This post is back from 2016. So many people have been asking us about it, I'm sharing again. Headed to a Major League Baseball game with your family this spring or summer or fall (baseball season lasts forever, doesn't it)??? Well, before you purchase high priced tickets, consider this. Download MLB.com's at the Ballpark app onto your SmartPhone.
Within the app itself are things such as a ballpark map to find the closest bathroom or concession and a directory – all to make your visit more enjoyable. It seems to have a music section as well as a check-in area where you can get offers from your team. However, the most remarkable part of the app to our family is the ability to upgrade our seats. We tried it out at a Rockies game.
We originally purchased some tickets at $16/each in a section between 3rd base and the outfield. A few hours before game time, we tried the UPGRADE section of the app. For $10/each, we were able to upgrade our seats to club level seats behind 1st base. This means we paid $26 a ticket for club seats ($16 for the original ticket plus $10 for the upgraded ticket). The upgraded ticket will appear only to your mobile device; there is no new paper ticket. We didn't experience the dreaded “convenience fee” for using this feature.
You will notice that we received a section and a row, but no seat numbers. We knew we purchased 4 tickets at $10/each, so the $40 made sense to us, but we were afraid it wouldn't to an usher. This was a small glitch in the system (so it seemed). Yet, the ushers used their radio/walkie talkies and worked it out. Whomever the usher called on his walkie talkie was able to see where our seats were. Then we were given these instructions:
We've read that this feature “kicks in” an hour before the game. However, we were able to do it approximately 3 hours before the game started. It seems the pricing for upgrades can range for as little as $5 up to quite a bit of money, but for us a $10 upgrade was well worth it. Of course, the price of the upgrade will really depend on the game.
And to top it off, I got a foul ball at the game!
Since originally writing this post, several of our friends have tried this and all had success! Good luck and no matter where your seats are for the game...have a blast!