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World Series bucks the trend
Sunday, October 26, 2008 By Linda Maher
The baseball World Series got under way last week, with tickets for the best-of-seven game championship defying the credit crunch and selling out, despite ticket prices which ranged from $50 to $250.

The Philadelphia Phillies are taking on the Tampa Bay Rays, and broadcaster Fox has sold about 97 per cent of its advertising slots for the first five games, with rates up by ‘‘mid to high single digits’’ from last year, according to a spokesman.

While World Series tickets are selling well, teams are aware that they will have to tighten their belts before the start of next season.

Of the four major sports in the US - baseball, basketball, ice hockey and American football - baseball has the lowest average ticket price at just $25.48.

However, baseball teams have to fill the seats for 81 home games, twice as many as the NBA and ten times as many as the NFL.

The teams have been trying to promote the affordability and value of going to baseball games.

The Texas Rangers are selling a package of ten games for $99, and plan to expand the all-you-can-eat sections, while the Houston Astros are examining more discount plans.

The San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds have frozen the cost of tickets for 2009, while the Washington Nationals, Oakland Athletics and San Diego Padres have lowered ticket prices by as much as 25 per cent.

While ticket sales account for most of the revenue for teams, the industry is supported by $5.4 billion in national television contracts with ESPN, Fox and Turner Sports that run until 2013.

The teams also receive money from MLB.com and will begin to get payouts from the MLB Network, which starts broadcasting in January. These deals may be renegotiated, however, as firms aim to save money wherever possible.

The credit crunch and stock market collapse are also hurting corporate sponsorship. The Mariners lost Washington Mutual as a sponsor after it was bailed out by JP Morgan, and the Arizona Diamondbacks need to find another advertiser after Riviera Pools filed for bankruptcy.

There is a plan of action, however: Major League Baseball is planning to hold meetings after the World Series to discuss the best way for teams to operate in an economic slump.

The sport this season had record revenue of $6.5 billion and attendance 1 per cent below the all-time high set last year, according to Bob DuPuy, the league’s president.

‘‘We have positioned ourselves the best we can,” DuPuy said. ‘‘Until we model it and get team projections for next year, I don’t know if our revenue will be higher or lower, but I would think holding our own would be admirable.”

For those who are really worried about the financial bottom falling out of baseball, consider this: both the New York Yankees and Mets are moving into new ballparks next season, with the Mets having sold its 49 luxury suites for as much as $500,000 a season, while the Yankees have seven left to sell at $600,000.

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