One of the first thoughts I have every morning is that Opening Day tickets start at just $63. That’s sort of crazy, but I’m not doing schtick here, I actually think about it.
When I first wake up I think about what I was dreaming about and what these things really mean. This morning I was thinking about the $63.
It means I actually care. Which means the Mets need me.
When the fans stop caring, that’s when you’re in trouble. And if I were the Mets I’d be less worried about the less-fat-than-before blogger yelling about ticket prices than the people shrugging their shoulders. Those are the borderline fans who just won’t go to games. You reap what you sow, and COO Jeff Wilpon is sowing $63 seats after four straight years of declining attendance.
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Dan emailed me in the middle of the night asking if he could use the blog for something else today, and I said yes. One of the things I like about having a forum is the ability to use it. Maybe some people will get annoyed and stop reading the site, or just skip the post…but I want to use the blog for good, and I think Dan has a good suggestion coming up.
I also have personally enjoyed The M-Files column I have been doing on Saturday (at 8am). This week I will dive into Atari a little bit.
No the blog isn’t changing formats, but I don’t mind stretching our wings a little bit, especially as we head to Year 6. Mets fans also watch TV, experience pop-culture and live in the real world outside. I think we can talk about those things too…not every day…a once a week frequency seems to work….but the primary focus continues to be to hope the Mets win a World Series while dressed nicely. Then the blog ends.
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Mark posted the below in the comments, and I thought it was worth sharing here on the big stage. I tweaked a word here and there to keep it clean.
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I understand your feelings about this. Honestly though, when does it end? I’ve been a diehard my whole life. I remember Seaver’s return, 84,85,86.I remember the 88 team that was supposed to be so great. I remember the good and all of the bad. Thick and thin. When does it stop though? When does a fan stop for a second and notice that ownership gives not a rat’s ass about you or me.
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It’s just about the little green I have left in my pocket. If I can’t make it to the game then I’m not the fan they want at Citi Field. This team that we’ve loved for so long, when do we notice that it’s a one way street?
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We pour our money, time and emotions into an entity that doesn’t care one bit about it’s fans. We hope we win a series, we wanna say, we were there when Reyes was let go, when Dickey was traded but we’re here now with a series win. Is it really worth it anymore? Is devotion really worth it to a team that only cares about $?
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You can say that about any sports franchise. I get it. My problem is I care too much to be (dumped) on. I love the Mets but I’M TIRED.
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2013 looks like we’ll make a run at last place. Sure the future is bright but next year looks dark. The best way I can deal with garbage on the field, liars in the front office and scam artists as ownership is to be apathetic. I have to be because if I wasn’t I’d pick another team. I have a love hate relationship with the Mets and I can tell you that HATE has been winning out a lot. I can’t stand any of the front office or ownership. Where were any of them when I was a little boy jumping around in 86? Were they fans then? Did they care then? Do they care now? Will they care IF they ever win again? Or is it they only care about my money? Do they only care if I buy nice jerseys and hats and bricks? I ain’t going anywhere as a fan, I may be at my lowest for sure and I’ll endure more darkness but I’ll be DAMNED if I pay $63 for one ticket to watch a (very bad) team.
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To be honest, Keith, Gary and Ron and the best thing about the Mets. Best seat in the house is my couch with HD. No lines for food, bathroom. No (donkeys) kicking over my kid’s drink without an I’m sorry. Just me, my passion and my team. That’s where they want fans like me to stay. Away, because I can’t and I WON’T pay such prices. It ain’t about our passion, it’s about our green. You can care all you want but they don’t and will never care about us. Just how this franchise makes me feel. Maybe I’m wrong. Anyway, Let’s go Mets!
Well Mark, as I like to remind people, “New York Metropolitan Base Ball Club” is a business. They are there to make money. They are in the business of selling $63 seats, licensing concession stands and taking a cut, licensing parking lots and taking a cut, selling some in-stadium billboards and getting you to spend your money. And their half-sort-of-related-company is in the business of getting eyeballs to watch the TeeVee so that they can charge more for advertising. The thing with the bat and the ball is what they do just to make you pay attention to the hot dog vendor and what Keith Hernandez has to say.It’s all yucky when you start digging around in it. I don’t know what the answer is, but the answer is not $63, and it’s not this “Choose the Mets” movement where you pretend you aren’t supporting Jeff by staying home and watching his TV channel.
And yet, I hope to believe there is a happy medium. A medium where Jeff Wilpon can be happy with his riches and not charge $63 for a baseball game. A utopia where money can be made, but at a fair price. Where price equals value as they say. Right now the OF is Duda, Kirk and Cowbell. And they want us to pay $63. The second most popular player on the team is gone. It may be the right decision, but he’s gone and replaced with people we aren’t yet connected to. And yet Jeff would like you to pay $63, and give some money to his concession partners, maybe even $21 to his parking partner, and some eyeballs on the billboards, maybe some merch from the central fund…and if you don’t like it you can stay home and give more eyeballs to his sort of related television business.
I understand your feelings about this. Honestly though, when does it end? I’ve been a diehard my whole life. I remember Seaver’s return, 84,85,86. I remember the 88 team that was supposed to be so great. I rememeber the good and all of the bad. Thick and thin. When does it stop though? When does a fan stop for a second and notice that ownership gives not a rat’s ass about you or me. It’s just about the little green I have left in my pocket. If I can’t make it to the game then I’m not the fan they want at citi field. This team that we’ve loved for so long, when do we notice that it’s a one way street? We pour our money, time and emotions into an entity that doesn’t care one bit about it’s fans. We hope we win a series, we wanna say, we were there when Reyes was let go, when Dickey was traded but we’re here now with a series win. Is it really worth it anymore? Is devotion really worth it to a team that only cares about $? You can say that about any sports franchise. I get it. My problem is I care too much to be shit on. I love the Mets but I’M TIRED. 2013 looks like we’ll make a run at last place. Sure the future is bright but next year looks dark. The best way I can deal with garbage on the field, liars in the front office and scam artists as ownership is to be apathetic. I have to be because if I wasn’t I’d pick another team. I have a love hate relationship with the Mets and I can tell you that HATE has been winning out a lot. I can’t stand any of the front office or ownership. Where were any of them when I was a little boy jumping around in 86? Were they fans then? Did they care then? Do they care now? Will they care IF they ever win again? Or is it they only care about my money? Do they only care if I buy nice jerseys and hats and bricks? I ain’t going anywhere as a fan, I may be at my lowest for sure and I’ll endure more darkness but I’ll be DAMNED if I pay $63 for one ticket to watch a shit team. To be honest, Keith, Gary and Ron and the best thing about the Mets. Best seat in the house is my couch with HD. No lines for food, bathroom. No assholes kicking over my kids drink without an I’m sorry. Just me, my passion and my team. That’s where they want fans like me to stay. Away, because I can’t and I WON’T pay such prices. It ain’t about our passion, it’s about our green. You can care all you want but they don’t and will never care about us. Just how this franchise makes me feel. Maybe I’m wrong. Anyway, Let’s go Mets!
great stuff, will spin off as a post
I hear ya but when I hear “it’s just a business” it kinda makes me view the Mets or any sports team differently. I don’t activley root for Apple or Microsoft. I guess it’s our view of baseball back when we were in little league. It was pure and fun. When you won you felt on top of the world. You got home, put the Mets on and rooted like you rooted your own little league team. Viewing the Mets as a business and the players as a bunch of millionaires kinda kills it for me. I guess that’s part of growing up and being an adult. To let go of childish things. With the Mets and sports for me it’s hard to. I can’t really let go of that passion in wanting the Mets to win as much as I want my son’s little league team to win. Maybe all this “bleed orange and blue” is a hope of what used to be. I think people flock to the 7line and Dickey and Wright is because we see that passion in others. It’s still alive. Too bad owernship doesn’t know how to tap into it. They can’t relate to the FAN. That’s quite unfortunate. Run the business and study on how the fan base reacts to the team. The fact that Citi Field was initially built with practically NO Mets memorabilia says EVERYTHING. We had to yell and scream. We wanted to be rid of the black and it took a decade. This past week the Post writer said he had no clue how connected Dickey was to the fanbase. Maybe that’s what makes it so hard to give the owners some slack. They don’t understand our passion. I don’t think they ever will. It’ll bother me seeing the current regime hoist a trophy if we ever win. They don’t know how badly we want that trophy back in Queens. They’ll lift it, smile and say the right things to the camera but we’ll know their words are forever hollow. At least we’ll have each other as fans. We KNOW, and we always WILL. It’s the Mets, our team, our passion, US the fans.