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VIDEOOverhyped Products: Yankee Stadium
By
Marissa Carl Sep 28, 2009 8:15 am
Three strikes for the new Yankee Stadium.
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So when Yankee executives and corporate sponsors announced the biggest, baddest stadium we've ever seen, we shed a tear for "The House That Ruth Built" and ordered another round of beers.
Throughout the years, the stadium has gone through numerous renovations and redesigns, but the brand new, $1.5 billion stadium erected across the street from the original was supposed to be better than anything we could have imagined: a grand hall dedicated to players of the past, 65% more space, Yankee clubhouse lockers with touchscreen computers, and year-round access in case you wanted to have your bat mitzvah inside.
"We wanted ... to create a stadium that, when you go in, there's a 'wow' factor to it," Yankees President Randy Levine told USA Today.
While Major League Baseball declines to provide a comprehensive list of the stadium's corporate sponsors, they are definitely not a secret as you walk through the stadium's many corridors and sit to watch the game. Advertisements for PepsiCo (PEP), AT&T (T), Metlife (MET), Toyota (TM), and Hess (HES) are just some of the name brands littered about the scoreboard and outfield walls.
The New York Post reported that Audi's deal with the Yankees included a members-only Audi Yankees Club that overlooks the left-field lower deck and has the Audi logo on the doors, napkins, and throughout the room.
Sony's (SNE) "multi-million dollar" arrangement with the Yankees swapped, among other perks, the title of “Official Consumer Electronics Manufacturer” of the New York Yankees and a 30-second promotional segment on the scoreboard before every game for the installation of high-definition cameras and a new broadcast-quality control room. Video from that room are pumped to the giant scoreboard in center field, as well as to more than 550 Sony television sets in the luxury suites, lounges, concourses, restaurants, and administrative offices.
But apparently because the country's leading companies were willing to shell out the big bucks to make the larger-than-life stadium a reality, the Yankees thought its fans would too.
Since the stadium's first season began on April 3, the stadium has rarely been full, or even decently attended, because of the extreme ticket prices. Near the end of April, SILive.com reported that the seats that cost $500 to $2,500 as part of season tickets -- and go up to $2,625 for individual games -- hadn't been close to full for the majority of games.
Bank of America (BAC) didn't think the new stadium lived up to expectations either, so it backed out of its $20 million-per-year deal (something called a bank crisis may have also played a role in this decision).
The new Yankee Stadium, which was supposed to be a fan's unimaginable dream, turned out to be a swanky place for New York bigwigs to gather for cigars and cocktails. The new stadium has 4,561 fewer seats, but 37 more luxury suites and 410 more party suites. Fans that had bled pinstripes for decades were denied their usual season tickets -- and those that did get season tickets were bumped to the nosebleed section from Row 14 after paying triple the price.
If that wasn't enough, the sanctity of a home run in Yankee Stadium has been tarnished. According to a study by AccuWeather, the right field wall gently curves toward center field, allowing for dozens more home runs than would have been allowed in the old Yankee Stadium. Lou Gehrig and Roger Maris are rolling in their graves as respect for true talent flies out of the ballpark on a nightly basis.
On paper, the new Yankee Stadium was a dream come true. But it didn't service the people who used to make Yankee Stadium the powerhouse that it was: the fans. And because of that slight oversight, Yankee Stadium has been a colossal letdown.
Instead, fans can get a more traditional baseball experience -- and save some cash -- by buying your very own Yankee Stadium seats from the previous stadium ($400 to $3,200), microwaving your own hot dogs ($2.89 for 8), throwing in some grande nachos because you were good this week (about $15), and inviting the buddies over for an afternoon -- the way baseball is supposed to be experienced.
Let's not get into whether the Yankees themselves are over-hyped because, well, that's a whole other ballpark.
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