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Thread: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

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    First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    After catching Nats/Reds at GABP next weekend, we're going to head to Louisville for a game. Will be my first time there.

    How best to buy tickets? Looks like great seats (by dugouts) aren't available buying direct from the Bats' website and there's no market for Bats tix on Stub Hub? Is there some other place online or way to get seats in the first couple of rows in secs 110/111/119/120 for a weekday/night game?

    Any advice on doing this smartly much appreciated. Thank you!
    Reds & Nats, 2013 LCS. Take2 (9/13) Reds but no Nats


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    Sprinkles are for winners dougdirt's Avatar
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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Call their ticket office. If the tickets are available, they should be able to help you out.

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by dougdirt View Post
    Call their ticket office. If the tickets are available, they should be able to help you out.
    Duh--such an obvious suggestion I didn't even consider--thank you. Kind of like Open Table and restaurants,I guess. They don't put all/most of the tables online so calling is often the answer. I was just a bit surprised there seems to be on online secondary market for Bats tix. Thanks again!
    Reds & Nats, 2013 LCS. Take2 (9/13) Reds but no Nats

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by 1940757690 View Post
    After catching Nats/Reds at GABP next weekend, we're going to head to Louisville for a game. Will be my first time there.

    How best to buy tickets? Looks like great seats (by dugouts) aren't available buying direct from the Bats' website and there's no market for Bats tix on Stub Hub? Is there some other place online or way to get seats in the first couple of rows in secs 110/111/119/120 for a weekday/night game?

    Any advice on doing this smartly much appreciated. Thank you!
    Unfortunately, the Bats online ticket system usually shows all of the tickets, but it might be worth trying to call. Thursday is opening day, and saturday is Corky Miller bobblehead night, so if you are trying to go to either of those, they might be unusually busy. However, there is really not a bad seat in Slugger Field. However, especially for a day game, I would suggest sitting on the third base side, due to sun. Above the dugouts are season ticket seats, and there is not a resale market online in the minor leagues, really. 122/123 are very good, and it is usually not too difficult to find a seat there.

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    Beer is good!! George Anderson's Avatar
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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    I took my family there about four years ago and will never return. I have been to way to many ballparks to count but two different ushers in the upper deck were so incredibly rude to me and my 5 and 2 year old at the time that I will never set foot in that park again.
    "Boys, I'm one of those umpires that misses 'em every once in a while so if it's close, you'd better hit it." Cal Hubbard

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by batsfan View Post
    Unfortunately, the Bats online ticket system usually shows all of the tickets, but it might be worth trying to call. Thursday is opening day, and saturday is Corky Miller bobblehead night, so if you are trying to go to either of those, they might be unusually busy. However, there is really not a bad seat in Slugger Field. However, especially for a day game, I would suggest sitting on the third base side, due to sun. Above the dugouts are season ticket seats, and there is not a resale market online in the minor leagues, really. 122/123 are very good, and it is usually not too difficult to find a seat there.
    Many thanks batsfan. Exactly the kind of insider perspective I was hoping to get. I'm sure you're right about the minor league ticket markets more generally. Funny, here in DC, we're close to two that are pretty stocked with Nats prospects but have never made it to either so relatively uninformed about the minors relative to MLB.

    Quote Originally Posted by George Anderson View Post
    I took my family there about four years ago and will never return. I have been to way to many ballparks to count but two different ushers in the upper deck were so incredibly rude to me and my 5 and 2 year old at the time that I will never set foot in that park again.
    Thanks to you too, George. Wondering how much (if at all) the awful experience you had can be taken as representative of the whole operation? I have found a good amount of positive feedback about the in-park experience online but know, as with any restaurant or customer service dependent business, a few bad apples can really ruin it on a given day or until they move on.
    Reds & Nats, 2013 LCS. Take2 (9/13) Reds but no Nats

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by 1940757690 View Post
    Thanks to you too, George. Wondering how much (if at all) the awful experience you had can be taken as representative of the whole operation? I have found a good amount of positive feedback about the in-park experience online but know, as with any restaurant or customer service dependent business, a few bad apples can really ruin it on a given day or until they move on.
    I posted this back in 2008. I sent a letter of complaint to the Bats that was ignored. I won't be back and I encourage others not to go either.

    Has anyone had the unfortunate experience of dealing with the ushers at this park?

    Last weekend on a whim my wife, myself and my two kids who are ages 5 and 2 went to see the Slugger Field for the first time. Our seats that we purchased happened to be along the lower level of right field line which had no shade at all. Its not that big of a deal to sit in the sun except my two year old son suffers from sun allergies. In the third inning we decided to move up to the top of the stadium which was totally covered in shade and where practically no one was sitting. Instantly a very rude usher confronted me and demanded that I show him our tickets. I told him we didn't have our tickets but we needed a place in the shade for my two year old son who had sun allergies. His comment to me was that if we didn't have tickets for that section then we were not going to sit there. I could understand if it was before the game and the section was full but it was the third inning and there were like a total of FIVE people in the entire section.

    Is this common behavior for these ushers? Can someone explain to me why the Bats unlike the vast majority of baseball stadiums out there are so intent on keeping people in the exact seat they purchased?

    I wrote the Bats a nice letter and expressed my concerns including asking why if they are so intent on keeping people without tickets for the upper deck out of the upper deck then why not have ushers stationed below to make sure people don't walk up the stairs to be immediately sent back down. There nothing is like lugging two little kids with diapers bags up a flight of stairs only to be confronted by a rude usher who tells us to get out of his section.

    I have been to alot of stadiums and with very few exceptions they all try their best to be family friendly ,but I can say without doubt the Bats from my experience do not.
    "Boys, I'm one of those umpires that misses 'em every once in a while so if it's close, you'd better hit it." Cal Hubbard

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    The Bats ushers have always asked for tickets in my experience as well. If they see you sitting there, and didn't check your ticket, they will come ask for it. I am not sure why they do that, but every time that I have been there, it has happened.

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    I am really sorry to hear about all of these bad experiences with slugger field ushers. I know for a fact - or at least I have been told by multiple ushers - that many times there supervisors watch them to make sure they do not let people move in to their sections. I have also been told that it does not matter if you move to a seat more then four rows back, but I am not certain about this. The upper deck may be another area under tight supervision, due to season ticket holders. So it pretty much is an organizational policy (I always assumed this was the case in most AAA parks), but it can vary usher to usher, especially if they recognize you (which I doubt would be the case for those who have posted). Still, it surprises me to hear that they were not understanding about a child's sun allergy. Most of the ushers I am familiar with would never do that, they are good people and I enjoy sitting in their sections.

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by dougdirt View Post
    The Bats ushers have always asked for tickets in my experience as well. If they see you sitting there, and didn't check your ticket, they will come ask for it. I am not sure why they do that, but every time that I have been there, it has happened.
    Oh I am sure its a policy the usher had to enforce but he was a complete ass about it and later when we tried to sit in another shaded section at the top a woman usher was just as big of an ass. I understand a policy but it is a stupid policy when it is the third inning and there was really no one sitting in that section. It was a brutally hot day and even though my two year old was coping terribly from the heat they were hell bent on keeping us out if the upper deck with no one in it.

    I dont get mad easy but I was pretty mad and I wont be back.
    "Boys, I'm one of those umpires that misses 'em every once in a while so if it's close, you'd better hit it." Cal Hubbard

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Honestly, I don't get why you're mad, George.

    You didn't buy that ticket. You have no right to that seat. Period. It doesn't matter how many people were or weren't sitting in that section.

    I get that you were frustrated by your child's allergy/ the sun, but that only means you should have planned better, not that they should have given you a free pass to sit wherever you wanted. (And I totally get the sun allergy thing-- my nephew has CF and can't handle strong cologne or really hot, humid days in the beating sun. So, when he goes with me, we buy/ trade for tickets under the canopy. They're a little more expensive, but you get what you pay for.)

    The ushers are often paid minimum wage and have to put up with a lot of crap from a lot of people, both up the chain and with the paying customer.

    My experiences at Slugger Field have been exemplary-- ushers have been great. Then again, I've always sat in the seat corresponding to the ticket I bought.
    Last edited by Scrap Irony; 04-03-2013 at 07:57 AM.

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by Scrap Irony View Post
    Honestly, I don't get why you're mad, George.

    You didn't buy that ticket. You have no right to that seat. Period. It doesn't matter how many people were or weren't sitting in that section.

    I get that you were frustrated by your child's allergy/ the sun, but that only means you should have planned better, not that they should have given you a free pass to sit wherever you wanted. (And I totally get the sun allergy thing-- my nephew has CF and can't handle strong cologne or really hot, humid days in the beating sun. So, when he goes with me, we buy/ trade for tickets under the canopy. They're a little more expensive, but you get what you pay for.)

    The ushers are often paid minimum wage and have to put up with a lot of crap from a lot of people, both up the chain and with the paying customer.

    My experiences at Slugger Field have been exemplary-- ushers have been great. Then again, I've always sat in the seat corresponding to the ticket I bought.
    The seats I moved to were in a cheaper location than the ones I paid for. If we had moved to seats in a much more expensive location that the ones we paid for than I would see your point. However we moved to a cheaper location where absolutely no one sitting so my 2 year old who was suffering from the sun could get relief. This was our first trip ever to Slugger Park and I have been to many ball parks and never once have I encountered a policy where they are so stringent that you sit in the exact seat you bought at least at the minor league level.

    Ushers or as my wife and I later referred to them as "Seat Nazi's" at Slugger Park have to adhere to the policy from the administration but I would expect a certain amount of professionalism and customer sevice in helping with the fact my 2 year old was suffering from to much exposure to the sun. The tone and attitude from both ushers we encountered was incredibly crash and rude. Keep in mind we were simply a family of 4 with 2 small children. The fact these individuals likely make minimum wage means little to me as well it should to everyone else. Poor customer service is poor customer service regardless of how much the individuals make.

    Regardless, the Louisville Bats have every right to make whatever policy they want regarding their stadium and employ ushers that are rude and not at all fan friendly. I also however have every right to not attend their stadium and also bring attention to their less than desirable policies.

    On a brighter note, Slugger Park was a nice stadium. However while I may be a bit biased I find Victory Field here in Indianapolis to be a much nicer stadium and way more fan freindly. If people in the area are looking for a nice get away I would highly recommend Indy over Louisville. It is a much more comfortable stadium and no nasty "seat nazis" like there are in Louisville to ruin your baseball experience.
    "Boys, I'm one of those umpires that misses 'em every once in a while so if it's close, you'd better hit it." Cal Hubbard

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    Sprinkles are for winners dougdirt's Avatar
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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by Scrap Irony View Post
    Honestly, I don't get why you're mad, George.

    You didn't buy that ticket. You have no right to that seat. Period. It doesn't matter how many people were or weren't sitting in that section.

    I get that you were frustrated by your child's allergy/ the sun, but that only means you should have planned better, not that they should have given you a free pass to sit wherever you wanted. (And I totally get the sun allergy thing-- my nephew has CF and can't handle strong cologne or really hot, humid days in the beating sun. So, when he goes with me, we buy/ trade for tickets under the canopy. They're a little more expensive, but you get what you pay for.)

    The ushers are often paid minimum wage and have to put up with a lot of crap from a lot of people, both up the chain and with the paying customer.

    My experiences at Slugger Field have been exemplary-- ushers have been great. Then again, I've always sat in the seat corresponding to the ticket I bought.
    Louisville is the only place I have ever been, Major or Minor Leagues, that has a policy like that, or at least that I have seen enacted. Obviously ushers will check tickets at the top of the section most times, but I have never been anywhere else where they scout you out and ask for your ticket once you are seated if they didn't specifically seat you. I have also never been to another place where an empty section wasn't fair game by the ushers.

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    George Anderson (04-03-2013)

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    I just wanted to post to thank everyone for the advice and perspective. I can see George's point since it does seem common sensical. On the Bats' side of things, one thing to have a policy; another to allow staff to use good judgment in enforcing it and, even if they do, can be done nicely. Sounds like it wasn't representative of most experiences. Hoping we have a good one next week and can report back if folks care. Thanks again.
    Reds & Nats, 2013 LCS. Take2 (9/13) Reds but no Nats

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    camisadelgolf (04-03-2013)

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    Re: First timer at Slugger Stadium w/ Questions

    Quote Originally Posted by George Anderson View Post
    The seats I moved to were in a cheaper location than the ones I paid for. If we had moved to seats in a much more expensive location that the ones we paid for than I would see your point. However we moved to a cheaper location where absolutely no one sitting so my 2 year old who was suffering from the sun could get relief. This was our first trip ever to Slugger Park and I have been to many ball parks and never once have I encountered a policy where they are so stringent that you sit in the exact seat you bought at least at the minor league level.

    Ushers or as my wife and I later referred to them as "Seat Nazi's" at Slugger Park have to adhere to the policy from the administration but I would expect a certain amount of professionalism and customer sevice in helping with the fact my 2 year old was suffering from to much exposure to the sun. The tone and attitude from both ushers we encountered was incredibly crash and rude. Keep in mind we were simply a family of 4 with 2 small children. The fact these individuals likely make minimum wage means little to me as well it should to everyone else. Poor customer service is poor customer service regardless of how much the individuals make.

    Regardless, the Louisville Bats have every right to make whatever policy they want regarding their stadium and employ ushers that are rude and not at all fan friendly. I also however have every right to not attend their stadium and also bring attention to their less than desirable policies.

    On a brighter note, Slugger Park was a nice stadium. However while I may be a bit biased I find Victory Field here in Indianapolis to be a much nicer stadium and way more fan freindly. If people in the area are looking for a nice get away I would highly recommend Indy over Louisville. It is a much more comfortable stadium and no nasty "seat nazis" like there are in Louisville to ruin your baseball experience.
    Were they "seat Nazis" because you didn't get your way, because they were doing their jobs, or because they were crass? Did they curse you? Were they yelling at you?

    In my time working with the public, what some consider "crass and mean" is really just code for not getting the free stuff they don't want to pay for.

    Oddly, I've had a similar experience (though, to be fair, my grandfather and I were moving forward to a higher priced seat) in Indianapolis. The usher asked for our tickets. We showed him. He told us to move back. My grandfather countered with the "There's no one in this seat" gambit and the "No one's even in the ballpark" excuse. He made us move back anyway.

    I didn't take it as an affront to me or my grandfather. He was simply doing his job.

    Shrug.

    It's happened to me in Cincinnati (four or five times, once in the bottom of the 7th of an 11-3 snoozer against the Pirates when less than 5,000 people showed up), Chicago (White Sox games are usually empty in late September, but the ushers are hard-core), and three or four other stadiums.

    I think perhaps you (and doug, it looks like) have been extremely lucky.


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