While the free-agent market mostly has been stagnant this offseason, there are some teams that are in full-on tank mode and have no desire to dabble in the prized free agent pool.
As a result, some fans understandably are less than pleased with their preferred franchise selling off all of its star players and entering a total rebuild, with the Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates being a few of the biggest examples.
Agent Scott Boras — who represents many high-profile clients, including many that currently are unsigned — has been a vocal critic of the slow offseason, as well as the teams that are electing to pack it in before the season even begins.
Now Boras is taking it to a bigger degree, suggesting fans rise up and demand lower ticket prices when two “tanking” clubs meet.
Of course, this already exists to a degree. Dynamic ticket pricing is commonplace for many teams, and prices on secondary markets certainly can drop to just a few dollars for some games.
Ticket prices were a highly-expressed concern for some Marlins fans in a town hall-style meeting with co-owner Derek Jeter following the team selling off its best players. Season ticket holders were reticent to renew their tickets if the product on the field was going to be exceptionally poor.
With tickets already on sale for many teams, however, this theory may be a tough sell. But lest we forget that many clubs that entered tank mode (Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs) just a few years ago now are recent World Series champions. So if there’s a willingness to be patient, stay committed and #TrustTheProcess, it could pay off with some exciting baseball in just a few years.
