Without question, it is the best time on Major League Baseball’s calendar, as the playoff races in both the American and National League are coming down to the last 20 games of the regular season. At this time of the year, baseball is on night in and night out with playoff-like intensity, as every contending team’s pursuit for the postseason hits its final stride.
In the American League, only one division race is concluded as the Kansas City Royals hold an enormous 10-game lead over the Minnesota Twins in the AL Central. Both the AL East and the AL West look like they’ll be going down to the wire, however, with the New York Yankees chasing the Toronto Blue Jays, while the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim making their at the Texas Rangers, who just recently took over first-place for the first time all season.
For the National League, two of the division races are almost in hand as the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets have 7.5-game leads in their respective division with about 17 games remaining. Meanwhile, in the NL Central, it’s starting to become a dogfight despite the presence of MLB’s best team, the St. Louis Cardinals. While they’ve had a stronghold on the division all year long, the Pittsburgh Pirates have been keeping things interesting, residing four games back. And of course, you can’t forget the Chicago Cubs, who are lurking nearby as well.
Out of market fans can watch key games relevant to their favorite team with DISH programming, which includes programs like MLB Network to give fans access and live updates to every team around the league. At the same time, making it to the ballpark can be just as rewarding, as there’s nothing like the unparalleled feeling of catching an important late-season matchup in person.
With the National League Wild Card standings all but officially wrapped up by the Pirates and Cubs, the Wild Card drama mainly comes from the American League that has five legitimate contenders in the mix. After the Yankees and Astros in the top two spots, the Twins, Angels and Cleveland Indians are all within four games of reaching the postseason.
Another strong weekend of baseball is approaching, so with secondary market ticket information from TiqIQ.com, below are some of the most expensive games of the weekend in terms of average ticket price and get-in price.
9/18/2015 | New York Mets vs. New York Yankees | Citi Field | Average Price: $253.94 | Get-in Price: $76
9/19/2015 | New York Mets vs. New York Yankees | Citi Field | Average Price: $304.20 | Get-in Price: $125 | Thunderstick Giveaway
9/20/2015 | New York Mets vs. New York Yankees | Citi Field | Average Price: $205.35 | Get-in Price: $66 | Matt Harvey Fathead Giveaway
9/18—20/2015 | Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals | Wrigley Field | Average Price: $138.43 (Three Games)
9/18—20/2015 | Toronto Blue Jays vs. Boston Red Sox | Rogers Centre | Average Price: $95.44 (Three Games)
The Subway Series between the Mets and Yankees features the most expensive games of the weekend, with September 19 being the priciest of the three, maintaining an average ticket price of $304.20 and a get-in price of $125. Both New York teams haven’t been in the playoff race at the same time in over a decade, as baseball fever has taken over the city with the resurgence of the Mets.
A three-game set at Wrigley Field between the Cubs and Cardinals contain the next three most expensive games. Although they’re unlikely to catch the Cardinals in the division, the Cubs are turning this into one of the most entertaining division rivalries in baseball, and the series may ultimately be a preview of what’s to come in the playoffs.
Finally, the Blue Jays can put a stranglehold on their division lead during their set with the Boston Red Sox, which has a three-game average price of $138.43. The Red Sox have been playing better as of late and not only do they have the chance to be a playoff spoiler in this series, they’re also looking to finally escape the AL East basement, being just one game back of the fourth-place Tampa Bay Rays. There will probably be a lot of offense when the Red Sox and Blue Jays hook up throughout the weekend.