Hey fans, Scrappers' ticket prices will stay the same

Ticket prices for the Scrappers' eighth season will range from $5 to $8.
By JOHN BASSETTI
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
AUSTINTOWN -- What hasn't risen in price in the last eight years?
Gasoline? Hardly.
Milk? 'Nope.'
Taxes? Sorry.
The answer: Mahoning Valley Scrappers ticket prices.
With that enticement, the front office staff of the Valley's minor league baseball team for the 2006 season can take a bow.
The skeptical fan might equate a no-change with an inferior product, but that's not the case.
Although the 2005 team didn't have the same results as 2004 when Mahoning Valley won the New York-Penn League championship, each season is an adventure.
Regardless, with ticket prices still ranging from $5 to $8, what's the beef?
As general manager, Dave Smith used Tuesday's press conference at the Country Inn and Suites to release the schedule of the Cleveland Indians' Class A short-season team.
Jim Riley, assistant general manager of marketing/communications, used it for promotional purposes for the team's 76-game season.
"We embark on our eighth season in a little over a month," Smith said of Mahoning Valley's June 20 game in Jamestown against the Jammers.
Home opener June 23
The Scrappers' first home game at Eastwood Field will be June 23 against the Williamsport Crosscutters.
Smith boasted that the local minor league affiliate has drawn over 1.2 million fans in its first seven seasons. Last season's average was 4,200 per game.
"It's a tribute to fan support and longevity," the GM said of the franchise's attendance history.
Smith stressed that the Scrappers, a subsidiary of Palisades Baseball of California, is in the final year of its current player development contract with the Indians. He said the local franchise should have no problem renewing the P.D.C. for another two years.
"Whether it's single-A or triple-A, the player development contracts with the Indians are standard, either two years or four years.
"We have had no problems over eight seasons," Smith said. "We have a two-year agreement and it would seem to be a 'no-brainer' that we'll renew by the end of this season."
He said pitcher C.C. Sabathia and catcher Victor Martinez of Cleveland's major league team and Washington Nationals outfielder Ryan Church are the most recognizable former Scrappers.
But, if there's one marketing drawback to being a low-level farm system, it's getting new talent, mostly out of college via the draft.
"The toughest part is getting top prospects in the second or fourth round and then promoting them," Smith said. "After they've made a major league name for themselves, we [Scrappers' marketing] have to fall back on those players."
Fun and affordability
Both Smith and Riley stressed the fun and affordability of any minor league team.
"A general admission ticket is the same as it was in 1999 -- that hasn't changed in eight years," Smith said. "A 16-ounce beer is $3 and a hot dog is $2.50. When it's Buck Night, a family of four could get tickets and fed for less than $30."
The league has been realigned, with the Scrappers' Pinckney Division going from four teams to six, with the addition of Williamsport and State College (Pa.).
Williamsport and State College, formerly the New Jersey Cardinals, were in the McNamara Division last season.
Now, the McNamara has been reduced to four teams and the Stedler Division remains a four-team division.
Mahoning Valley will play each team in its division 10 times with the exception being 12 times against the Jammers.
bassetti@vindy.com