Seat Crew and Mets Ticket Giveaways

Seatcrew.com is a new secondary ticket marketplace designed to be fan friendly by eliminating ticket fees.  I know we’re all fed up with handling fees, and print at home fees and all the various ticket fees from other markets and even the original seller in most cases.  At Seatcrew the listed price is the amount you pay.

 

As a way to get their name out there and get you using their site (after all, the more sellers the better selection of seats for buyers) Optimistic Mets Fan is going to be giving away tickets courtesy of Seatcrew for four different games of the 2012 Mets season.   There will be a Brewers game on May 15th, the Rockies on August 20th, and the Phillies on September 17th.

 

First up is the Nationals on April 11th.  This is the final game of the opening homestand, and you should look for the giveaway during the week leading up to Opening Day.  Brush up on your history, because I’ll be asking an Opening Day themed trivia question in order to qualify for the tickets.

 

Seatcrew looks like the perfect mix between between Stubhub and Craigslist for ticket sales.  A comfortable and organized website, and the ability to negotiate directly with the seller in order to complete the sale and transfer in the best way possible for both parties..all without fees.  The video below will tell you everything you need to know.

Some Thoughts on Dynamic Pricing

The Mets now have their dynamic pricing guide online on Mets.com.  Tickets first went on sale to certain presale codes Monday.  I got Opening Day tickets at face value, but just three hours later they were $10 higher.  Btw, at 10am today the Mets blogger presale  begins.  More details here.

This ultimately sucks, although it won’t quite hurt the true fans.  Dynamic pricing does not change the prices of packs and plans.  If you want a particular promotion or banner day, you have an incentive to buy ahead beyond just getting better seats.  As more fans get exciting about specific events, the price will go up.  This will have a fairly catastrophic effect on suddenly popular games.  Clinchers, Dickey’s first home game after his no-hitter, and late season divisional matchups during pennant races can suddenly become very expensive.  Staying ahead of the hype will save you money.

 

On the flip side, it’s unlikely tickets will plummet that far for unwanted games.  The Mets set up an artificial floor so that a fan will never pay less than a season ticket holder paid for that section.  Reading between the lines to me means that it’ll never be less than the 10% discount they get.  Prices are fairly reasonable for value games as they are, but it’d be nice if the more expensive games become affordable if the Mets are eliminated early or if the weather is supposed to be really bad.

 

Another interesting use for dynamic pricing is tracking the popularity of games.  It can give us insight into tickets sold that previously only the Mets knew.  If you want to know how Banner Day is doing for example, you can check out the prices for that game against a similarly valued game and see if it’s inherently more popular or not.  As we get a feel for it, we’ll probably be able to tell how close it is to sold out, even within specific sections.

 

I’ll also be curious to see how the secondary market reacts.  Sites like Stub Hub and Seat Crew that deal in second-hand tickets may not be able to keep up with the fluctuations.  If a game suddenly takes off in popularity, it will take a while for people to unlist and relist their tickets.  If ticket prices drop, the secondary market will suddenly be overpriced.  This may also kill day of game sales.  If fans really want to go to a game, chances are the prices will increase past the secondary market…unless it’s raining.

Waiting On Line (Not Online) For Mets Tickets

Mets keychain handed out on the line for buying tickets before the 2000 seasonIt was winter 2000 and New York was in the middle of a freezing cold stretch of weather.  Wind chill estimates had the temperatures at subzero on the day that the Mets started selling tickets.  This was before you could buy them online, and me and a couple of friends decided to camp out at Shea Stadium to buy tickets for the 2000 season.

 

We bundled up with blankets and layers and thermoses of coffee and hot chocolate and drove to Shea Stadium.  We made record time since it was the middle of the night, parked, and got on line.  We were by no means first; there were dozens of people already there, maybe as many as 200.  It was frigid and we were basically standing around shivering with hundreds of dollars in our pockets because you had to pay cash.  The warmest part was when you got to move a little bit to use the bathroom.

 

Handed out on the ticket line before the 2000 season

Eventually they moved most of the line inside.  It cut down on the wind a little bit, but it wasn’t any warmer.  As it got closer to the time tickets were actually on sale a couple of players, and manager Bobby Valentine, came out and were shaking frozen hands and signing autographs as the line started to move.   Someone, presumably with WFAN, was handing out the keychains in the picture here.  Eventually we were able to purchase our tickets, which included tickets to the epic 8th inning comeback against the Braves on Fireworks Night, climbed back into the car, blasted the heat and drove back home and fell asleep.

 

Nowadays online ticket sales have done away with this camping out, which is definitely a good thing for those of us that aren’t 17 anymore with free time to wait outside a baseball stadium for hours, but there’s a certain nostalgic machismo to having braved the elements to root for your team.

More Info on 2012 Mets Tickets

The usual cast of bloggers just finished up a conference call with Mets VP Dave Howard about the new ticketing schemes.  Not a ton of new info came to light, but some things were clarified and hinted at.

 

I asked about the dynamic pricing floor.    Specifically that the dynamic pricing will never dip below what a season ticket holder paid for the same seat in that section.   What was left unclear was if that meant you’ll never get a ticket less than $12 in sections 535/536 where season ticket holders sit, or if you’ll never get a seat less than $12 in the Promenade Outfield section which encompasses a large subset of the cheaper seats.

 

This is not a move towards being a small market team or anything.  The pricing was created off of a lot of data, meant to optimize revenue.   Adjusting prices should help them sell more tickets, and if the team remains competitive all year, the dynamic pricing will increase revenue.

 

Renewal date is coming earlier, although there will be a payment plan option.  Basically it seems the Mets want your commitment as early as possible, but are more flexible with the actual cash.  It was hinted at that you could see your 2013 invoices by this time next year.

 

Mostly there wasn’t a lot of specifics revealed in the conference call.  Dave Howard mentioned keeping the ticket fees within a reasonable percentage of the ticket price, and mentioned that Tickets.com offered best technological package and had a good relationship with MLB.  Went into the thinking of dynamic pricing without breaking down when prices would go up/down and what types of prices you could expect to see.    There will be more to come as season plans and individual ticket info is released.  I’d say the number one thing I took out of this is:   Buying tickets day of game is getting to be a worse and worse idea around sports.

 

For now, read other recaps around Metsopotamia.

Metsblog

Metspolice has a bunch today, keep checking back for analysis.

Amazin’ Avenue has a full transcript.

 

 

A Breakdown of MLB Ticket Surcharges

Chris Jaffe of the Hardball Times has been breaking down the order charges associated with baseball tickets for some time.  Yesterday he posted about some of the new numbers for this year.  The Mets were roughly middle of the pack until Citi Field opens, but now as most of you are probably aware, there is a ticket fee and an order fee.  This year they’ve added a fee to mail you the tickets, so the cheapest option is a $2.50 surcharge to print them yourself.  All teams seem to do this, despite it basically costing them nothing to email you the tickets.

 

Dilbert.com
Felt applicable to me.

 

I poked around a little bit myself with what I could find in my email regarding ticket prices over the years.   Jaffe has total costs listed back through 2007, but I found some from before that.

 

For the 2007 and 2008 Playoffs there was a $12 per ticket fee, but no order fee.

 

Jaffe lists the Mets price as $6.50 in 2007.  I don’t doubt him, but the only receipt I have from that year is for the Yankees, and it’s  $9.25. ($4.75 + $4.50)

 

In 2005 there appears to be no per ticket fee, or it was built into the price on the receipt, and there was a $3.00 order fee.  The prices of the tickets appear $6 higher than the price of the same ticket in 2004, so I suspect that’s the order fee.

 

In 2004 the per ticket fee was $6.00 and there was a $2.50 order fee.

 

So lots of order fees and surcharges through the years.  Luckily there are also ticket deals, and you still can get tickets at the ballpark without any fees at all.

Random Mets Stuff From 2003

I pulled some random Mets stuff out of the attic. Mostly magazines and ticket stubs and such.

Here’s a stub from 2002.  713B was just to the first base side of home plate.  Box B, seat 8 means we were technically the 4th row from the front.  There was probably an annoying red bar in our line of sight as well.   I don’t remember much of the game, but I went to retrosheet.org and learned that the Mets lost 9-8.  Rollins was 2/5 with a walk, that bum.  Jeff D’Amico  took the loss to fall to 4-8.

Here’s an interview with David Weathers that was printed in Volume 42, Issue 3 of Mets Magazine in 2003.  Brilliant stuff, like how he came to wear the number 35! (Marcel Lachemann had 53) I always kind of liked Weathers; I tend to like players who have names that are also things, like Weathers, Cook, or Strawberry.  I like how they show Weathers in both a black uniform, and a pinstriped one with a blue cap.  Appeal to the Shannon Shark‘s of the world, and “Generation Piazza”.

1989 Baseball Cards and Spring Training Tickets

1989 Pack of Topps Baseball Cards

I saw some old baseball cards in a vending machine today and figured I’d buy a pack.  They were only 75 cents after all and I could win a trip to 1990 Spring Training! I was a little unnerved by the 22 year old bubble gum though.

Obviously I hoped to get a Mets player.  Or at least someone else cool.  Closest I got was probably Frank Viola as a Twin.  I got four Oakland Athletics: David Parker, Storm Davis, Terry Steinback and Dave Otto.  Terry Mulholland of the Giants was there, as was Orioles #1 draft pick out of Auburn, Gregg Olson.

Speaking of Spring Training…Although if I did make it to 1990 Spring Training I might try to warn the Mets off of Generation K or tell them to outbid the Yankees, who signed Mariano Rivera as an amateur free agent that Spring…My tickets to the Mets Spring Training games came in the mail today.  I’ll be there both Friday March 18th and Saturday March  19th.  Can’t wait for it, it’s going to be a lot of fun.  Anyone else going down this year?

The Mets Read Your Blog

The Mets are the aware of blogs, and their importance to the baseball community.  This has become increasingly obvious, but it was still a shock to be invited to a conference call with Mets VP Dave Howard who not only was kind enough to do this call with us, but also confessed to reading at least one Mets blog.  He also got in a subtle dig at Yankee fans (seems to be a common topic lately) when he mentioned how passionate Mets fans are and how many more Mets blogs there are than Yankees blogs.  The topic of the day was the new ticket information; something that affects everyone from blogging fans to casual fans.   For specific details about the new pricing schemes, giveaways, and breakdowns (and really for future details, since he’s always on top of it) go read Mets Police’s breakdown. On the Black has a recap of the call as well, as do others that I haven’t yet seen this morning.

We are that next bridge to the masses of Mets fans.  The casual/mainstream fan base is out there, not on Twitter and not blogging, but they’re out there in the world. They’re coworkers, friends, family, the UPS guy, and the girl you buy your coffee from in the morning. They don’t always follow closely.  They may not read the papers to stay up to date on the Mets transactions. They don’t get text messages that read “Mets got Johan!”  Their number one source of Mets news is you and me.

Many of us that are “Big Mets Fan” have become, by way of our enthusiasm, the go to person to ask about the Mets.  That enthusiasm spreads; if we’re excited about the team we start talking about it with the more casual fans.  We ask the UPS guy at work if he saw the game, we linger buying our bagel in the morning because the cashier wants to know who was pitching last night.

We are a conduit of Mets excitement, and the idea that Alderson and the Mets are aware of Twitter and blogs is a pleasing one.  The initial reaction to a 62 year old man is not usually one that’s comfortable with some of these social media advances.  The Mets over the past year or so have been communicating more and more with bloggers and fans directly.  They’ve created a Facebook page and a Twitter account and even let fans get involved in the process sometimes.  So far it looks like Sandy Alderson is aware of the changing world and how it applies to baseball. This means more to me than some success he had in a different world with a different team 20 years ago.

So far the words Alderson speak give me hope that the actions he needs to take over the next five months and beyond will help take us to the playoffs consistently.  He’ll have a lot to do this offseason, and I’m hoping most Mets fans are as optimistic about our new general manager when the season starts as they are now.  If Alderson can keep us happy and excited, that excitement will trickle down the line as we talk up the Mets, as we talk up our new and old players.  I don’t believe more fans will buy season tickets because of a GM, but if he’s paying attention to the most rabid of us, I do believe more fans will believe a Mets game is a valid use of their entertainment dollar as the season gets going.

Will I Be Lonely At The Citi Tonight?

I’m going to Citi Field, courtesy of a non baseball-watching friend who got two tickets for donating blood. (I actually haven’t figured out whom to give the spare one to) The Mets are virtually out of it, merely at .500, and 8 full games away from even sniffing a playoff spot.  I’m not going to say “It’s over” because stranger things have happened, but until they rattle off a streak better than 4-3, even I’m not going to be hanging on every game like it’s a pennant race.  So will anyone be out at the game tonight? Someone suggested I should try the dunk tank and pretend it’s Oliver Perez sitting on it.  I’ll explore the free giveaways at the Verizon Studio, and see if the seasonal beers have changed to fall yet.

Will the lines at Shake Shack be short?  Or will they be longer as more people are willing to walk away from watching the game for a great burger?

Will the crowd get into the game if it’s a good game?  Or will they mostly be disinterested and focus on booing guys like Castillo?

Will people leave early, even if it’s a close game?  If the score is 6-2 can I expect the stands to be virtually empty by the 9th?  Will they be mostly empty even if it’s 4-3?

Personally I’ll be looking forward to a good pitching matchup (Johnson vs. Dickey) and looking forward to Dickey reaching the minimum innings required to qualify for the ERA list, on which he’d be in the top 10.

I’m watching the game from section 337, row 4.  That’s Left Field Landing, and somewhere I’ve never sat before.  Always enjoy the new vantage points, and row 4 probably isn’t overly obscured like the back rows of that section are.  I’ll also probably roam at random taking pictures of everything.  If you see a guy with a camera pointing at odd things wearing a Mets Hall of Fame cap and a Wright last season at Shea jersey…probably me.

Did Wednesday’s Lost Cost the Mets Millions?

Animated Gif Money (18)How much money did Wednesday’s loss cost the Mets?  The different between 15-13 and 16-12 is huge, as is bouncing back from a bad series with the Phillies with a winning one against a lesser team.  The Mets after their awesome home stand had a ton of good will brewing in the fan base, but they threw it all away with a miserable road trip.

Even if the Mets split the road trip, I think most fans would still be feeling good about the team.  They’d buy tickets, they’d head out to Citi Field to see the Giants, and more importantly, to see the Mets.  The Nationals come in again next week, and who really wants to see the Nationals if the Mets are playing poorly?  (Besides die-hards like me, who’s probably going to two of those games)

So, how many fans are going to now stay home for this stretch of games? 5000 a game? 10000?  The Mets haven’t been drawing well, it’s not yet summer, and they’re coming off some bad play. Between ticket prices, parking, concessions, and souvenirs the Mets are going to end up missing out on a lot of money that they may have gotten just off one more win.

I’m sure the Mets are aware of this.  They know what the perception of the team is, and they have access to their own records and attendance figures.  While the answer isn’t as simple as a player move, or a bad lineup, you wonder where the Mets would be and how we’d feel about the team if they’d cut Gary Matthews Jr, Frank Catalanotto, or Fernando Tatis for Chris Carter, Nick Evans or Jason Pridie.  How much better would we feel if Jerry Manuel rested relievers better, didn’t rest Castillo for Cora one game in each of the last three series, or didn’t stick with guys like Gary Matthews or Mike Jacobs when everyone else realizes they have nothing to offer?

So the Mets are aware of the problem, and know some of the problem areas.  It seems unlikely they’ll wise up and get a decent manager in here, but I’d definitely bet on the roster being shaken up a bit.  I think the Mets trust a guy like Carter over some kind of center field replacement like Jason Pridie or Jesus Feliciano, but I’ve been wrong before.  Maybe the Mets are leaning towards sparking excitement through young players, such as they did with Ike Davis when Chris Carter may have done.  Could it be that Fernando Martinez could be the starting centerfielder on Friday against the Giants?