Sold out

February 25, 2013

If you’ve been planning to buy tickets to the Indians home opener against the New York Yankees on Monday, April 8, you’d better sit down, because I have some bad news for you. Those tickets went on sale this morning at 10 AM, and by 10:06 AM, the game was sold out to single-ticket buyers.

Considering that the Indians home opener has sold out for 21 consecutive years, including the last year at Municipal Stadium and all 20 years since the team moved to what is now called Progressive Field, the sellout comes as no surprise. But to sell out in six minutes? That’s something you’d expect for a Bruce Springsteen concert, not necessarily an Indians game.

Tickets are still available for the home opener, but only to those who buy full-season ticket packages. No doubt some tickets will also be available via StubHub or random street scalpers on the day of the game (I personally don’t recommend this latter method).

The Indians open their home season with a four-game series with the Yankees, the only time all year the Bronx Bummers are coming to Cleveland. Of course, the Yankees are the team that America loves to hate, and Cleveland is no exception. Yankees games always sell big here. But part of the reason for the fast sellout is due to increased fan expectations for 2013, thanks to the organization having signed some decent players such as Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, and having gotten Terry Francona, a proven winner, to manage the club.

Of course, the game will be televised, so you always have the option of checking out the action at your favorite sports bar, or in the comfort of your own home. It’s not the same as seeing the game at the stadium, but at least you’ll probably be warmer, and the beer will be cheaper.

3 Comments

  • Steve Alex says:

    Wouldn’t it be nice to have 120,000 attendance after just three games? That would continue the offseason buzz and establish an early tempo for the season.

  • Jerry Greer says:

    I miss the old stadium…….

    Jerry

  • Sean Porter says:

    I can’t see three sell-outs to start the season, (remember, one of the oldest sayings in baseball is that “the hardest ticket to sell is the second game of the season”) but 100,000 seems feasible for the Yankees for a weekend series, even in April.

    Has the Indians front office made mention that tickets in general are selling well for this season? I know there is a buzz about the Tribe, but besides the Opener selling out in six minutes I haven’t seen or heard how ticket sales in general are going…