Friday, April 20, 2001
The last Major League Baseball season before the next great contract squabble is only three weeks old, but already, some interesting economic trends have developed.
With the opening of PNC Park in Pittsburgh, analysts have been wondering how the Pirates would handle rainouts.
Up until now, the Pirates often scheduled makeup games as part of doubleheaders. Those days are over.
Tuesday's game with the Astros was snowed out and has been rescheduled for a Saturday afternoon game in mid-summer (July 28).
Now, who wouldn't trade tickets for a cold April game for a summer afternoon?
Change of policy: On the other hand, the Pirates' liberal policy of rainout exchanges is gone. In the past, the Pirates would trade rainout stubs for any comparable ticket available for the rest of the season.
Not any more. Tuesday's tickets can only be used at the July 28 game that opens the Bucs' first day-night doubleheader.
The only problem with this policy (Indians fans face the same dilemma) is if the makeup date comes in the same week and fans have trouble rearranging their schedules on short notice.
The good news for the Pirates is that the ballclub will receive revenue from 81 contests. If they are to be competitive against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Astros and the Chicago Cubs, the Bucs need every penny they can get from ticket sales.
That's not a bad thing, but it's a change not every consumer may appreciate.
By now, everyone knows most of the Cleveland Indians' remaining home games have tickets available. The Jacobs Field sellout streak ended on the second game of the season, and a new streak doesn't appear likely to develop until mid-summer at best.
Teams on top: You can't blame Northeast Ohio baseball fans for being pensive. Five consecutive American League Central Division Championships meant five playoff berths and two World Series.
They've been willing to open their wallets and embrace the team, but they're holding out after last year's playoffs miss.
That spillover has affected nearby cities, specifically Chicago and Detroit. Unlike recent seasons when Tribe fans were very noticeable at some road games, last week's Indians games at Comiskey Park and Comerica Park didn't benefit from an attendance surge by Ohio fans.
Maybe it's too early in the season or too cold for Tribe fans to travel, but the bloom appears to be off the rose.
Cleveland isn't the only city turning somewhat of a cold shoulder to successful baseball. Last week, the attendance at a Diamondbacks game in Phoenix set the record for lowest attendance at Bank One Ballpark.
What's interesting here is how the Diamondbacks have been baseball's most successful expansion team.
Monday, Atlanta fans broke the one-day-old Turner Field record for low attendance (24,015) even though Greg Maddux was throwing for the Braves against the Marlins.
Baseball's economic gold rush created by new ballparks and refurbished stadiums seems to be tapping out. Declining attendance at new ballparks makes one wonder if baseball across the country is becoming pass & eacute;?
Pointing fingers: If so, baseball has itself to blame. The parents of today's elementary-age children have grown up with prime-time World Series games that end late on weeknights on the West Coast.
Without championship memories to thrill them, baseball is just another game to many, just another entertainment choice.
What's troubling about this trend is that if the successful clubs aren't making dollars at the box office, how willing will they be to correct baseball's economic imbalance?
XTom Williams covers Major League Baseball for The Vindicator.