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This is just kind of sad. While it has yet to be officially announced by the team, it's long been reported that, schedule permitting, President Barack Obama will throw out the first pitch at the Nationals home opener against the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday, April 13. Yes, the home opener is a weekday afternoon game (3:05 p.m.), but considering the one-two punch of the Nats playing the world champion Phillies and the promise that the wildly popular Obama will be there, you'd think our pathetic little baseball franchise wouldn't have any trouble selling tickets to at least this one game. You'd think that, but you'd be wrong.
This afternoon, the Nationals sent out an email to fans with the subject line, "Tickets for Opening Day are still available." Inside the email, the newsletter offers up links to each and every Nats home game in their first week, which all still have plenty of tickets available, including Opening Day. Did they mention the first 20,000 fans at the home opener get a free Opening Day Hat?
Sigh. With evidence like this, it's hard to imagine D.C. will ever become any sort of baseball town. Maybe this is why the new Screech looks so freaked out?
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Psssst....Hint: LOWER THE F_CKING PRICE!!!!!!
Pssst....hey, they did lower the f_cking price!!! My tickets went from $45 to $30 this season. That's a ridiculous deduction.
There are a lot of factors as to why this game isn't sold out. It's not opening day...it's a home opener. So really, it's just another game. It's a mid-afternoon game with (as-of-now) a stinker of a home team. And yes, other than the Redskins, there is little hometown loyalty for any of the DC sports teams. I'd be surprised if each of the other franchises (Wiz, Caps, United) could count on more than 15-20K for a core fan base, respectively.
And finally, the front office hasn't done squat to advertise or push ticket sales. An ad in the sports page doesn't do much to increase attendance. Nor does an e-mail push to "fans." They need to be on the radio, on TV channels other than MASN, talking it up. The Nats have brought a perennial 40 HR hitter who produces runs with the best in the league and yet, I have yet to see Adam Dunn's goofy mug on any ads. Put him on TV. Buy space on one of the billboards on the SE/SW Freeway. Something!
One last thing, the fact that tickets are still available doesn't mean that there won't be a lot of people in attendance. Nor is it an indictment of DC as a "baseball town." Nationals Park holds 42,000 people. If they get 35,000 to a day game, that's still pretty good attendance.
I mostly agree with all your statements, sans the attendance part. Caps are doing really well these past 2 years. I know the Caps are a much better producing team, but the Nats I beleive (hope) are following the same plan the Caps used, although they need to advertise more. Reduced ticket pricing, pulling Adam Dunn, who I think is a beast after seeing him in the WBC, and getting some top picks here while we still suck. In 2-3 years the team will be just as good as the caps...maybe!
DC has a baseball team?
We sure do! AA talent at MLB prices and ungrateful owners who would rather piss on the citizens of DC than honor their commitments to the city. Good times! Maybe.
Pssst....Bring back old Screech.... and lower the price.
An Obama first pitch has not been promised - nor can it be promoted by the club - no guarantees. And while it would great to see the 44th President do the noble thing and start baseball off right in DC, the security lines would be hell. See: last season's opener.
Yeah, I didn't actually mean to say "promise" there -- more like "possibility." As I said, Obama's presence has yet to be officially announced.
I liked the fat Screech better.
Who cares how fat Screech is. I'm more interested in whether Dimitri Young will be physically capable of fielding a ground ball this season. From the looks of spring training photos, me thinks not.
I care! I want to be entertained at a baseball game and if the team's not going to do it then the mascot damn well better! Besides I'm not into super skinny guys, I like a little meat on dem bones.
Also, maybe this why what is it...4 or 5 or 6 previous DC baseball teams left the city.
The matchup and the Prez are irrelevant. The game is at freaking 3:00pm in the middle of a work day. What kind of stupid home opener scheduling is that? DC is not the kind of town where everyone just bails out of work to go to a sporting event, even if the team was much better. As far as I can tell, this is one of only TWO games all year that start earlier than 4:30 on a weekday, so clearly the timeslot is not deemed a money maker. This is just horrendous scheduling plain and simple.
What the hell are you talking about? We're in a recession, no one has a job and our unemployment cheques can cover the $15 or so price of upper deck seats, therefore there are no excuses why we can't make the game at 3pm.
Hint... don't have the game at 3pm on a weekday! Yes, the economy is bad, but we DO have jobs - around 90% of us in DC, at last count. I would buy tickets in an instant if I didn't have to take time off!
Season home openers are pretty much always a weekday afternoon. Other teams have no problems filling their seats for the opener even if they are a losing team like the Cubs. That isn't the problem. They are just playing in a town where too many people don't have hometown loyalty or are too busy schmoozing over a wine glass on K street to go to a game.
And even the Nats have done well with weekday afternoon attendance. They're doing a couple more this season, now that they're not too freaked out about traffic and parking.
Retournez les Expos occupés à Montréal!
Free poutine on opening day!!
Did that Red Sox lottery happen? I didn't get any notice
i literally just looked in my inbox and spam box and i have nothing also.
What do you win in the lottery? Please tell me it's a chance to swing a hammer at ghastly Red Sox fans!!
We get the HONOR of paying too much to see the sox play
At least I get to have the honor. And tickets starting at 10 bucks is hardly "too much". Whether you like them or hate them, its a bargain to see one of the best teams in league this year.
My idea is still that ten minutes before the first pitch, the Nationals should start selling $10 rush tickets good for any seat in the house, including the always-empty Presidential section that always makes the team look bad on TV. People would line up for the chance to get those seats, and even if they didn't end up right behind home plate almost all of them would stay for the game.
Saint Louis has something a bit like this. They sell 2 ticket vouchers to the first 275 people in line at 9 am game day. You show up half an hour before the game, exchange your voucher for an envelope with two tickets; could be standing room, could be tickets the opposing team turned back in just before the game.
Oh, and the whole thing is $11 total ($5.50 per)!!
If one of, if not the best baseball cities in the country can do that - surely the Nationals can as well.
Ha! I had no idea. It's apparently sponsored by a radio station.
DC will become a baseball town when the Nats start winning often and consistently, just like all of the other baseball teams that have been established in the last 20-40 years. And even then, teams like the Braves and Marlins still have a lot of difficulty filling the stadium, even in the playoffs.
MLB is both helped and crippled by its history. The old teams mostly do well with attendance, but most of the rest of the teams struggle with popularity because they don't have--and never will have--the romance of the Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs or Cardinals.
The Nats could actually help by acknowledging their history...maybe start by at least having some mention of Gary Carter, the only Expo in the Hall of Fame, in the stadium!
The Nats are not the modern-day Senators, the Twins and the Rangers are the modern-day Senators, the Nats are the modern-day Expos and should proudly display that bit of history!
One more thing, can we get a verse of "Valeri, Valera" during the 7th Inning stretch?
This is a good point. The fact that they display no history, and seem to not advertise whatsoever, it's almost like the team doesn't exist unless you go out of your way to follow baseball. As long as that stays the status quo, it's very difficult to grow a fan base for the long term. I mean, Christ, the team is just now getting an HD channel by which I presume (and hope) the games will be shown in high def. Other sports have had this for years. They need to find better ways to fight for residents' sporting dollars.
Yeah about that HD - I've heard that MASN only acquired one HD channel. Of course, the cover two teams so it seems that not every game will be in HD. Pathetic.
I agree about the Expos history. They nod the cap to it every now and again, but they've never worn the throwbacks (which I think would be solid!) and they never bring up guys like Gary Carter, Andre Dawson, Tim Raines, Rusty Staub, etc.
At least they now have Marquis Grissom on the coaching staff...maybe that will get it started.
The Nats need their own Wild Bill Hagy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Bill_Hagy
Would go, but that's Flight of the Conchords at DAR night!
These look like tickets released that were being held for season ticket sales. They'll probably release another tranche in the days just before the opener.
If you build it, they still won't come!!
Until they win anything, ain't nobody gonna show up in thar!