New Yankee Stadium...Empty
by cursedcleveland on Apr 20, 2009 2:02 PM EDT
107 comments
I had the great pleasure of going to the 22-4 drubbing of the New York Yankees at the hands of America's Team, The Cleveland Indians. While the stadium was very impressive there was a very glaring problem with the place---the premium seating area was EMPTY. Everyone saw it, everyone pointed it out, and everyone was kinda pissed about it. You can't even get access to that level without a ticket so if you want to get a close up view of the game you can't. Also, if your kid wants to get a chance at an autograph or a handshake before or after the game from his favorite player, good luck. He better have a $500 allowance to pay for that seat cuz he ain't getting anywhere near that field. It is a huge problem and takes away from the overall feel of the stadium. The Jake Progressive field is better IMO.
0 recs |
107 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
This story really isn’t that interesting or at least compared to the coverage it’s gotten. The jackasses missed on the demand for these seats, and part of that was not properly accounting for how the recent economic conditions affected that.
I don’t know if they missed on the demand or not. Maybe over the short term, I guess, but at some point during the life span of that stadium those seats will be full of jackasses. It’s not like nobody on Wall Street is ever going to make way too much money ever again.
But what drives me crazy is that even if this is a miscalculation, the Yankees can afford to make it and still end up making money hand over fist.
by still ill on Apr 20, 2009 3:03 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
What guys on Wall St. that are making too much money can go to a Thursday and/or Friday early afternoon baseball game? The people who could afford those seats were probably, you know, working.
Also, I agree with Clark – this just really isn’t that interesting. They are jackasses. If they care about filling the seats they’ll lower the price.
by jakesinger777 on Apr 20, 2009 5:02 PM EDT up reply actions
It wasn’t just the weekday games. I was at the saturday game, the weather was perfect, and there was an entire sections of empties.
Yeah, Saturday I was given 4 tickets in the “legends” section 28 down the 3rd base line and there were maybe 20 people seated; There were a group of Tribe fans in the front row (also wearing Bisons and Aeros gear. Nice!), and we felt like it was our own private, “private” section since there were so few others around us. Definitely very weird and in part took away from the excitement of a remarkable game. The section just past ours was virtually empty and there were loads of empty seats all the rest of the way around towards first base.
If , in fact, they do have such a large number of unsold premium seats, as good PR they should fill them with a random selection of fans from the “cheap” seats. Especially for weekend games. Better yet, get those seats filled with families and kids. Since you have to go through a validation process and get a wrist band they could easily “tag” those upgrades so that while they get the seats they are limited as to what they can consume for free (if that was a concern).
Premium seats that are sold to corporations could also carry a stipulation that requires a certain percentage (say 75%) of their seats to always be filled. Confirmation must be made “x” hours before game time or the tickets will be offered up as free upgrades to families, kids groups or resold at discount with the proceeds going to charity.
I will say that while getting a huge selection of free food/snacks and non-alcoholic beverages while sitting in luxury seats is
a “treat”, it is only that because it is something I don’t get as a regular experience. It is not something I would ever want to get used to as my experience at a ballgame. I would much rather be surrounded by fans of the game (whatever their allegiances), rather than by those more worried about the sushi selection than what is happening on the field.
I was the guy in the cream colored jersey with the ’48 script “Indians”. I was with a group of four about 5 rows behind you towards the middle. My girlfriend came down by you a few times with my glove to try and get the ballboy to toss her a ball.
It was pretty funny in the fifth when DeRosa hit his 3 run shot; you or one of your group threw a big handful(s) of cracker jack or fries (or something) way up into the air like confetti. The emptiness around us prevented anyone from getting pissed about that. You guys were sure egging on that screaming guy off to the left and that group further behind us got pretty worked up about our celebrations.
Unfortunately, the Tribe won’t be back in town this regular season but some of us NYC/Manhattan LGTers should get together for a Mets or Yankees game just for the hell of it. Or better yet, meet up for some beers and watch Indians baseball. Any interest?
Oh yes I remember you and your group. Kind of BS your lady didn’t get a ball, because he gave them to a couple other people (he denied a Yankee fan in our group too).
Those Yankee fans were definitely tough… especially the two Puerto Rican ladies. They are, uh, not fans of Cleveland. The “confetti” wasn’t me… i swear.
I actually don’t live in NYC anymore as I moved to Chicago a little over a year ago. I just came in for the weekend to check out the game.
I saw a pretty good total of Injuns fans at the park that day, but I was the only one who also had Cavs/LeBron gear on (I thought that number would be a li’l higher).
by JulioBernazard on Apr 21, 2009 3:27 PM EDT up reply actions
or maybe
those were all seats bought by Lehman brother at the end of last season :P
Since this is a Yankee bashing thread, thought I would throw this up here:
Also, since this is also about empty seats, check out last night’s Marlins/Pirates game. 8,090 was the announced crowd. There are probably 2000 people that showed up.
On this site, we hate small sample sizes when related to the Tribe, but love them when they relate to NYY.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 21, 2009 11:48 AM EDT up reply actions
Where do I go to find Choo’s (presumably ghastly) UZR?
by JulioBernazard on Apr 21, 2009 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions
^ er, Fangraphs, apparently. My bad.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 21, 2009 11:53 AM EDT up reply actions
Any sample that makes the Tribe look good, and the Jackasses look like said, is large enough for me….
Any sample that does the opposite is obviously too small.
by Logodaedalus on Apr 21, 2009 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions
Actually, the former company was called Lehman Brothers. Lehman Brothers Bank still exists and the holding is now part of Barclays. I am not sure how anyone in their right mind would spend that kind of money on seats even in the hey day. However, the stadium is awesome. It has much better site lines. A 1.6 billion stadium should be better than the Jake.
Baseball fans are junkies, and their heroin is the statistic. - Robert S. Wieder
I loved the old Yankee Stadium
And what I’m saying is that they took all of those intimate qulaities that made that stadium great and didn’t incorporate them in the new design. The old stadium made you feel, as a fan, that you were part of the game and the focus of the stadium and the fans was on the field. The focus of this stadium is brought inside and directed towards museums, merchandise stores, and concessions. It seems like 1.6 billion bought them one huge tv and a bunch of little ones because no one is bothering to watch them in person. It has a very cold feeling to it that I’m not sure they can fix this year.
by cursedcleveland on Apr 21, 2009 10:47 AM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Look CC – I love the irony – the place was a hell-hole and truly a shadow of its former self and was never, ever a great place to watch a baseball game. No other viewpoint is exceptable.
Resident LGT results-oriented boob.
That's simply not true
it was a great place to watch a baseball game. Of course it didn’t have the amenities that today’s ballpark’s have but the atmosphere made it one of the most fun places to see a game. Without a doubt
by cursedcleveland on Apr 22, 2009 11:25 AM EDT up reply actions
I’ve been to about a dozen ballparks and the old Yankee was easily the worst, and I have a hard time believing any venue was worse by 2008 (Shea might’ve been as bad, but I haven’t been). Being able to take the train there was the only pleasant feature.
And I’m putting aside the personalities from my thoughts, and thinking only of its material elements. Old Yankee Stadium sucked.
The last renovation really killed it, from what I’ve heard, which is why there wasn’t much of a preservationist outcry about it.
Never been to old Yankee Stadium, but I never really wanted too. It always got terrible reviews. I hate the Yankees, but I do appreciate their history and love baseball history generally. I’ve been to Wrigley and really want to get to Fenway, but never had a desire to go to Yankee Stadium.
I trust you never went to 3 Rivers, Riverfront, or the Vet?
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 3:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Worse than Wrigley?
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 22, 2009 4:42 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t mean to say I hate Wrigley, but I wasn’t super impressed. Especially by the caliber of “fan” there. It’s old. There’s Ivy. Other than that, meh. I bet it was a much better place to be back before this whole “lovable losers” thing got out of control.
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 22, 2009 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions
I love Wrigley for lack of pumped-in pop music, video gimmicks, and proximity of seats to the playing field. It makes most other major league “entertainment experiences” seem like the low minors.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 5:02 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
^ lack of pumped-in pop music & video gimmicks, and the proximity of the seats to the playing field
(didn’t want it to read like there was a lack of proximity to the playing field)
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 5:04 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t know why so many folks on this blog crap on Wrigely as much as they do.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions
Maybe I just had a bad experience.
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 22, 2009 7:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed. I loved Wrigley. The first game I went to there was a few years ago. They were in last place, playing the 5th place Pirates- Weekend in Summer, and a beautiful day. I scalped tickets because it was sold out. Got in during the top of the first. Was looking for my seat and peaked a look before we went to the second level: Pirates grounded into a double play to end the top of the inning, it was a semi-close play at first. The place exploded in cheers. Like it was the last out of the world series. I fell in love with the place at that moment. The rest of the game was just pure baseball. No gimmicks, no flare. Just baseball. I didn’t care about the two terrible NL teams, but I loved being at that game because of the atmosphere of the stadium and the surrounding area.
by Ryan Kelsey on Apr 22, 2009 10:12 PM EDT up reply actions
I think I need to lighten up, probably
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 22, 2009 10:57 PM EDT up reply actions
I really want to see Wrigley. Number 1 stadium I want to see. (#2 definitely camden in baltimore to compare to prog)
"Mixed emotions. Rather see him hit PEDroia [with that pitch]. I don’t care if he is in the dugout"
by Gradysmanldy on Apr 23, 2009 11:50 PM EDT up reply actions
Wrigley is the only old stadium I haven’t seen yet. Although I did miss out on Tiger Stadium. Beenn to Fenway and the old Yankee Stadium back in ’99, squeezed around a few days in Cooperstown.
yeah, I was also trying to do the visit all the parks once upon a time. I’ve made it to the following:
Cle (Jake and Muni), Fenway, Yankee Old, Atlanta (new), Arizona, Colorado, Dodgers, Angels, A’s, San Francisco (Candlestick and AT&T). Will be adding Seattle to my list this year though.
I’ll play.
Jake, municipal, river front, great american, camden, new comisky, wrigley, safeco, fenway, old yankees, skydome, new detroit, tigers stadium, milwaukee.
seattle is one of my highest ranked, actually.
Cincinnatti? Detroit? I mean, c’mon. I hope you really don’t think Detroit is nicer than Pittsburgh.
Though I look right at home, I still feel like an exile
by Manhattan Tribe Fan on Apr 24, 2009 2:47 PM EDT up reply actions
went to school in cincy. had a buddy/it’s an easy drive to detroit from here. pittsburgh is just far enough out of my way and i have no secondary reason to visit that it’s never happened.
Pittsburgh is in and of itself enough secondary reason to visit PNC. Seriously. I hate the Steelers as much as any Ohioan coming of age in the 1970s, but there is a lot to like about 21st century Pittsburgh.
I’ve been to pittsburgh, buy not since PNC has been there. i don’t not completely beleive you, but it’s likely that i die without ever going back, unless that it’s because PNC is my last of the MLB parks i have left to visit and i need to cross it off. if i’m taking time off and spending money, i’m visiting europe, new york, or even milwaukee. or family and friends in their cities. in fact, 99 times out of 100, that kind of trip is just going to end up in cleveland and the Jake where i don’t get as much as i want to as it is.
I almost included Milwaukee with the other two, but I have a weird idea that I’d love it if I ever went there.
Though I look right at home, I still feel like an exile
by Manhattan Tribe Fan on Apr 24, 2009 4:35 PM EDT up reply actions
Miller Park is great for all the reasons people usually mention — acres and acres of tailgating, the roof, the brats — but it’s under-rated as a place to watch a ballgame. Good sightlines, very relaxed and comfortable.
by fleerdon on Apr 26, 2009 10:02 AM EDT up reply actions
I’ll jump in.
Jake, Municipal, Fenway, old Yankee Stadium, Shea, Skydome, PNC, Tiger Stadium, Comerica, Wrigley, new Comisky, Busch Stadium III, Kaufman, Ballpark in Arlington, Coors Field, AT &T, Jack Murphy Stadium, and the Kingdome.
Some of these stadiums I was a little young to probably judge accurately.
I like Fenway the best out of the old parks. Kaufman the best out of the middle generation stadiums. The Jake is my favorite of the mallparks, how could I go with anything else?
Of the other mallparks, I’ll second PNC and Pittsburgh as a city. AT &T is pretty awesome as well, and I’ve started to become somewhat partial to Busch III.
I was just there last night. I like Wrigley Field a great deal-awesome scorebard, awesome neighborhood, the whole deal.
That said, as somebody who grew up in the Camden Yards era I can see why Wrigley isn’t universally loved. Wrigley is:
1-Unbelievably filthy, or at least filthy seeming. (Bathrooms with troughs? I don’t even think that’s legal any more).
2-Has as many bad seats as good ones it seems-I have sat all over the park (excluding bleachers) and have seen seats with severely compromised site lines (no one in the back five to ten rows of the lower bowl can see the scoreboard).
3-The food is terrible (no infrastructure).
4-The bathrooms are so few and far between.
That said, I always have a good time there. However, I often don’t watch much of the game.
OMG, i was there last night, too. SAMEZIES!
your breakdown is pretty accurate. there high douchebag ratio and high number of people not following the game at all are also a problems of mine with going to games there.
OK good, I’m not the only one who feels that way. I also agree with Andrew’s complaints.
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 23, 2009 3:23 PM EDT up reply actions
So the bathrooms are unsanitary and more than a little disgusting, but at least there aren’t very many of them.
I like Wrigley a lot. Of all the dumps ballparks we baseball fans apologize for based on nostalgia, it’s the one I’d least like to see disappear.
Actually, I was thinking of all the stadiums that have been mercifully replaced, such as Tiger Stadium, Old Yankee Stadium, et al. Places that we wouldn’t praise if they weren’t old. Kind of like some people I know, now that I think about it.
I’ve never been to Fenway.
I see. The other day, I was watching a Rockies game and the announcers mentioned that Coors Field (built in ’95) is now the 4th oldest stadium (soon to be 3rd) in the National League behind Wrigley, Dodger Stadium, and Dolphin Stadium.
I liked Tiger Stadium, but agree wholeheartedly on Yankee Stadium.
You guys talking about Wrigley makes me long for ol’ Cleveland Muny. Same stuff – dirty, few restrooms, shriveled hot dogs floating in green water, stale buns, warm Black Label beer, a support post every 20 feet and cold – don’t forget cold – and windy too. But man I luved – just luved – going to that park and sitting with those bull-frogged voiced baseball crazies. Now that was a great baseball experience!!
Resident LGT results-oriented boob.
Other than the bad seats problem, I can tell you never went to a football game in college.
Though I look right at home, I still feel like an exile
by Manhattan Tribe Fan on Apr 24, 2009 2:12 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t know what the best park in baseball is, but I know the worst. The abomination currently known as Metro Bank Park, home of the Harrisburg Senators. Built on an island in the middle of the Susquehanna River, during night games the crowds are subject to mayfly infestations that make the Fausto Game look like a fig-leaf-less romp through Eden. At the time (no idea if this is still true), it was accessible primarily through a metal pedestrian bridge from downtown, which made the game I attended that was postponed due to a lightning storm somewhat, um, interesting.
Bathrooms with troughs: Years of experience have proved you can get more men to urinate more efficiently with troughs. If you want your own separate urinal, go stand in line. There used to be troughs at Municipal as I remember.
Oh, wait, really? It’s for efficiency? I had no idea.
The point is this is clearly not something that anyone puts into a new building and it seems pretty obvious it’s for sanitary reasons.
In U.S. Cellular, the single urinals replacing the old troughs of Comiskey mean big lines between innings. I don’t see any sanitary disadvantages. I think it’s just city codes, and another way for some plumbing contractor to make a killing at the public expense.
I’d heard about that kind of stuff. Plumbers unions are tough. Someone told me that the Philly plumbers union resisted using PVC outlets and low-flush toilets for the longest time because there’s less labor in their installation.
No trace of troughs in the International Building Code. For kicks I’ll check the Existing building code at work tomorrow. Obviously a trough wouldn’t be up to current ADA accessibility standards (eg ANSI / ADAAG). I wonder how friendly Wrigley’s confines are for the handicapped.
There’s some minimum number of facilities based on building occupancy. Most stadiums are probably well over the minimum limit for their class (taking into account things like beer consumption and a “rush” cycle).
I heard somewhere that there were fewer than 1000 port-a-johns on the National Mall for the most recent 1+ million crowd. Somehow people managed.
I think, though I’m too lazy to look it up, that Chicago still doesn’t permit PVC pipe, because of the influence of the plumbers’ union.
Wrigley, like most structures of its time, is terrible for ADA access. But there are plenty of people in wheelchairs watching the game whenever I’m there. They must have some special access and facilities.
Internationally, what about Oktoberfest or pissoirs in Paris? Those are troughs.
The port-a-john is another racket, but one for every 1,000 wouldn’t work on a hot day with people drinking beer.
Ah yes, PVC pipe. Great stuff for – oh I dunno – about 20 years. Get back to me when your PVC pipe gets brittle and starts to crack – like mine is out here on the island. And oh yeah, ya think I can get a refund from the plumber who installed this crap on my $1.2k water bill for last month?
Resident LGT results-oriented boob.
Here’s a link from Neyer’s blog, for those curious as to what it looked like. That’s exactly where JimmyAb and I were sitting.. and frankly, I don’t remember it being that crowded..
The game [Tuesday] was played in front of 11,408 fans, the smallest crowd in the history of Progressive Field, which opened in 1994.
Probably time for us to StFU about attendance at other parks.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 10:26 AM EDT reply actions 3 recs
To be fair, the Yankees won’t be worrying about competing with a Knicks playoff game until we’re talking about the New New Yankee Stadium.
by FredOx on Apr 22, 2009 11:28 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
feel free to edit it; that part is not entirely necessary
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Yikes
I'm *always* in the driver's seat, cugino -- Chuck
by Turkmenbashi on Apr 22, 2009 12:01 PM EDT up reply actions
I’m not defending jackasses, I just don’t see why we’re celebrating recession-inspired drops in attendance.
by JulioBernazard on Apr 22, 2009 3:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Cuz it might – just might – throw the Yankees into an economic death spiral. My main life fantasy could then come to fruition – the complete, total and irreversible destruction of the New York Yankees. Itta be worth living in a washer/drier box on the beach for a year or two.
Resident LGT results-oriented boob.
by mauichuck on Apr 23, 2009 12:57 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
The problem is, we don’t need them to be destroyed, just rendered ineffective. They need to keep spending absurd amounts of money and missing the playoffs.
Sometimes, I just like to b****.
but as long as they keep spending absurd amounts of money — regardless of their performance — they will be messing up the market for everyone else…
by Logodaedalus on Apr 28, 2009 6:24 PM EDT up reply actions
We must settle for nothing less then their total and absolute destruction.
by odradek on Apr 29, 2009 12:12 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
Featured Stories
FanShots
Quick hits of video, photos, quotes, chats, links and lists that you find around the web.
Recent FanShots
In Association With
Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
- Padres just scratch their heads as losing streak reaches 10
- The Juice: Marlins get off the deck, stun Braves in extras
- Papelbon's implosion, comment, make Red Sox want to scream
- Rangers fall after Young gets touchy feely with third base coach
- Tony La Russa vs. Colby Rasmus: Who ya throwing overboard?
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
