Cardinals ticket plan aims to keep cowboy fans out of stadium

[Mac the Knife]

C'mon. Bud Selig is a businessman, first and foremost. Everything he did with respect to the Brewers - the move to the National League, the promotional efforts, etc., was geared toward the bottom line. Nothing wrong with that.

If your fans can't fill the home team's stadium, that's your fault for not buying enough tickets to keep out the rowdies from the opposing side's fan base. It's not the owner's responsibility to prevent that from happening; it's his responsibility to sell tickets, period.

[illwauk]

C'mon. Bud Selig is a businessman, first and foremost. Everything he did with respect to the Brewers - the move to the National League, the promotional efforts, etc., was geared toward the bottom line. Nothing wrong with that.

If your fans can't fill the home team's stadium, that's your fault for not buying enough tickets to keep out the rowdies from the opposing side's fan base. It's not the owner's responsibility to prevent that from happening; it's his responsibility to sell tickets, period.

The "it's a business" argument will lose me every time... no one is buying season tickets to the NYSE and no one is going to major league baseball games to watch the front office make transactions. If the incompetence of a team's ownership drives that much of a wedge between them and its fans, they shouldn't be rewarded by making that money elsewhere. Especially when they're not even paying for the palaces that are built to house the team in the first place.

[DG_YouKnowWhatThatMeans]

Well I think that any stadium financed with public dollars (as I know Miller Park was and assume Cardinals Stadium was) should give immense discounts to people that live in the taxed area. Or maybe go the other way and check credit cards for billing zip, and add a surcharge to their tickets. I don't know if that would be legal, but it would produce some sort of chilling effect on outside sales, and extra revenue to pay back bonds sooner at less interest to the municipalities that support them.

[Gary]

Well I think that any stadium financed with public dollars (as I know Miller Park was and assume Cardinals Stadium was) should give immense discounts to people that live in the taxed area. Or maybe go the other way and check credit cards for billing zip, and add a surcharge to their tickets. I don't know if that would be legal, but it would produce some sort of chilling effect on outside sales, and extra revenue to pay back bonds sooner at less interest to the municipalities that support them.

Actually the University of Phoenix Stadium is funded by the tax dollars of the tourism and tourists of Arizona

[DG_YouKnowWhatThatMeans]

Oh, well, then carry on, I guess. Thanks for the info.

[Viper]

The University of Minnesota resorted to similar measures on at least one occasion, many years ago when the football team was drawing poorly at the Metrodome and there was concern that the team would end up facing an overwhelmingly pro-Iowa crowd for the home finale against the Hawkeyes. IIRC, the "solution" in that case was to require would-be ticket buyers who weren't students, alums, professors etc. to present a valid Minnesota drivers' license at the point of purchase, up until just a few days before the game when they finally let out-of-staters buy tickets. Also as I recall, Iowa fans still made up a large minority of the crowd in spite of those restrictions.

[Armadillo]

St. Cloud State University tried this in hockey a couple of years ago in an attempt to keep Gophers fans out. The result was a large number of Gopher fans at the game, and a half full arena for the game against Brown.

The next season, they made Gophers tickets "at the arena" purchases only. Again, didn't work. These things do NOTHING to keep hardcore fans of the opposing teams away. Where there's a will, there's a way.

[The_Admiral]

If your fans can't fill the home team's stadium, that's your fault for not buying enough tickets to keep out the rowdies from the opposing side's fan base. It's not the owner's responsibility to prevent that from happening; it's his responsibility to sell tickets, period.

Correct.

Attanasio has handled this matter well: now that the Brewers have made Cubs games more expensive than, say, Pirates games, then it makes more sense for your Brewer fan family of four to purchase tickets to the Pirates game, because it's a Brewers game no matter who's in town, whereas if you're a Cub fan who can reach Miller Park easily, the demand is relatively inelastic and you'll just pay more money to go to that game, oh well. Cubs@Brewers will always be a sellout or near a sellout, but by making those dates more expensive, it becomes more cost-effective to attend other Brewers games instead, and overall, more tickets are being sold. Everybody's a winner, except for illwauk, who appears to define his existence by hating the northeastern corner of the state of Illinois.

The whole Minnesota thing seems kind of contrived and counterintuitive to bringing in revenue. I know it's not the pros, but how far should anyone reasonably get caught in this WE MUST PROTECT THIS HOUSE stuff? It is a business, after all.

[Gothamite]

Come on his daughter owned the team for years you honestly think he was not still running things?

Yes.

It's plainly obvious - when Bud was the owner, the Brewers were among the best-run clubs in baseball. The club won three-straight Baseball America "Organization of the Year" awards from 1985-87, and the TOPPS "Organization of the Year" award in 1987, '89, '91, and '92. Almost as soon as he stepped aside, the club fell apart.

Then there's the managerial situation. During Bud's 22 years in charge of the club, he fired nine managers. And 3 GMs. He wasn't exactly known for letting people ride the team down to the bottom of the standings. Then he steps aside, and Wendy lets Sal Bando do exactly that. Eight years. Eight losing seasons, Sal Bando and manager Phil Garner are allowed to keep their jobs as the organization crumbled around them. Last time a manager was allowed to rack up that many consecutive losing seasons, it was Connie Mack.

Now, I love a good conspiracy theory as much as the next man. But they have to stand up to the smallest bit of scrutiny for them to be any fun....

[NJTank]

I never imagined him not having some say over the Brewers when his daughter so its not a conspiracy to me, but I can not disprove what you said.

[illwauk]

Everybody's a winner, except for illwauk, who appears to define his existence by hating the northeastern corner of the state of Illinois.

Ask anyone whose ever bartended on Water Street how many problems those dumb ass Cubs fans cause when they come up here.

But I've always conceded that the Cubs fans that go to Miller Park are a different breed than goes to Wrigley.

[Gothamite]

Yeah - the ones who bother to drive north are actually interested in the game....

I never imagined him not having some say over the Brewers when his daughter so its not a conspiracy to me, but I can not disprove what you said.

Bud pulling strings from behind the scenes is most definitely a conspiracy theory.

[EatSleepJeep]

The University of Minnesota resorted to similar measures on at least one occasion, many years ago when the football team was drawing poorly at the Metrodome and there was concern that the team would end up facing an overwhelmingly pro-Iowa crowd for the home finale against the Hawkeyes. IIRC, the "solution" in that case was to require would-be ticket buyers who weren't students, alums, professors etc. to present a valid Minnesota drivers' license at the point of purchase, up until just a few days before the game when they finally let out-of-staters buy tickets. Also as I recall, Iowa fans still made up a large minority of the crowd in spite of those restrictions.

This policy is still in place. It was a result of the Iowa fans that thought it would be a good idea to rush the field and tear down the goalposts several years ago. However, the idiots tried to leave with one. I guess they failed to teach the kids in Iowa that a 23' goal post will not fit through a 12' opening.

As a Gopher fan(with the sheepskin and debt to prove it) I cannot still buy tickets living in Iowa. I even tried using my parents address but because I have an Iowa zip code as the billing address on my credit card, I was denied. I have to get them to buy the tickets and mail them to me.

[The_Admiral]

Everybody's a winner, except for illwauk, who appears to define his existence by hating the northeastern corner of the state of Illinois.

Ask anyone whose ever bartended on Water Street how many problems those dumb ass Cubs fans cause when they come up here.

Stupid drunkenness knows no state lines.

As a Gopher fan(with the sheepskin and debt to prove it) I cannot still buy tickets living in Iowa. I even tried using my parents address but because I have an Iowa zip code as the billing address on my credit card, I was denied. I have to get them to buy the tickets and mail them to me.

Ridiculous. You're an alumnus; they can't cut you a break here? What are they worried about, that you'll buy your tickets only to rip off your Minnesota shirt to display an Iowa shirt, like you joined the NWO?