Randy Levine sez Yankees are 'sensitive to the economy'

Do you think that the new Yankee Stadium is having problems selling luxury tickets? You are sorely mistaken, buster. Yankee president Randy Levine, aka the Wizard, says everything is just fine, and tells us to pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.

Levine told Newsday's Neil Best (hat tip to Was Watching):

"We've done extraordinarily well in all of the premium seats, over 80 percent. I believe the stadium will be sold out [tomorrow]. I think we're doing great. We're sensitive to the economy. We've taken steps to be sensitive to the economy, letting people stretch payment plans and things along those lines.

I have so many issues with this statement, I'll have to do a little bullet point list to name them all:

• He acts like it's a big accomplishment if the Stadium gets sold out on Opening Day. (Chris Rock voice) You're supposed to be sold out on Opening Day. What do you want, a cookie?
• If they have "done extraordinarily well" with the premium seats, then why have there been so many ads pushing the "between the bases" luxury experience?
• Stretching payment plans to infinity and beyond still won't make these seats affordable.
• If you're really "sensitive to the economy," perhaps you should rethink the Stadium's whole Titanic effect.

There has been a lot of grumbling about the new Yankee Stadium, even among Yankee fans.

While Jennie, one of our longtime readers, called the New Yankee Stadium "awesome," and raved about it, a lot of Yankee blogs, like New Stadium Insider, Scott Proctor's Arm, River Avenue Blues, Bronx Banter, and YFSF, have criticized everything from the security to the views to the sense of exclusivity in the new ballpark.

Since I haven't been to the new ballpark yet - Squawker Jon and I are going on the 20th - I can't offer first-hand opinions on Yankee Stadium. However, while some sports radio callers griped about the new Mets home, we were both very impressed by Citi Field, especially the food - it was terrific fare, at reasonable prices for a stadium, and everybody had access to buying most of it.

After Squawker Jon and I both raved about Citi's fabulous food, we got a personal thank-you note from the folks at Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group. How refreshing is that?

On the other hand, in the new Yankee Stadium, it appears that most of the decent food is in one of the private clubs where you have to spend top dollar on tickets to even get into the door.

Heck, you aren't allowed to even watch batting practice from the field level unless you have one of those top-dollar seats. Peter Abraham noticed some more of the Titanic effect:

While it's part of modern baseball to provide exclusivity to patrons willing to spend large sums of money, do the Yankees really need so many areas where the average fan isn't allowed? In some cases, they rub your nose in it with huge windows showing you what's inside as you walk by.

The organization defends the exclusivity by saying fans paying the high prices make it possible for the team to offer tickets for $22 and $29 in the grandstand. But those seats are scaled further back from the field than the "cheap seats" at the old Stadium.

But hey, Randy Levine says the Yankee organization is "sensitive to the economy." Isn't that good to know?

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