The Baltimore Orioles have updated their ticket packages — sending season ticket holders into a frenzy.
The team announced that they will no longer offer 13-game and 19-game plans; instead, fans can purchase 20-game and 40-game plans. These new plans will include incentives, allowing fans to return up to 30% of games before the season for full renewal credit, which will be applied to their plans for the following year.
Additionally, season ticket holders can now enter Camden Yards through a special entrance, allowing them to secure giveaways on popular promotions like Hawaiian Shirt and Floppy Hat Night.
Some longtime fans are feeling blind-sighted and taken aback by the move. One season ticket holder, Patty Meehan of Ellicott City, told Baltimore Baseball that she had a 13-game plan for 34 years, but was unaware this package will no longer be offered.
“I will not be renewing,” Meehan told the publication. “I’m 65. I would have renewed for another 10 or 15 years. I’m sure I’m not the only longtime fan they are driving away.”
Another season ticketholder, Bill Cline, told the news outlet that he first purchased tickets when Camden Yards opened, securing four seats in Section 338. Since 1992, Cline and his family have traveled from Virginia to catch the O’s. Now, he’s unsure about keeping the seats, as “it’s just not possible for us to drive from northern Virginia to Baltimore for weeknight games.”
“That’s right: 33 years in the same seats, and the two guys that have seats next to us have been there the whole time, too, initially with their granddad,” Cline said. “We’ve been friends all this time. I don’t know what happens next!”
Cline and Meehan are not alone; plenty of fans flooded social media to share their woes.
Many fans pointed to a lack of awareness by the team, considering the fact that the Orioles are currently in fifth place — and attendance has dropped 20% this season.
