NEW YORK (AP) -Bud Selig’s trip to the new Yankee Stadium evoked memories of his 15th birthday, when his mother took him to “The House That Ruth Built” for the first time.
“When I walked in here I had the same feeling I did when I walked in here 60 years ago,” Selig said Thursday. “We were sitting in the third deck, so my view is a little better today, but you bet – I have the same feeling and that’s a great, great testament to them.”
The baseball commissioner was on hand for the opening game at the $1.5 billion ballpark, which mixes fancy restaurants and modern amenities with familiar touches of Yankees history.
“Given what they were trying to preserve, I think they’ve done a remarkable job,” Selig said.
ed during pregame festivities, and Selig said their conversation was “very emotional.”
“I really did most of the talking. I mean, he did, too. But I just told him he ought to be very proud,” Selig said. “He was good. He was very happy today. Very proud – and should be.”
Steinbrenner’s response to Selig’s compliments on the new stadium?
“Gave me a hug,” the commissioner said.
Individual game tickets at the new palace top out at $2,625 apiece, and seats start at $500 a pop for the first nine rows around the infield. Across town, the Mets also have drawn criticism for expensive prices at their new ballpark, $800 million Citi Field.
Still, Selig doesn’t think the New York teams have taken average fans out of the ballgame.
“I’ve analyzed all the ticket prices here. I haven’t had a great opportunity to do it. I’ve analyzed them everywhere. And I know there’s been a focus on the expensive seats and I understand that. But the Yankees, (general partner) Hal Steinbrenner himself has said that’s something that they should review. But in the meantime, there are a lot of seats priced here that are really quite fair and quite competitive,” Selig said.
ook at it. But I think we ought to be judged really as a sport in total. But even individual franchises, in both New York cases, you’ve got to look at all the seats and what they’re priced at and you come to find that there are a lot of prices that are very reasonable.”
Selig also attended the Citi Field opener Monday night between the Mets and San Diego Padres.
“I want to come back on off days. Then I’ll really walk both ballparks,” he said.
With the country struggling through an economic crisis, Selig said Major League Baseball is “off to a decent start” with ticket sales this season.
“Look, this is the worst economic downturn since the Depression. And why would anybody think that everybody else in the world would be affected but us? I haven’t quite understood that logic yet,” he said. “On the other hand, we’re off to a pretty good start. Now the weather out in the Midwest has been horrendous, but it always is. I mean, April’s never been very good. So I want to watch it for a month or two and then we’ll be able to make a judgment.”
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