A's Single-Game Tickets Go on Sale, and They're Not Cheap
The Athletics announced a couple of weeks back that they had sold out of their allotment of season tickets, then they sold out of tickets for Opening Day against the Chicago Cubs just hours after they went on sale. According to the Sacramento Bee, two of the three games against the San Francisco Giants during July 4th weekend are also sold out.
So it probably shouldn't come as any surprise that the Athletics, in their first season in Sacramento, are pricing their single-game tickets on the higher side of the market. For the second home game of the year, they range from $77.20 lawn seats to $277.20 to sit in the Salon Club in section 205. In the words of A's owner John Fisher, this is an intimate ballpark.
The subtext has always been that the prices may be a little higher because of the lack of supply available. Sutter Health Park can fit just over 14,000, including the lawn seats.
It should also be noted that the team announced this week that there will be 250 lawn tickets released for all 81 home games on the day of the game, running for $25 each. How those tickets can be claimed and how they'll be distributed will be announced as the season gets a little closer.
If you're looking for a slightly decreased price point, the matchup on Sunday, April 13 against the New York Mets has lawn seats for $60.45. The day before, against the same team with the same start time, they're $82.20.
To get a physical seat to any of the early games, it looks as though that's going to run fans at least $100 most games, though in that Sunday game they're slightly below the century mark at $92.20.
Those are all weekend games, though. If you're in town and want to see a ballgame for a little less money, then you should hop on the tickets for Tuesday, April 22 against the Texas Rangers. First pitch is at 7:05 (PT), and lawn seats start at $32.45.
Before the tickets went on sale, it seemed as though the weekend series against the Chicago White Sox, a team that lost 121 games last season, would be the most inexpensive of the bunch for the opening month. Turns out it's just a little bit cheaper than seeing the Cubs play at $72.20 for lawn seats.
Prices do dip just a little bit in the hotter summer months, with tickets starting around $60 for a number of games, including on Saturday, July 12 against the Toronto Blue Jays, and June 21 against the Cleveland Guardians. Both of those games also have 7 p.m. (PT) start times due to weather precautions.
Can families afford these prices? We'll have to wait and find out, but spending over $200 just to get into the ballpark most days is probably going to be outside of most people's price range. The A's are trying to capitalize on being in a new city and people wanting to check it out, which is how business works.
It also seems as though they're anticipating fan's tendencies with the heat and lowering prices for those games, so maybe the ticket prices could drop at some point when the demand isn't quite as high.
Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.