World Series Title Comes With a Price

By Bill Shaikin

Dec. 12, 2002 12 AM PT

Times Staff Writer

The Angels are following their greatest season in history with their greatest ticket-price increase in history, raising the average ticket price above $20 and slapping a $5 surcharge on admission to the most attractive games next season.

The price hike reflects the cost of success and the newfound popularity of the World Series champions. Disney has approved a payroll boost to a record $84 million so that the Angels could keep the core of their roster intact, and the company expects fans to pay their share.

“We don’t want a Florida Marlins situation, where you win a world championship and then you dismantle the team,” said Kevin Uhlich, the Angels’ senior vice president of business operations. “That’s not what we want. That’s not what our fans want.”

The Angels lost $17 million last season, Uhlich said, not counting postseason revenue of $6 million.

The Angels have folded the playoff revenue into next season’s budget, coupling it with projected revenue from the increased ticket prices in the hope of keeping the 2003 losses in the $14-$15-million range.

“If we did nothing, we would have been looking at a $34-million loss,” Uhlich said.

In what Uhlich called “a test for us,” the Angels joined the growing number of major league teams charging higher prices for the most attractive games. Outside baseball, the concept of adjusting prices to consumer demand is nothing new -- a Saturday evening show costs more than a matinee, a UCLA football ticket costs more against USC than against Oregon State.

In the major leagues, the San Francisco Giants charge more for weekend games, and the St. Louis Cardinals charge more for summer games. The Angels opted to add $5 to ticket prices of 20 of their 81 home games, including opening day, some Friday night fireworks shows and series against the Dodgers, New York Mets and New York Yankees.

The Angels will not apply the surcharge to outfield seats or to season-ticket sales, so a Yankee fan or Dodger fan could pay more than an Angel fan for a ticket in the same section.

“It’s really about the person who will come to a game once a year to see the Yankees play,” Uhlich said. “It’s supply and demand.”

Although the surcharge applies to selected games, the increased ticket prices apply to all games, with per-game hikes of $1 in the outfield seats, $2 in most of the upper deck and $4 in the field and terrace levels and the best of the upper-deck seats. While discounts are available to season-ticket holders, single-game prices for adults range from $9 to $32.

The Dodgers’ single-game prices next season range from $6 to $25.

The Angels’ average ticket price will rise from $16.88 to $21.15, under major league accounting figures provided by the team. The Dodgers’ average ticket price was $22.40 last season; the average major league ticket cost $21.28.

“We didn’t want to lead the pack. We didn’t want to be in the upper third of the pack,” Uhlich said. “We just wanted to be average.”

Disney is banking on the Angels’ wave of popularity translating to financial support that can offset the $20-million payroll jump. Fans bought 150,000 copies of the World Series highlight video during its first weekend on sale, Uhlich said.

The Angels sold 13,400 season tickets last year and have received deposits for 4,700 more next season, he said.

If the Angels match last season’s attendance of 2.3 million, the price increase would generate $5.8 million, Uhlich said. If they reach their projection of 2.7 million, the price increase would account for more than half of the payroll increase.

Jay Lucas, the Angels’ director of broadcasting, said he has encouraged KCAL-TV Channel 9 to exercise an option in its contract that allows the station to broadcast 50 games instead of the current 40. That would generate an additional $800,000 for the Angels, he said, and help satisfy fan demand for additional broadcasts.

Parking will not cost more next season, Uhlich said, but concessions probably will.

Whether the Angels can sustain a payroll that ranks among the top 10 in the majors is a question Disney would prefer to leave to new owners. Disney remains committed to selling the team, with the hope of selecting a new owner next spring and letting that owner make the choice of slashing payroll, finding revenue sources that Disney could not or simply subsidizing millions in losses every year.

The Price You Pay

The Angels will include a $5 surcharge on tickets to 20 games next season. The surcharge will not apply to season tickets or to seats in the outfield pavilions. The games, selected because tickets are expected to be in high demand on those dates, include several against marquee opponents and several with postgame fireworks shows.

Date Opponent

Sunday, March 31...Texas (Opening Day)

Friday, April 11...Oakland

Friday, April 18...Seattle

Friday, April 25...Boston

Tuesday, April 22...New York Yankees

Wednesday, April 23...New York Yankees

Thursday, April 24...New York Yankees

Friday, June 13...New York Mets

Saturday, June 14...New York Mets

Sunday, June 15...New York Mets

Friday, June 27...Dodgers