I'd consider me and my wife in the upper echelon of diehard sports fans. We plan our lives around our teams, including having full season tickets to the Lightning and a quarter season plan to the Rays.
We make it a point to not schedule any vacations during the Stanley Cup Playoffs window or MLB Postseason. It's that serious.
We chose to not opt in to this year's Rays postseason tickets because of the cost. Full stop.
Could we have done it? Sure. Would it have been the wisest decision to make? I don't think so.
The cost of our seats increased by approximately 103% for the ALDS, 338% for the ALCS, and a mind-boggling 790% for the World Series. We haven't even gotten to parking yet.
That increased by approximately 233% for the ALDS, 333% for the ALCS, and 400% for the World Series.
I'm well aware that prices increase for the playoffs and that the league sets those, but the amount these increased is astronomical and out of reach for a large percentage of fans.
Single game prices are even more expensive, when you consider Season Members are offered their seats at a discounted rate.
Because of this, we only purchased tickets to Game 1 of the ALDS and Game 1 of the ALCS.
I hate that we can't be in attendance for every game, but making a foolish (and emotional) financial decision isn't the answer. I can't begin to imagine how out of reach this is for families with children.
Fandom isn't defined by asses in seats or if you're willing to go into debt. MLB and sports throughout North America need to look in the mirror and stop the greedy profiteering.
Ragging on fans for choosing work and essentials over tickets and arrears only makes you look bad.
The reason this argument gets so tiring every year is because of idiots like this.
Issue: Rays don’t play in Tampa
Solution: Rays are building a stadium in Tampa
Argument: Move them from Tampa, the place where they’ve never once been
Biggest sports podcast out here btw
Since QB starts were first tracked in 1950, only one QB has done the following in each of his first 2 NFL starts:
completed 70% of his passes
thrown a TD pass
rushed for 20+ yards
That one QB is Jalon Daniels. He was undrafted.
Saying playing in Tampa is basically a home game for you, then losing both of those games, then coming back to your actual home field and getting swept out of the postseason in front of your other home fans
"I wouldn't say there's really too much of a [home] crowd here. I expect there to be a lot of Yankees fans here. In some ways, you're playing at home. The guys are excited to have that atmosphere here."
- Cam Schlittler on Tropicana Field