We're Back in the North - July 30th

[nfitz]

As for adjusting the pricing, I suppose they could have done something like that... but why?

Why? Ethics ... consumer protection laws ... etc. I can't imagine they'd presold 15,000 tickets a game, given there was never a general ticket sale.

 

The email I got, said I could use my credit for 2021 games. Any idea if it's still good for 2022 games? That might make me less annoyed ... can't get anyone to answer the phone (which is understandable ... but seems a bit mickey mouse given how easy it's been to get MLSE during the emergency).

[Stangstag]

Why? Ethics ... consumer protection laws ... etc. I can't imagine they'd presold 15,000 tickets a game, given there was never a general ticket sale.

 

The email I got, said I could use my credit for 2021 games. Any idea if it's still good for 2022 games? That might make me less annoyed ... can't get anyone to answer the phone (which is understandable ... but seems a bit mickey mouse given how easy it's been to get MLSE during the emergency).

 

Yes im pretty sure the credit will stay in your account and can be used next year

[Brownie19]

dude you're making a mountain out of a mole hill.

[nfitz]

dude you're making a mountain out of a mole hill.

How ... email I got indicates the credit is for use in 2021 ... and I've literally been holding on the telephone since I made my initial post.

 

Asking a couple of questions about (questionable) unclear policy is making a molehill out of a molehill.

 

Filing a formal complaint with Consumer Protection Ontario would be making a mountain out of a molehill.

[Brownie19]

Go read your own posts. You're upset you have to use your credit to buy better seats then start rambling on about bait and switch and consumer protection laws and question why the team doesn't open the 500 level (requiring a lot more staff and costs).

 

No offense man, but if you can't afford the $15 upgrade in tickets for you and your family (say $75 more for a family of 5) then you probably can't afford to go to the game in the first place.

 

If you can't - just use your credit to grab tickets and then sell them. You'll make money as these initial games will all be sold out.

[Spanky99]

lol... Brownie savage!

[nfitz]

Go read your own posts. You're upset you have to use your credit to buy better seats then start rambling on about bait and switch and consumer protection laws and question why the team doesn't open the 500 level (requiring a lot more staff and costs).

I was asking if I'd missed something, as I couldn't believe any reputable company would actually be so slimy.

 

No offense man, but if you can't afford the $15 upgrade in tickets for you and your family (say $75 more for a family of 5) then you probably can't afford to go to the game in the first place.

Looked closer to almost double ... about $100 for a family of four ... and for worse seats (do people really prefer behind centre field, to the front of the 500s behind the infield?).

 

Saying "no offense" does not excuse saying something offensive. No need to be impolite simply because I noted that in my opinion that Blue Jays seem to be a poorly run, unethical, company compared to MLSE.

 

I spend almost 3 hours on hold today before giving up. I've called MLSE during the middle of similar rushes, and I've been pleasantly surprised that they've answered almost straight away.

 

Personally I'm not going to pay $45 for kid's ticket to the Jays, when I can get a TFC ticket for $17, and actually be able to see the pitch.

[Spanky99]

I've never heard someone preference the 500 Level over the OF in the 1 and 200 Levels before. 500 has to be in the first few rows if I were to get a seat up there though, not too bad.

[nfitz]

I've never heard someone preference the 500 Level over the OF in the 1 and 200 Levels before. 500 has to be in the first few rows if I were to get a seat up there though, not too bad.

I love the first few rows up there - but yeah, it quickly goes downhill as you go uphill!

 

Hmm, a couple in the 200s at $36 I see looking again - starting to get tempting - I'd grab them if I only wanted a pair. Oh well, I'll see what's available in the presale next week ...

[Spanky99]

I love the first few rows up there - but yeah, it quickly goes downhill as you go uphill!

 

Hmm, a couple in the 200s at $36 I see looking again - starting to get tempting - I'd grab them if I only wanted a pair. Oh well, I'll see what's available in the presale next week ...

 

What rows are the 200 seats? They have to be low also, or you won't like it. I never cared, went to the club bar and sat first row from the bar slide, lol. Just up 3rd base/homeplate side.

 

Served and preserved.

[Spanky99]

Teo that was brutal.

[Spanky99]

I tried buying tickets, lol... brutal, had 63 each, was bought out and pics turned to 100+, sick.

[connorp]

I got seats in Buffalo 2 rows back of the field. Perfect shot to the batter box. I sit visitor side so you can see the righties (Vlad and co) better. $85. I’m so pissed they went back to the Yukon:(

[Spanky99]

I had seats 60+ they were available and I lost them. Now seats sit 100 plus lol

[Ehjays]

https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/bo-bichette-toronto-blue-jays-mlb-baseball

 

From Bo Bichette

 

 

 

I remember the leg kick.

 

I remember the BAT FLIP.

 

I remember the camera shaking.

 

If you were watching it, man, then you know what I’m talking about. You know!!! Like ... I don’t even have to go into any more detail, you’ve got it playing in your head already. You can see it all. Dyson’s wind up…… heater low and inside…… Jose’s got his leg two feet off the ground….. and just bang. Crack. CRACK. No-doubter. Bat in the air. Stro and Edwin losing their minds.

 

And the Rogers Centre? Absolutely rocking.

 

 

 

 

I mean this when I say it: Joey Bats, Game 5, that’s one of the most iconic moments in baseball history for me. I was in high school at the time — and I remember, even a few months after, how I’d just be chillin’ or whatever, and then suddenly I’d think to myself, like: I gotta go watch that on YouTube again. The roar of those fans, man…. it never got old. (It still doesn’t get old.)

 

So when summer rolled around, the next year, and I entered the 2016 draft…. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t run that moment back in my head a few times.

 

I was at home in St. Petersburg for the draft — with my mom, dad and a few friends. And when the Blue Jays called and said they wanted to pick me?? A lot of different thoughts went through my mind.

 

I talked it out with my parents, of course — they told me how great Toronto was, any time they’d been there. I’d also done my own research, and knew the organization was developing players the right way. They had guys at the big league level who swung like me and who played like me, which meant a lot. I saw a path that I could follow. And, man…. I won’t lie: I also just kept thinking about Jose and his bat flip.

 

I couldn’t get that crowd out of my head.

 

I wanted to be a part of something like that. I needed to be a part of something like that.

 

And after almost TWO YEARS away — now that we’re back in Toronto, for real?

 

I’m ready to be a part of something like that.

 

Our whole team is.

 

 

The thing about pro ball is there’s a lot of pressure we put on ourselves. People might have looked at my Baseball Reference page and been like, “This guy’s just climbing up through the ranks. He’s going to the Show, no big deal.” But it’s just not like that at all. Every step along the way, the pressure gets greater and greater. And when things aren’t working, it can be easy to second guess yourself.

 

Even as I got close to being called up, I just felt the weight of my own expectations. And look, I wanted it — no doubt. That’s why I play the game. But I still felt it. I saw all the Jays fans who were hyping me up, before I even played a game there…. and I knew the pressure I’d be under.

 

But then I put on that jersey.

 

And it was like magic. From then on, I felt like I belonged with this club. The support I received from our home crowd, it was incredible. All that pressure just melted away. I always want to let my play do the talking — and in Toronto, from Day One, I knew I could do that. I felt like I could be myself.

 

I felt like I could just play ball.

 

My first stretch of games at Rogers Centre, that was some of the most fun I’ve ever had in my life.

 

And let me get this out of the way up front: I know some people around the league might not like our park. They might think it doesn’t “hold up” compared to other parks.

 

Nah.

 

The Rogers Centre? It’s sick. For real.

 

Is it perfect? I don’t know — who cares.

 

You either get it or you don’t.

 

 

For me, it’s got this feeling when I’m there that’s just … it’s hard to explain. It’s just special. You’ve got the CN Tower up above you … the hotel out in centerfield. It just feels BIG. It’s big-time. I walk out on the field there, and it’s like, Yeah … it’s about to go down.

 

And it was just starting to feel like home when the pandemic hit last spring.

 

It’s crazy to think back on the beginning of it now….. there was so much uncertainty around everything. It all happened pretty fast. I understood that it wasn’t possible for us to go back to Toronto and play games there, but I was still disappointed. We were a really young team, and I think all of us were excited to make our connection with the city. I didn’t want to let that go. I didn’t want to give up playing for you guys.

 

Toronto, I missed y’all.

 

Probably more than you even know.

 

Like, I’ll be honest….. last year was tough. I just got into this weird routine. All of a sudden, every day was: Wake up. Go to the park. Go back to the hotel. Sleep. Repeat. And I’m a bit of a homebody as it is. I don’t really go out much. But I still couldn’t shake the feeling of just this … loneliness.

 

I think a lot of people felt that way last year. And I know how lucky I am, compared to most — how extremely lucky I am to do what I do every day, and play this game that I love. I know so many other people had it way worse. But I still just felt sort of hollow, if that makes sense. I felt anxious. I really just got in my own head, I think. I think my whole life kind of became baseball, in a way that wasn’t healthy.

 

And the fans not being there? It only amplified all that stuff.

 

It just felt like something was missing, you know?

 

Without Toronto, it wasn’t the same.

 

 

Something I can’t say enough, though: THANK YOU to the people of Dunedin and Buffalo, for welcoming us with open arms. It was weird circumstances, for sure — but I know I speak for all the guys when I say I feel a special connection to both of your cities now. You treated us like your own, and were such a big part of helping us grow. Any success that we have going forward, you’re a part of it.

 

And to our fans in Toronto: I couldn’t be more excited that we’re back — that we get to play in front of you all again. That we get to play for you all again.

 

It’s been way too long.

 

In 2019, I was just getting started as a Jay — a lot of us were. But now that we’ve had some time to settle in….. I think we’re a much different ballclub than we were two seasons ago. And I really do feel like this group is on the verge of big things.

 

Honestly?? We’re kinda nice.

 

We've got a team that just wants to bring it, every day. I think it's hard to look at someone like Vladdy, or Cavan, or to look at what Marcus has done this season, and not see how badly we want to win. And here’s the truth, straight up: There’s no reason we shouldn’t win.

 

We feel like we can beat anyone.

 

And even more importantly, beyond just great players — we also have a great group of guys. George. Randal. Teo. Lourdes. All these dudes. They want to bring that energy to this city. It’s definitely something we think about when it comes to how we measure success.

 

I think Toronto is really going to connect with this team.

 

Our record isn’t where we want it to be yet…. but the goal here is the playoffs. And we feel like we have all the pieces in place to make a run at it now — including the last two pieces we needed most: our park and our people.

 

And then the last thing I want to say, on a more serious note: I know that all of this…. it’s a lot bigger than baseball. I know how hard the last year and a half has been on everyone, and that the ups and downs of a Jays season are probably the last thing on anyone’s mind. I know that a lot of you who are reading this have experienced real hardship and real loss. And I know that a few ballgames aren’t going to change that.

 

Us playing at the Rogers Centre…. it doesn’t mean everything is “back to normal.” But I hope we can maybe bring just a little bit of that normal feeling back. I hope we can play some good baseball — and, in our own small way, be a part of the healing process.

 

That all starts tonight.

 

I can’t wait to show out for this city.

 

It’s great to be home.

[Brownie19]

Do people at the game have to wear masks the whole time? f*** me. I thought it was allowed to have spectators because it was deemed an outdoor space or something.

[Spanky99]

Do people at the game have to wear masks the whole time? f*** me. I thought it was allowed to have spectators because it was deemed an outdoor space or something.

 

Nah man, they're optional... lots of people not wearing masks tonight. Those comments by Bo above was awesome!

[Spanky99]

Do people at the game have to wear masks the whole time? f*** me. I thought it was allowed to have spectators because it was deemed an outdoor space or something.

 

Or maybe not, but I seen a lot of non masks last night...

 

https://www.mlb.com/bluejays/tickets/health-and-safety/rogers-centre

[Stangstag]

Or maybe not, but I seen a lot of non masks last night...

 

https://www.mlb.com/bluejays/tickets/health-and-safety/rogers-centre

 

Yeah the official rule is “masks must be worn except when drinking or eating”

 

So basically if you have a beer or bag of peanuts/popcorn you don’t gotta wear a mask