The guys at River Ave. Blues have posted a Shea Stadium seating plan from '74, the first of two seasons in which the Mets shared their facilities w/the Yankees while the Bronx digs were being renovated. The field level seats were...$4! Yes, $4. Let that sink in for a second.
I know what you're thinking: "Yeah, but how much is that in 2011 money?"
That would be, approximately, $10-$12 today.
So, the cheapest day-of-game seat at YS today--not counting the $5 obstructed bleacher seats--is $15, more expensive, adjusting for inflation, than the best seats back in the day. Unbelievable. (The cheapest equivalent at CitiField, btw, is $12.)
"Fair enough. But neither NY team was exactly World Series material, right?"
Well, the Mets did have a losing season in '74 but the year before they won the pennant and lost the WS to the A's in 7 games, so it's not like they were sucking. The Yankees meanwhile, ended up with an 89-73 record, 2 games out of 1st place behind the Orioles. So, prices weren't low because the teams sucked. Of course, NYC's economy was about to collapse soon enough...
Sidenote:
the final AL East standings in '74:
Orioles
Yankees
Red Sox
Indians
Brewers
Tigers
the final NL East standings in '74:
Pirates
Cardinals
Phillies
Expos
Mets
Cubs
Looks funny to us now, huh?
Oh, in case you were wondering, currently the most expensive non-luxury box tix in both stadiums are $440 for Delta Club Platinum in Flushing; $325 for Field MVPs in the Bronx.
