paid relatively cheaply for your experience at a major league ballpark, and at Yankee Stadium no less.
I agree, however, that minor league baseball at any level can be just as much fun as a major league game, and much less expensive.
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11-21-2008 @ 6:59PM
Beth said...
This summer, I was able to take myself and EIGHT other people to see the Myrtle Beach Pelicans for less than $100! We had a blast, it was family-friendly, and there were tons of fan give-aways. In contrast, my son and I attended the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium, spending almost $400 after ticket prices, parking, and food. Do the math. Go minor league ball, you rock!
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11-22-2008 @ 10:27PM
j said...
I work for the television broadcast for an MLB team.
Those were not commercial breaks they don't allow it. Breaks can occur only between innings and during the pitcher changes for commercials. And they are regulated in their lengths. Unlike other sports where you have a person telling the refs when to start and stop for commercials- baseball has none. MLB has made great strides to try and speed up the game actually for TV to try to get it into a time slot friendly format. But baseball is a game without any clocks and when it goes slow it goes slow. The people covering the game know which pitchers go fast and which pitchers slow the game down to a crawl (guess who we love- hint, we are paid the same either way).
Don't get me wrong I love the minors, watching players play to play w/ the hopes of making it big and giving all they got is great fun and does come at a great price.
But to go to a big stadium with your kids, walk around see all the excitement and action. Letting them go down early during BP to get a ball or hat signed. Even with the overpriced beer is a great way to spend a summer night or day. I look forward to it coming every spring and miss it greatly when it goes away fall.
In the winter I'll go do other sports but none compare to baseball.
I'm sorry you didn't have a great time, the one piece of wisdom I can give you is that with baseball a bad game is just that a bad game. They play so many games in a season (162) that a good game is not that far away. And trust me I know. I work for a losing team and still love the sport. I did not grow up with baseball, didn't really know the game until I got the job, a while back, but soon afterwards I found myself loving it. (And I only took the job originally because my wife saw it as a check to bridge some time I hadn't scheduled any work.)
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11-23-2008 @ 12:29PM
Ed said...
I gave up on major league ball long ago. I have been attending AA games in New Britain, CT for 18 years. $5 general admission tickets, beautiful park, friendly players and many promotions and give-aways. I have seen future MVPs, All-Stars and World Series winners before they were stars!
With the economy looking grim, why would I want to spend over $100 to go to New York or Boston for one game when I can see 20 AA games for that amount?
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11-23-2008 @ 1:56PM
Rob said...
Regardless of how you feel about major league baseball, minor league ball is a tremendous entertainment value. The food is typically tasty and a good value, and they work hard to pack lots of extra entertainment bonuses and promotions into the program for the kids (i.e., base rounding races, throwing t-shirts into the stands, fireworks, hat and shirt giveaways, etc.). Parking is generally easy, and you can even afford to take the entire family. Do yourself a favor and check out a minor league team next spring/summer.
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11-25-2008 @ 10:29AM
michael said...
I feel like in the middle of an Eastern League bulletin board with Fisher Cats & Rock cats fans here so count my voice among those who many years ago discovered the joys of mnor league basbeall.
Since the Trenton Thunder became a Yankee farm team a few years ago, my dad and his friends, long-time Yankee fans all, and I have been able to enjoy a night out for less than $30 a person. This includes picking up food on the way and tailgating in the parking lot, parking, seats that are 15 rows from the fieldplus a snack during the game.
Throw in a give away and the opportunity to see rehabbing players like derek Jeter, Robinson Cano, and even Roger Clemens up a lot closer than we could at 6 times the price. Coupled with a front-office that is bound and determined to make sure that every fan leaves the game feeling as if they got every last dime's worth of pleasure out of their ticket price and it's no wonder that our beloved Thunder and minor league baseball in general keep rewriting their attendance records year after year.
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11-26-2008 @ 7:11PM
Rob said...
Yup! I love minor league ball. Way better than the majors!
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11-26-2008 @ 6:42PM
ron said...
If you want to see quality baseball at very low price go to a coiiege baseball game. Since major colleges are only allowed a limit number of schoarships(11.7), Many of the athletes are playing merely for the love of the game. Consequently a spectator sees baseball played a high level for a fraction of the cost.
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11-26-2008 @ 9:19PM
al said...
I am lucky enough to live about an hour from a major team and a aaa also thier aa teams
I have not been to aa games yet but aaa have free parking good shows and family fill ins during the game and you do not need to refinance the house to go
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