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November 18, 2008
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Rays Increase Some '09 Prices, But Offer Season-Ticket Discount

Rays Will Increase 70% Of Tickets For 
Regular Games At Tropicana Field By $1
The Rays have "slightly raised individual ticket prices" for the '09 MLB season, according to Joe Smith of the ST. PETERSBURG TIMES. Rays President Matt Silverman yesterday said that in order to "bolster the season ticket base" at Tropicana Field, the team will increase the "discount for season ticket holders" to as high as 35% for some seats, "which equates to the entire 81-game home schedule for the cost of 53 games." Silverman also noted that about 70% of tickets for "regular games" will increase by $1. Silverman: "We haven't raised prices in the last couple of years, to any significant degree. In order to keep up with the rest of Major League Baseball, we're going to have to shrink the revenue gap some. Even with these changes, we're still one of the most affordable ballparks, if not the most affordable, in all of baseball." The Rays last season had an average ticket price of $17.23, the fourth cheapest in MLB, and Silverman indicated that "two big parts of that affordability -- free parking for cars with four or more passengers and the ability to bring in food and drink -- will remain in place." Silverman did not "offer the club's goal for an increase in season tickets sold, which was thought to be around 8,000 last year." In addition, the Rays also will add a "'marquee' pricing category that includes 11 Saturday games, which will feature a postgame concert or premium giveaway." The pricing for those games will fall between regular and "prime" pricing, which includes games against the Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies. There will be an "increase in the surcharge for those tickets bought within five hours of game time," up from $3 to $5, while vehicles with fewer than four passengers will be charged $15 to park in the ballpark's main lot, up from $10 in '07 (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 11/18). Silverman: "The pitch to a season-ticket holder is an easy one: sit in the best seats, support your home team, and enjoy considerable savings off individual ticket prices" (MLB.com, 11/17).


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