As most of you know, the Mets are celebrating their 50th anniversary as a franchise this season. As even more of you know, the Mets are not expected to have a very good year. They have struggled the last few seasons and expectations are low for 2012. How low? So low that New York is offering $2.50 tickets for Wednesday’s game against the Nationals. As if that wasn’t enough of a value buy in itself, the starting pitching match-up is expected to be Johan Santana vs. Stephen Strasburg.
On the surface this looks like a fan appreciation move or a blast from the past, but you have to consider what has transpired over the past couple of weeks. After it appeared as though the Mets would fall short of an Opening Day sellout for the first time since 1997, pleasant weather and successful walk-up sales helped the team avoid embarrassment. Phew.
The Red Sox are celebrating their 100th anniversary this season and are off to a brutal start, but I’d be willing to be about 100 $2.50 tickets that they won’t be running a special like this at Fenway Park this year.
New York did, however, begin the season with a three-game sweep of the Braves. Maybe we’re all wrong about the 2012 Mets. Perhaps the $2.50 tickets are just a way for the front office to show the fans how much they care. Maybe they’ll win the N.L. East and quiet all the critics. Stranger things have happened, right? Yeah, not really.
Photo credit: The Star-Ledger-US PRESSWIRE
