When the Cubs ended their 2003 season losing back-to-back home games that cost them a trip to the World Series, it haunted them dramatically. But coming so tantalizingly close also helped them in a less obvious way.
It raised expectations to a new level. The following year brought a record attendance of 3.1 million fans to Wrigley Field.
Even with the on-field disappointments of the past two seasons, the Cubs have stayed strong at the box office: Season-ticket sales are frozen at 28,000 per game, leaving a waiting list of 7,000-plus and guaranteeing the club more than 2.2 million attendance this year.
But that still leaves an average of 13,000 uncommitted seats per game.
“We want to encourage new fans to come to Wrigley, so we set a limit on season tickets to keep seats available for single-game and day-of-game purchases, at least for a fair number of games,” said Frank Maloney, Cubs director of ticket operations.
Every season ticket-holder is guaranteed a seat if the team makes the playoffs. But the Cubs, like every other team, cannot extend that offer for thousands of seats it must hold back for Major League Baseball’s use if there are such postseason games at Wrigley.
Forty of the 81 regular-season home games already are sold out except for standing room and obstructed-view seats, Maloney said.
The ballpark’s capacity is 41,118, with 1,800 seats added for this season. Among them are 253 new bleacher box seats that, unlike other bleacher seating, will be individual seats with backs rather than benches and will be reserved rather than first-come, first-served.
But unless you already have been told you’re a winner, forget about getting off the bleacher bench. A lottery has been held, offering each winner up to four seats for one game in the new bleacher box seats or the dugout and bullpen box seats created last year.
Also new at Wrigley this year is a bar-code system to combat a minor but nagging problem.
“We’ve had people who come to the ballpark with a ticket they got through the secondary market (broker or street seller) that is not a legitimate ticket, or maybe a stolen ticket,” Maloney said.
Persons whose tickets have been stolen can contact Wrigley Field with proof of purchase if they were bought there, and be issued new tickets with a new bar code. In the past, when people showed up with duplicate tickets for the same seats, the issue was resolved by club personnel on the field.
This season, those with phony tickets won’t get that far.
“Our turnstiles will read bar codes for the first time,” Maloney said.
Prices for Cubs tickets range from $8 to $34 for six games in April and May dubbed “value dates”; $14 to $54 for 31 “regular dates”; and $17 to $65 for 44 “prime dates” such as the White Sox series June 30 to July 2 and all 10 home games against the St. Louis Cardinals.
As with Sox home games at U.S. Cellular Field, ticket-brokers have tickets even for “sold-out” games. For example, checks at two brokers showed each offering about 300 tickets for the Cubs-Cardinals home opener April 7, ranging in price from $55 for an obstructed-view seat to $605 for the best seat available.
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%% Ticket prices
VALUE REGULAR PRIME
A. Terrace box (Infield) $18 $38 $46
B. Terrace box (Outfield) $17 $34 $40
C. Terrace reserved (Infield) $11 $22 $32
D. Terrace reserved (Outfield) $10 $20 $28
E. Field box (Infield) $22 $43 $54
F. Field box (Outfield) $20 $41 $50
G. Club box (Infield) $34 $54 $65
H. Club box (Outfield) $22 $43 $54
I. Upper deck box (Infield) $18 $38 $46
J. Upper deck box (Outfield) $17 $34 $40
K. Upper deck reserved (Infield) $7 $14 $18
L. Upper deck reserved (Outfield) $6 $14 $17
M. Bleachers $15 $30 $40
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mhirsley@tribune.com
