Greedy Owners Can Ruin Anything, Even the World Series

With the All-Cinderella-Story World Series under way, baseball fans in Cleveland and Chicago pinching themselves to make sure they aren’t living in the early 20th Century, and the Great Lakes region of the country finally getting more attention than the Northeast or West Coast, one could be forgiven for thinking that we have entered a new era of sports fandom, a throwback to a simpler, nicer time.  Not so fast.

Greedy owners can ruin just about anything.

This one comes from the Cleveland Indians owner Larry Dolan, who would put Darth Vader or Two-Face to shame with the way he just treated more than a dozen season ticket holders.  The fans who have waited their entire lives for this moment in the post-season sun had their tickets cancelled by the Indians’ greedy team owners. The fans’ offense?  Selling some of their tickets to friends and family members.

Buried in the fine print of the Cleveland Indians Season Tickets deal is a prohibition on reselling your tickets.  It seems that the team owners think that they don’t make enough money on inflated ticket prices, confiscatory confession costs, and pillaging parking fees.  No, they want to make money every time a ticket holder sells that ticket to a neighbor or grandson.

Even if there is a Major League Baseball fan somewhere in the United States who does not find this to be the most obnoxious fan restriction since the NFL tried to stop fans from texting scores from the bleachers, there simply is no way that the punishment fits the …um… “crime.”  Did the owners fine the fans who had the audacity to sell their tickets?  No.  Did the owners send a threatening letter?  No.  Did they take away the right to attend one of next season’s games?  No.  The owners took away the World Series.  You’re OUT!