Major League Baseball tickets are far too expensive for the average fan, and that has to change.
Baseball has been struggling to bring in fans for years as the nation’s pastime has been forgotten in the past. Tickets, concessions and parking prices are too high for the average MLB ticket, and the league must address this fact to keep the sport alive and well.
Football is the most popular sport in the United States, as a Gallup poll found 41 percent of Americans prefer the gridiron game. Baseball was about as popular as basketball, with both being chosen by just over 10 percent of participants. The numbers are even more appalling with younger fans, as most picked basketball and soccer over baseball.
Baseball used to be America’s game that everyone watched and loved. Now, it is yet another option as football has overtaken the national pastime. The average fan is getting older as fewer kids are interested in baseball. It’s telling that a sport like soccer, which barely existed in the United States 30 years ago, is now more popular than baseball with kids.
MLB attendance has been falling as the sport loses popularity. This season, teams are averaging 27,398 fans per game after averaging 29,373 fans last season. Those numbers are down from the league’s average of 30,000-plus fans from the 2004 season through the 2016 season. For example, the 2023 season brought in 70 million fans, down nine million from 2007.
MLB tickets are expensive across the league. The Miami Marlins have the cheapest average ticket price, at $44, and are the only team with an average ticket price under $50. An average ticket price of $44 is insane for a team as bad as the Marlins, one of the least popular teams in baseball.
One of the worst offenders is the Los Angeles Dodgers with a $177 median ticket price. Meanwhile, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has applauded teams like the Dodgers for raising prices to make up for high payrolls.
“You can’t have it all ways, right?” Manfred said. “The Dodgers have made a massive financial commitment in terms of players, and they have to run a business that supports that massive financial commitment.”
Recently, Manfred also told Dodgers fans to drive south into Orange County to see the rival Los Angeles Angels for cheaper ticket prices, an egregious idea for any true fan.
“One of the leaders in terms of thinking about affordability has been the other Los Angeles team,” Manfred said.
The numbers don’t look much better across the league, as most teams fall within the $70 to $100 range. Last season, the average ticket price was a whopping $140 across the MLB. Locally, it costs an average of $78 to watch an Arizona Diamondbacks game at Chase Field.
Going to a baseball game is a special experience unlike any other. While most football stadiums and basketball arenas are uniform, baseball parks have unique charm. Camden Yards is known for its warehouse in right field, Wrigley Field has its ivy walls and Fenway Park has the Green Monster.
Each park has something unique to bring to the table, making them incredibly fun places to visit. There’s nothing like visiting a new stadium and seeing all of its quirks and unique pieces before sitting back with a beer and a hot dog.
All of these unique elements make baseball more interesting and inviting. Baseball games are a place to talk to friends and family and bond as the game unfolds. You’d be hard pressed to find such touching moments at basketball, football, or soccer games.
I recently went to a Diamondbacks game with my friends. We sat in the left field bleachers and chatted as the Diamondbacks scored run after run. We celebrated and laughed together while enjoying a fun day at the ballpark. What made the experience so enjoyable because I didn’t pay for my ticket. My friend did and forked over $40 per ticket for decent bleacher seats, and over $30 for our food and drink.
“I believe the lower section seats, especially in the regular season, should be lower considering that not many people have time to go to games, whereas for students, they will have more time after class or sometime in the morning,” ASU student Ethan Troll said.
This epitomizes what is wrong with the MLB. There’s no reason a sport with 162 games per year should have such expensive tickets. It is understandable why football tickets are pricey, as most teams have about eight home games a year, but baseball? It is baffling to think someone should pay an average ticket price of $78 to watch a midweek baseball game or a day game.
It gets even worse when looking at concession and parking prices. Parking by Chase Field can run anywhere from $40 to $60 on average. Once inside the ballpark, fans typically pay over $15 for a beer and helmet nachos that can be over $20.
“The concession and food prices are definitely the most expensive, and it would probably be as much as your ticket,” ASU student Jayce Cicinelli said.
Sure, these prices are fine for older fans with plenty of disposable income, but the same can’t be said for the fans baseball needs to draw in. The MLB needs to do its part to bring in more college students and young adults. The best way to do this is to provide cheap ticket options for them.
Chase Field in Phoenix has over 48,000 seats. So far this season, the Diamondbacks have averaged just over 30,000 fans per home game. This means there are nearly 18,000 open seats per game that younger fans could buy. It is hard to justify why tickets should cost so much, given that an entire NBA arena’s worth of seats are left empty every game.
“(Lower prices) would definitely be able to bring more people in, and the public would notice that and be in support of the lower prices, who wouldn’t want to take lower prices?” Troll said.
Chase Field has a large upper deck and two deep sections of bleachers in left and right field. The upper deck is only ever full for Opening Day or the playoffs. Normally, few fans crowd into the sections closer to home plate as dozens of fans spread out across the rest of the upper deck.
With so many open seats, an easy fix would be to list these excess tickets for cheap. Surely, 18,000 fans paying $20 per ticket is better than 18,000 empty seats. Those empty seats don’t buy concessions or merchandise; fans do.
The Diamondbacks are in a unique position to benefit from bringing in more college students and young adults. Arizona State University boasts over 10,000 students at the nearby Downtown Phoenix campus, blocks from Chase Field. Furthermore, downtown Phoenix is filled with young
professionals living by the stadium and on Roosevelt Row. Both demographics could bring in thousands more fans per game if the Diamondbacks realize they are there.
“I would like for the prices to be a little lower because it is a far drive for me and I might have to go get gas, which is obviously expensive to this day,” Troll said. “I would like to go to more games because of the ticket prices and mileage.”
Baseball is an amazing sport that needs to be kept alive for generations to come. The sport is exciting with home runs and stolen bases, and perfect for families, young adults, retirees and everyone in between.
It’s time for Manfred and the MLB to make tickets cheaper to save the sport we love.
