You know those awkward proverbs that aren't really supposed to make sense, but became common place anyway? For example, what is the sound of one hand clapping? The Astros have some of the cheapest tickets in Major League Baseball, and some might argue that they should keep getting cheaper given the attendance and how the team has played. But there's one place where the Astros are clearly top of the line: ticket fees. Chris Jaffe has a study up on The Hardball Times, and I'll let him explain:
↵↵↵So let's get it. I checked all 30 teams, looking at what the add-on fees are for a ticket to a September game in the cheap seats. I look at cheap seats first of all because these are, by definition, the places where the most budget-minded fans buy their tickets and thus would be the most rankled by the add-on fees. (Alternately, if you're buying the most expensive tickets in the park, you're clearly willing to spend a few extra bucks, so the add-ons matter less).
↵
The average fee you pay for an Astros ticket? $8.55. It's a figure that's good for seventh in the majors. Higher than the Yankees.
↵It's also more than the ticket itself actually costs. Which is baffling in many ways. Baseball is big on shutting down ticket scalping, but it looks like that is just so they can add some of that value to the tickets on their own. Ironically, making scalpers seem better in comparison.
↵