Dodgers Success Boosts World Series Ticket Prices
Fans are eager for some proper primetime baseball.
The first game in the 2020 World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Los Angeles Dodgers runs tonight. You’d be forgiven if you didn’t get the memo; this season has been anything but ordinary, after all. Fans are especially psyched to see the Dodgers playing, as they haven’t won a World Series since 1988. After the Dodgers managed to secure their spot this time around by coming back from 3-1 deficit against the Atlanta Braves, the hype is at a fever pitch, and it’s reflecting in ticket sales.
According to statistics from ticket resale sites like Gametime and SeatGeek, the moment the Dodgers won their game against the Braves, ticket prices for the World Series from authorized resellers skyrocketed, going for anywhere between $1,600 and $17,000. These seats are at an even greater premium than usual due to social distancing measures and operation reductions at the game’s stadium.
Speaking of the stadium, in an effort to get the maximum crowd possible and keep the teams safe, instead of the typical home/away structure, the World Series game will be held at Globe Life Field, the home turf of the Texas Rangers and an away situation for both the Rays and the Dodgers. Texas allows up to 50% capacity for professional sporting events, so if the MLB wants to make some decent money on this, it’s their best bet.
While the site is unfamiliar and the tickets are limited, fans have not been deterred. All 11,500 of the game’s tickets have been sold, either to fans directly or to resellers. Gametime CEO Brad Griffith said that there is a certain novelty factor to attending history’s first limited-access World Series, even if it’s not under the most pleasant circumstances.
“It will be a fascinating experience to have been a part of,” he said.