Nats Try To Ban Phillies Fans From Park

[Mark]

The Washington Nationals are sick of Phillies fans buying all the tickets when the Phils play in D.C. - and are trying to block them from going to games.
How extreme is the new hatred for the cash that comes into the National's tills from Philadelphia?
The Washington Post says starting today, if you try to buy single-game tickets for the Phillies series in Washington in early May, y ou must pay with a credit card that is linked to an address in the District Of Columbia, Virginia or Maryland.
So no Phillies fans allowed - for at least the first month those tickets are on sale. Unless you are a Phillies' fan who lives near the Nationals' stadium.
“Frankly, I was tired of seeing it,” Nats COO Andy Feffer told the Post this week. “Forget you, Philly. This is our park, this is our town, these are our fans, and it’s our time right now.”
“Nothing irks me personally or the people here more than to see another team’s fans — particularly Philly fans — in our ballpark, holding up signs," Feffer told the newspaper. "That’s not the way it should be. And I think we’ve got an opportunity here to do something different.”
The team has a special Web site set up to make sure locals - and not those dastardly Phillies fan - spend money to see the Nationals play.
To get the tickets, shoppers must be 18 years of age or older and must be a resident of Washington, D.C., Virginia or Maryland.
Feffer also touted the "huge fan base" for the Nationals.
In fact, if the team has a huge fan base, it must be at Camden Yards or the Mall, since they aren't paying to see the Nationals play baseball.
The Nationals were 21st in attendance in baseball last season, drawing 1.9 million fans. source

[Chase]

I see this back firing

[Mark]

how?

[Chase]

Phillies fans don't take slaps in the face well.

Ticket sales will be down.

How will stub hub work this?

[hockey]

I find it difficult to believe that the MLB would allow any kind of restrictions on ticket sales. It's all about the $$$. Phils fans fill that stadium... Nats are no where near selling out.

I heard that there are some franchises who request the Phils on weekends, holidays and for inter-league play simply to generate sales and interest for MLB markets who are suffering. The same with the Red Sox, Yanks and now the Giants.

I heard (no idea where or from whom...that Pittsburgh requests the Phils on weekends bc they always sell out thanks to the Phils fans who make the drive. So, why the hell would the Nats be against more revenue? Is it simply because we annoy them?? Seriously??

This is why I think some of our recent inter-league match ups have not been the usual geographical rivalries that is the usual recipe for inter-league.... like Seattle, Oakland? Who gives a shit about those teams?

At least we have the Red Sox in Philly this year (May 18-20)...woooot!
Anyway....as for inter-league, that will all be completely changed when the Astros switch to the AL. Hopefully, the MLB will get it right.

I swear this was all on WIP one day.

[M.Opaliski]

The Penguins do this during the NHL Playoffs is there's Flyers/Pens Series. Selling out isn't the issue because they'll sell, they just attempt to limit where the tickets get sold to.

It is what it is. If folks want to go, they will, they'll find a way. I always do.

[hockey]

The Penguins can get away with it because they sell out. The Nat's have terrible home attendance so limiting ticket sales for anyone would be incredibly stupid.

Washington Nat's Home Attendance .....

Year......... Rank (30) ....... Total ....... AVG ....... %

2011- 20.........1,940,478......... 24,877......... 59.9
2010- 23 ......... 1,828,066 ........ 22,568 ........ 53.9
2009- 24 ........ 1,817,202....... 22,715....... 54.2
2008- 19.......... 2,320,400....... 29,005....... 69.2 (new stadium debut)


Here are the 2011 top three team for home attendance....
rank team total avg % avg
1 Philadelphia 3,680,718 45,440 104.1
2 NY Yankees 81 3,653,680 45,107 89.7
3 San Francisco 3,387,303 41,818 99.8

source: 2011 MLB Attendance - Major League Baseball - ESPN

[Robb]

Sounds like a great opportunity for someone to make a bunch of money if they live in that area and resell the tix to Phillie Phans

[hockey]

Sounds like a great opportunity for someone to make a bunch of money if they live in that area and resell the tix to Phillie Phans

Yeah....this is going to backfire on them UNLESS it's some sort of reverse psychological test....

[Kid Lester]

You know, if I gave Jayson Werth 126 million dollars, I would LOVE IT if Philadelphia fans filled up my stadium 9 times a season. At least that might take some of the sting out of it.

Werth 2010 Philadelphia

27 HR, 85 RBI, .296 average, 46 doubles

Werth 2011 Washington

20 HR, 58 RBI, .232 average, 26 doubles

Oh yeah, and his OPS fell by TWO HUNDRED POINTS.

I'd give Philly fans their own half of the stadium. Sheeeeyit.

ETA: I would NEVER have given Werth that contract. I'm just saying, if I had West Nile Virus or some other kind of dementia and was somehow stupid enough to have done so, I'd be happy as hell to recover that money from Philly fans.

[Tralee]

What a joke! If they have such a huge fan base, why aren't the fans already buying up all the tickets, or at least a huge majority of them? Sounds like sour grapes to me. It must irk them to see all the cars heading south before the game and heading north after! It's always a back up on I-95. I'm with Hockey, this has got to be against some MLB rule. Well, wait them out, when ticket sales drop like a rock they will be begging for the Phillies fans to come back.

[longnecker]

What a joke! If they have such a huge fan base, why aren't the fans already buying up all the tickets, or at least a huge majority of them? Sounds like sour grapes to me. It must irk them to see all the cars heading south before the game and heading north after! It's always a back up on I-95. I'm with Hockey, this has got to be against some MLB rule. Well, wait them out, when ticket sales drop like a rock they will be begging for the Phillies fans to come back.

And hopefully those fans that they didn't want will sit back in their favorite local sportsbar have a drink and enjoy the game.

[cracker]

Isn't that interfering w/ interstate commerce? I would think something like this would be illegal.