Hard sell: Ballgame feels rising cost of recession
NEW YORK: Before his first practice on the virgin grass of the new Yankee Stadium, Andy Pettitte stood at his locker on Thursday and got a lesson on how to work the ThinkPad computer mounted in his wood-paneled cubicle. Each player has one of the gadgets to watch replays or order tickets for family.
In the stands of the $1.5 billion ballpark, which smelled of fresh paint and new leather, fans filed in past the top-priced $2,625 seats and the three exclusive restaurants to watch the practice. The April 16 home opener is expected to be sold out.
A different kind of ticket deal is playing out in Minneapolis. To draw fans to the 27-year-old Metrodome, the Twins pegged the cost of 6,500 seats in the Home Run Porch to the stock market. The price will cost $1 for every 1,000 points of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Because the Dow closed at 7,775 on March 27, those outfield seats for Monday home games purchased through Friday will be $7.
