Feb 15, 2010
The Nationals ticket sales desperation continues
While the Orioles are raising ticket prices for some games (and for all games if you wait until game day to buy tickets) the Washington Nationals are continuing their desperate attempts to attract more people to the ballpark.
The latest promotional packages (announced last week) are called the 2010 Grand Slam Flex plans. Fans can choose four games and receive a fifth game of their choice for free. Plans start at $68 per seat, and the team says this is the most affordable multiple-game option it’s ever offered. Here’s the breakdown:
- Zim’s Gold Glove Plan Fans can attend some of the biggest games and see some of the brightest stars. It even includes Opening Day vs. the Phillies.
- Hondo’s Heavy Hitters Plan Fans can watch the League’s premier power hitters take the field as the Nats look to blast their way to victory the same way that Frank “Hondo” Howard did.
- Beasts of the East Plan Fans interested in intra-division competition will love watching the Nats take on their NL East rivals and the Baltimore Orioles for some of the best marquee matchups of the season.
- Bang, Zoom Go the Fireworks Plan Fans can start their weekend off with a bang at Nationals Park each Friday while enjoying the game and family.
- The Promo Plan Fans can choose from the most popular giveaway dates the team has to offer so they can collect the three Bobbleheads or a NatsTown T-Shirt.
So … by offering the first three plans, the marketing staff is fully admitting that most people come to Nats games to see the competition. And if you buy one of those plans, chances are, you will see the Nationals lose. Except maybe against the Orioles.
Now, the Nats have made some decent moves so far in the off-season. They acquired second baseman Adam Kennedy for a one-year, $1.25 million contract, and they’re going after Yankees pitcher Chien-Ming Wang . Rookie pitcher Stephen Strasburg could also make an impact this year. But the Nats have made some good moves before (signing Christian Guzman and keeping Adam Zimmerman) and the team still hasn’t shaken its NL East basement dweller status.
The last two plans seem good to me — baseball is about the experience and family and the plans capitalize on that. But the first three seem dangerous to me. Financially, it’s smart because the team is offering what the market has shown it wants. But it seems like it’s a bad message to send to the few Nats fans out there who are standing by their guys and rooting for the team to improve. Those are your real fans — not the folks who come to see the other guys play.
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Right now the philosophy of the Nats seems to be to just get fans through the gate by any means necessary. Remember last season when Nats Prez Stan Kasten went on Philly radio telling Phillies fans there were cheap tickets to see their Phillies still available just a short drive away?
I can not fault the Nationals for a few reasons:
1- The on-field product will be better this year.
- The signings of quality relievers such as Brian Bruney, Eddie Guardado and Matt Capps means that their young starters will not have to last past six innings.
- Jason Marquis is the perfect mentor to Lannan and the rest of the young starters, a resource that the Nats have never had. Another 1 or 2 starter is still being sought by GM Mike Rizzo, further bolstering a much improved rotation full of future stars such as John Lannan and Steven Strasburg.
- Starting Pitching can not be discussed without mentioning the signing of Ivan Rodriguez. Pudge knows how to call games and move these young guys through lineups like a Hall of Fame catcher should. Even if he only starts 100 games he will prove invaluable to the staff this year.
2 – The farm system is among the best in baseball. The system went from #30 in 2005 to #9 in 2008, a true reflection of Stan Kasten’s philosophy that he used to build the Braves into perennial contenders. Replacing Jim Bowden with Mike Rizzo, the hardest working GM in baseball (and smartest, save for Theo), allows the front office to command the respect of fans and the media alike these days. The significant investment in other baseball operations staff only adds to the promise for years to come.
3 – The Nats have a great ballpark. There isn’t a bad seat in the house, the scoreboard is among the biggest and best in the game and weekday games serve as a perfect Happy Hour for DC’s young professional crowd.
Oh, and they have a Gold Glove 3rd baseman, a beast of a 1st baseman and the fastest center fielder since Willie “Mays” Hayes. Nats Games are fun. That’s why their marketing strategy will work.
I have to echo David’s analysis. This may be the first time in almost 40 years ( including the last three years of the Expansion Washington Senators) that a Washington MLB team is showing front office ability in building the ball club. We should remember that for the first two years of the Nationals’ existence as the Nationals, the club was owned by Major League Baseball, and was essentially in a “holding” operation. So in actuality, the club is only in its third year of normal operation. Hopefully 2010 will be the year that we begin to see major league quality play on the field at Nats Park.