'Riding the Bandwagon': Fair weather fans paying a premium to see first-place Toronto Blue Jays
Photo credit: https://www.mlb.com/
If you're a loyal Toronto Blue Jays fan, then you know what it's like when all the fair weather fans jump on the bandwagon. Ticket prices go way up.
The fact is fair weather fans only go to games when the Blue Jays are winning.
Why? Because it's the cool thing to do, it's the latest trend, even if you don't particularly understand what is going on in the game, it's a fun day/night out.
Rogers has already increased ticket prices 25%, also increasing Sportnet + subscriptions at to watch the game at home. Supply and demand 101.
Which has erked many fans that I have talked to, but what can you do?
Last season you literally couldn't give tickets away, now that the Blue Jays are in first place again for the first time in a decade they're a hot commodity at a hefty price.
The Blue Jays owned a record under .500 back in the spring, and looked poised for another middling campaign with little playoff hope.
The first Place Toronto Blue Jays and Rogers Centre renovations makes baseball attractive for fair weather fans who are willing to pay a hefty price for a social event
Getting into Rogers Centre to see Canada's only Major League Baseball team has quickly morphed into a costly endeavor this summer that has surprised some fans.
A recent sold-out series against the New York Yankees saw the cheapest seats on resale sites going for more than $200 apiece, while a ticket in the 500 level for Friday's series-opener with the Kansas City Royals was in the neighborhood of $80 as of Wednesday afternoon, more than double face value.
Fans can make purchases directly from the team through Ticketmaster, while the website also has verified resale options, usually at an inflated price, similar to other big-hitters like SeatGeek and StubHub when supply is scarce.
Jagger Long, who runs Toronto-based resale website Karma Tickets, said a number of factors, including summer holidays, tourism and a winning team are contributing to the spikes.
"We're riding the hype of the Jays," he said. "People are spending the money. If they weren't, the prices would come down."
A multi-million dollar renovation of Rogers Centre that improved sightlines, added more bars, communal areas and other amenities has also raised the stakes, Long said.
"Rogers has done a great job renovating and now it's turning it into more of a social event," he said.
That mainly happens in the common areas where general admission tickets, standing room, without a seat, can be purchased for a face value of roughly $20.
But those tickets, along with blocks of seats in the 500s are often snapped up by scalpers or fellow fans looking to make a quick buck, Long said.
General admission seats for Toronto's opener against Kansas City were priced around $50 and up for resale Wednesday.
"People are watching the market," said Long, who added website algorithms can boost prices automatically when tickets are at a premium. "Even average fans, professional ticket sellers, part-time ticket sellers, they watch. They treat it like a part-time job or a full-time job."
The face value of average tickets sit at just over $100 each per game, but sold for as much as $350 apiece for the Yankees series, and $450 this weekend.
Prices for season-ticket holders jumped significantly following the Rogers Centre renovations.
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 30 | 172 ANSWERS 'Riding the Bandwagon': Fair weather fans paying a premium to see first-place Toronto Blue Jays As a loyal Toronto Blue Jays fan are you willing to pay for tickets that are Exorbitant? | ||
| Yes | 23 | 13.4 % |
| No | 149 | 86.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
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