World Series ticket prices dip after Cubs' Game 3 loss

ByDarren Rovell ESPN logo
Saturday, October 29, 2016

Prices on the resale market for Games 4 and 5 of the World Series in Chicago plummeted on Saturday morning after theCubs' loss to the Indians on Friday.

When Game 3 ended, the cheapest seats to Games 4 and 5 were $1,900 and $2,400, respectively. By 5:15 p.m. Central Time on Saturday, some three hours before the first pitch for Game 4, the cheapest ticket to that night's game on StubHub was $1,700, which had come up some from the early afternoon ($1,475).

Game 5 dropped even more precipitously because the loss assured that if the Cubs were to win the World Series, it wouldn't be done at home. The get-in price on StubHub when Game 3 ended was $2,400. By Saturday afternoon, that ticket was $1,500, a decline of 37.5 percent.

The median price paid for a Game 3 ticket on StubHub was $2,800 and that didn't include any sales in the six hours before the game. Because of a contract between the Cubs and StubHub, which has been in place for three seasons, the ticket reseller was forced to pull the tickets, meaning those selling on the site had to shift their tickets to other sites.

Right before Game 3 began, StubHub announced it had struck a deal with the Cubs and MLB Advanced Media that would enable tickets to be sold on the site right up until game time.

Prices for Games 4 and 5 haven't just dropped on the low end.

Box seats that were purchased on StubHub on Tuesday for Saturday night's game that sold for $9,500 can now be had for $4,500. A fan paid $15,000 each on Friday for tickets in the front row behind the Cubs' dugout for Sunday's Game 5. Tickets just four rows back from that seat can now be had for $4,500.

The average resale prices of tickets sold on StubHub are still records. The Game 4 average resale price is $3,100, while Game 5 is at $3,300 per ticket. That's compared to the $1,000 averages for Games 1 and 2 in Cleveland.