JockStocks: Saving money at a baseball game

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig would not project revenue for 2009, but noted that he is encouraged. Nevertheless, the recession has impacted Major League Baseball as consumers and companies cut spending on tickets, concessions, and sponsorships.

With the recession deepening, baseball teams are seeing fans cut their spending -- which has forced roughly two-thirds of the teams in MLB to maintain or cut ticket prices prior to or during the season. In fact, last month the mighty New York Yankees were forced to lower the prices of their premium tickets in order to fill empty seats. This is an unprecedented move, especially considering that the Yankees are playing in their brand new stadium.

Selig did note that combined ticket and concession prices compared to a year ago will be "quite a bit reduced." I don't know about your hometown baseball team -- but the Cincinnati Reds have come up with ways to circumvent the high prices of ballpark food and drinks.

According to the Cincinnati Reds website, fans are allowed to bring in soft-sided coolers that are smaller than 16" X 16" X 8". In those coolers you are allowed to bring in non-alcoholic bottles that have not been opened. So, instead of spending upwards of $4.50 for a bottle of soda or water at the game, you can stop at a local convenience store and grab some drinks.

Furthermore, you can take in a bag of peanuts or Cracker Jacks, you can even take in a foot-long sub sandwich. Keep in mind that any bags you take in to a baseball game can be searched, but that shouldn't be a problem for my law-abiding readers, right?

The ticket prices themselves can be a bit outrageous, but you can find deals if you look. A local Cincinnati radio station is offering $1 tickets (I believe 700 of them) for every home game this weekend -- and the team has great family deals. There is a deal where the "head of the household" can buy a ticket for full price and the rest of the family gets tickets at half price. The Reds also have deals where you can purchase tickets for $5, and there are three sections where tickets are below $20 for certain games. There is also a deal where you can purchase four tickets, four regular hot dogs, and four 24-oz. drinks for $54. These are all excellent values, especially for the family on a budget.

And the Reds have also instituted a dollar menu of sorts. You can get a bag of popcorn, bag of peanuts, hot dog, candy bar, 12-oz. drink, or an ice cream cup for a dollar. However, the best deal may be the $5 14-oz. beer. Yes, five bucks for a little more than a can of beer, but when some beers can go for $9 this isn't bad.

I'm not sure about your local ball club, but if you want to see your hometown team play, make sure you look into the different ways that you can save money -- baseball can actually be a good value.