AirForceJetFan
12-03-2006, 03:03 AM
Prime Yank seats will cost a bundle
BY JIM BAUMBACH
Newsday Staff Writer
December 2, 2006
The face value of the highest-priced Yankees ticket purchased on a game day next season will be a whopping $400, representing almost a 300 percent increase.
But though there are significant increases throughout the lower two levels, the Yankees say they made these jumps with the working fan in mind.
Prices for tickets in almost all of the upper deck and the bleachers will be the same for the third straight year, which chief operating officer Lonn Trost said is possible because of the increases elsewhere in the stadium.
"It's just an acknowledgement that there are certain people who can afford tickets and there are people who can't," he said. "We have to make certain that people who can't afford certain prices, regardless of area, can go."
Bleacher seats bought in advance are $12. Upper-deck seats are $19 or $40 (tier box) in advance and $20 and $42 on game day.
But if you're looking for better seats, be prepared to pay a lot more than in past years. A full-season plan for the best tickets the Yankees offer will cost $150 per seat, a 36 percent increase from the $110 they cost in 2006. Trost said 98 percent of the best tickets are sold as part of ticket plans.
But on rare occasions the best seats do become available through the box office on game day. Trost said about 3,000 tickets in the highest-priced brackets were sold that way in 2006, an average of 37 per game.
When that happens next season, those tickets for seats in the lower boxes will cost between $280 and $400 on game day, a stunning increase from 2006, when those seats sold for just over $100 on average.
"It's just a recognition of what people pay for these seats," Trost said. "Take a look at StubHub and all the online prices. If a major company can't get the tickets here, you know where they go? They go online. And they're paying that much."
Fans have proven they'll pay to see the Yankees, who have set franchise attendance records four straight years. This year, they drew 4.2 million fans.
And now the Yankees want to reap more benefits, but Trost made a point of noting they are not changing ticket prices based on the day of the week or their opponent, something many teams do, including the Mets.
"We're selling ourselves. We're selling our stadium - who we are, what we are, our history and our tradition. That's what we're selling," Trost said. "We're not selling the teams that we're playing. We're not selling April. We're not selling September. We're not selling night. We're not selling day. We're selling our games."
Notes & quotes: The Yankees offered Ron Villone arbitration before Friday night's deadline, and he has until Thursday to accept ... Ted Lilly's agent, Larry O'Brien, said he has not heard from GM Brian Cashman since the Yankees won the rights to Kei Igawa, leading O'Brien to believe the Yankees no longer are interested. "Ted was very interested in getting something done with them, but I don't know, things may have changed," he said. "We're thinking they're not in the market anymore, so we're going to continue on with our business." He said talks with five teams are in the serious stages. O'Brien expects a four-year deal worth near $40 million
BY JIM BAUMBACH
Newsday Staff Writer
December 2, 2006
The face value of the highest-priced Yankees ticket purchased on a game day next season will be a whopping $400, representing almost a 300 percent increase.
But though there are significant increases throughout the lower two levels, the Yankees say they made these jumps with the working fan in mind.
Prices for tickets in almost all of the upper deck and the bleachers will be the same for the third straight year, which chief operating officer Lonn Trost said is possible because of the increases elsewhere in the stadium.
"It's just an acknowledgement that there are certain people who can afford tickets and there are people who can't," he said. "We have to make certain that people who can't afford certain prices, regardless of area, can go."
Bleacher seats bought in advance are $12. Upper-deck seats are $19 or $40 (tier box) in advance and $20 and $42 on game day.
But if you're looking for better seats, be prepared to pay a lot more than in past years. A full-season plan for the best tickets the Yankees offer will cost $150 per seat, a 36 percent increase from the $110 they cost in 2006. Trost said 98 percent of the best tickets are sold as part of ticket plans.
But on rare occasions the best seats do become available through the box office on game day. Trost said about 3,000 tickets in the highest-priced brackets were sold that way in 2006, an average of 37 per game.
When that happens next season, those tickets for seats in the lower boxes will cost between $280 and $400 on game day, a stunning increase from 2006, when those seats sold for just over $100 on average.
"It's just a recognition of what people pay for these seats," Trost said. "Take a look at StubHub and all the online prices. If a major company can't get the tickets here, you know where they go? They go online. And they're paying that much."
Fans have proven they'll pay to see the Yankees, who have set franchise attendance records four straight years. This year, they drew 4.2 million fans.
And now the Yankees want to reap more benefits, but Trost made a point of noting they are not changing ticket prices based on the day of the week or their opponent, something many teams do, including the Mets.
"We're selling ourselves. We're selling our stadium - who we are, what we are, our history and our tradition. That's what we're selling," Trost said. "We're not selling the teams that we're playing. We're not selling April. We're not selling September. We're not selling night. We're not selling day. We're selling our games."
Notes & quotes: The Yankees offered Ron Villone arbitration before Friday night's deadline, and he has until Thursday to accept ... Ted Lilly's agent, Larry O'Brien, said he has not heard from GM Brian Cashman since the Yankees won the rights to Kei Igawa, leading O'Brien to believe the Yankees no longer are interested. "Ted was very interested in getting something done with them, but I don't know, things may have changed," he said. "We're thinking they're not in the market anymore, so we're going to continue on with our business." He said talks with five teams are in the serious stages. O'Brien expects a four-year deal worth near $40 million