The Orioles, who have made the playoffs in three of the last five years, are "freezing season-ticket prices" for the '17 season, according to a source cited by Ryan Sharrow of the BALTIMORE BUSINESS JOURNAL. The Orioles will "send out invoices to season plan holders next week, roughly two months earlier [than] in previous years." The freeze on season-ticket prices comes after the Orioles "raised prices" by an average of 20% in '16 (BIZJOURNALS.com, 12/1). In Baltimore, Eduardo Encina noted the Orioles sent the invoices in February last offseason. The delay was "in part because the team waited on its decision to raise ticket prices until the 11th hour of an offseason that included record spending, as the team retained big-ticket free agents" in 1B Chris Davis and P Darren O’Day. Meanwhile, attendance "slumped last season," as the Orioles' average home attendance (26,819) was down nearly 9% from '15 and ranked 20th in MLB. The Orioles will "again offer plans of 13, 29 and 81 games" (BALTIMORESUN.com, 12/1).
PASSING THE BUCK: Orioles manager Buck Showalter said that he was "disappointed there won’t be a 26th man added to the active roster," a proposal that in some discussions on the new CBA were "accompanied by a clause that would reduce the size of expanded rosters in September." Showalter: "I was hoping we’d get an extra player and not have nearly as many players up in September. I was hoping that would stay below 30 ... but they didn’t ask me” (Baltimore SUN, 12/2).
