Don't mean to beat this to death....

[Rick2583]

Just something I saw that I wanted to share..........

Attendance over the last 6 years.............

2008 = 4.3M
2009 = 3.7M
2010 = 3.7M
2011 = 3.6M
2012 = 3.5M
2013 = 3.3M

Sooner or later (I hope) some owner is going to figure out why attendance is shrinking.

 

[Hammerojustice]

COST... too damn expensive to go

 

[Rick2583]

COST... too damn expensive to go

That would be my guess Steve. and between you & me it really pisses me off. There was a time going back when I found nothing more enjoyable then spending a nice sunny afternoon at the park. Living in Queens, it was generally at Shea. With a sprinkle of Yankee games thrown in. But it was not uncommon for me to attend 10-12 games a season. The last game I attended was 3-4 years ago.

 

[Hammerojustice]

That would be my guess Steve. and between you & me it really pisses me off. There was a time going back when I found nothing more enjoyable then spending a nice sunny afternoon at the park. Living in Queens, it was generally at Shea. With a sprinkle of Yankee games thrown in. But it was not uncommon for me to attend 10-12 games a season. The last game I attended was 3-4 years ago.

Yeah.... My kids are in the pliable age wrt sports so I want to give them as much exposure to the Yankees.... living about 2.5-3-hours away plus the high costs makes it difficult for them to get what a great game & team we follow...

 

[Mattingly23NY]

Yeah.... My kids are in the pliable age wrt sports so I want to give them as much exposure to the Yankees.... living about 2.5-3-hours away plus the high costs makes it difficult for them to get what a great game & team we follow...

Steve, have you seen a few of the 98 and on Yankee Year in Reviews. I bet your boys would really enjoy that rich history, outstanding video to watch.

I'd shid my pants as a kid, to see those in my day, or well, something like it, (long prior to any home recording devices)-dang it, I'm dating myself.

 

[Hammerojustice]

Steve, have you seen a few of the 98 and on Yankee Year in Reviews. I bet your boys would really enjoy that rich history, outstanding video to watch.

I'd shid my pants as a kid, to see those in my day, or well, something like it, (long prior to any home recording devices)-dang it, I'm dating myself.

I'm guessing that's on cable? if that's the case, no... don't have access to any of that stuff...

We are going to a game this year... but only 1...

 

[Mattingly23NY]

I'm guessing that's on cable? if that's the case, no... don't have access to any of that stuff...

We are going to a game this year... but only 1...

I've never seen the videos broadcast on Cable.

One can purchase them pretty inexpensively from Amazon though. Worth every penny.

I once saw a couple of the DVD's at Best Buy, Suncoast Video, and Circuit City, (before they went under).

I'll look up a Amazon link for you Saturday Night, and post it here or PM it to you Steve.

BTW- I do hope your kids, wife and yourself have a Blessed Easter...!!
God-Speed Steve,....my friend,..... for all of you.

 

[danman1202]

Cost and performance I would guess...I think attendance is down overall but the Yankees have priced out a lot of people

 

[Mattingly23NY]

Cost and performance I would guess...I think attendance is down overall but the Yankees have priced out a lot of people

Same with the Lost Angel-es Bums....Ticket Prices rose 150% overnight before Opening Day. Attendance at an all time high. Even with alot of So. Californians boycotting the Bums games, memorabilia, even apparel....F' those bastages.

With TWB-Cables 8.7 Billion $$ Bums TV package, I have NOT seen ONE, Not ONE Bums game on TV (DTV) not even a damn ST game, go figure, Guggenheim is out of control, and Magic J, is but the face only of the org. but a very minority owner. Yet MJ gets all the press and face coverage....as bad as the Lasorda Linguini Hoagie Days....

Fletch- "Is this your picture with Tommy Lasorda? I hate Tommy Lasorda", (sound of)-SMASH, goes the picture glass and frame off the wall.........
Great Chevy Chase Flick, (my favorite scene, well one of several).

 

[siqqboynyy]

Is this attendance or tickets sold? Meaning, are there seats purchased and not used? Season tickets bought buy corporations...

Also, how does the increase in price offset the revenue? If pricing is up on average 35% and sales are down 25%, its a net win for the Yankees, from a biz perspective.

 

[mrmel29]

COST… too damn expensive to go

Hammer, Summed it up exactly in 6 words. I used to take my kids in early-mid-90's to watch Yanks and Donnie baseball. Used to sit field level behind first base first row or 2 after first walkway. Great seats at about $25 a pop. Now those seats are about 2 or 3 hundred. Total joke and disgrace and only way to stop it is for owners to stop paying players more than a million dollars a season. Anyone see that happening anytime soon ROTFLMAO.

 

[Majorball]

id any of you catch an article "MLB Ballparks with the most expensive beer"? Miami, who else is not surprised.

 

[totus44]

Ah, since 2008 the economy has been in the shitter? Increased coverage of MLB cable and YES network, local and national? There are way too many other factors beyond the cost of a ticket. MLB is a very successful and saavy business. There were numerous economic indicators that showed that the everyday lower to middle class fan was not attending games at a clip where it made sense to cater to that target market. Simple market analysis showed that game attendance shifted to upper-middle class and up, with a heavier emphasis on business/corporate oriented attendance demographics.

Does it suck for some, sure. But those people are likely also being priced out of rock concerts, vacation travel, etc. The continued destruction of the true middle class and the creation of maker vs. taker class system explains most of this.

Look at team revenue:

2014: $461M estimate
2013: $471M
2012: $440M
2011: $427M
2010: $441M
2009: $375M
2008: $327M
2007: $302M
2006: $277M
2005: $264M


Nice growth trend, with a blip up the year following a series win. The franchise was valued at $905M in 2005, in 2014...$2.5B. You think that empty seats are hurting the bottom line? Sorry guys, this isn't the game you grew up with....its a business, its not personal.

 

[Rick2583]

And since its targeting upper middle class up, then the average age would have to be 35-40+. Business people who could afford the tickets. Kind of makes you wonder how successful there promotion days are. You know the one's that say all fans 16 & under will receive a free Yankee cap. Since your average 16 year old can no longer afford a ticket they must have a lot of caps left over.

So for BUSINESS the'll have to change "All fans 16 & younger" to something like, "The 1st 10,000 fans will receive a free Yankee cap". Its not a good trend, how can the younger generation grow up to enjoy the sport if they can't afford to watch it?

 

[totus44]

And since its targeting upper middle class up then the average age would have to be 35-40+ business people who could afford the tickets. Kind of makes you wonder how successful there promotion days are. You know the one's that say all fans 16 & under will receive a free cap. Since your average 16 year old can no longer afford a ticket they muct have a lot of caps left over.

So for BUSINESS the'll have to change "All fans 16 & younger" to something like, "The 1st 10,000 fans will receive a free Yankee cap". Its not a good trend, how can the younger generation grow up to enjoy the sport if they can't afford to watch it?

You're missing the point Rick. Kids today don't have the attention span of a gnat. This is why baseball has targeted social media. They don't need kids at the ballpark to win lifetime fans, there are many other marketing tools than game attendance. Going to a game was how you got hooked, that isn't the case anymore. MTV used to have actual music videos, the networks used to have actual news programs, etc. Times have changed. For example...25 years ago, the only way the two of us would ever meet or discuss Yankee baseball is if we went to the same game and ended up sitting next to each other. I know its hard to wrap your brain around how business functions in 2014, its incredibly complex and there are few direct measurables. You have to sit back and look at the meta data; valuation, revenue, player salary cost, franchise operating cost, etc. This is a model business in the modern world.

 

[Rick2583]

You're missing the point Rick. Kids today don't have the attention span of a gnat. This is why baseball has targeted social media. They don't need kids at the ballpark to win lifetime fans, there are many other marketing tools than game attendance. Going to a game was how you got hooked, that isn't the case anymore. MTV used to have actual music videos, the networks used to have actual news programs, etc. Times have changed. For example...25 years ago, the only way the two of us would ever meet or discuss Yankee baseball is if we went to the same game and ended up sitting next to each other. I know its hard to wrap your brain around how business functions in 2014, its incredibly complex and there are few direct measurables. You have to sit back and look at the meta data; valuation, revenue, player salary cost, franchise operating cost, etc. This is a model business in the modern world.

The shame is, with all the money they're making you would think to keep the younger generation involved they could have some kind of promotion like 6 times a year all children under 16 will get in for 1/2 price. I know they don't have to, I'm just saying it would be nice. Yeah I know, no one gives a shit about nice.

 

[totus44]

The shame is, with all the money they're making you would think to keep the younger generation involved they could have some kind of promotion like 6 times a year all children under 16 will get in for 1/2 price. I know they don't have to, I'm just saying it would be nice. Yeah I know, no one gives a shit about nice.

I hear you. But personally I think the MLBPA needs to be an active partner with MLB in this, and not the individual franchises. Yanks already committed 50% of their revenue into players. Lots of players have their pet charities and foundations, would be nice if they also kicked back into their local market. Teams could give bulk discount for tix and players could buy and distribute locally. Really a no brainer, win win undertaking...and easy to set up.

 

[Hammerojustice]

Ah, since 2008 the economy has been in the shitter? Increased coverage of MLB cable and YES network, local and national? There are way too many other factors beyond the cost of a ticket. MLB is a very successful and saavy business. There were numerous economic indicators that showed that the everyday lower to middle class fan was not attending games at a clip where it made sense to cater to that target market. Simple market analysis showed that game attendance shifted to upper-middle class and up, with a heavier emphasis on business/corporate oriented attendance demographics.

Does it suck for some, sure. But those people are likely also being priced out of rock concerts, vacation travel, etc. The continued destruction of the true middle class and the creation of maker vs. taker class system explains most of this.

Look at team revenue:

2014: $461M estimate
2013: $471M
2012: $440M
2011: $427M
2010: $441M
2009: $375M
2008: $327M
2007: $302M
2006: $277M
2005: $264M


Nice growth trend, with a blip up the year following a series win. The franchise was valued at $905M in 2005, in 2014...$2.5B. You think that empty seats are hurting the bottom line? Sorry guys, this isn't the game you grew up with....its a business, its not personal.

Seems like the it's growing faster than average inflation...