The Bronx Bombers have dusted off former ace David Cone to call fans with the hopes of unloading some of the pricey luxury seats at the new Yankee Stadium.
"David Cone left a four-minute voice mail on my machine about the seats," a season-ticket holder told the New York Post. "I liked the message, but it didn't change my mind. The whole thing is kind of comical."
Cone, who was part of the Yankees last four championship teams, says he volunteered for the job, the Post reported. When he calls potential buyers, Cone says he doesn't give them the hard sell and the conversation inevitably ends up being more about baseball than business.
"I like talking to Yankee fans, and when I call or I give tours, we talk baseball more than anything else," the former Cy Young Award winner said. "I'm not pushing anything."
The Yankees are providing Cone's foundation and other charities use of luxury boxes for select games in return for his help selling seats.
"The luxury box makes a great item to auction off at charity events," Cone said.
The Yankees recently slashed the prices of their "Legends Suite" seats in half, but even the reduced price tag has been a tough sell to fans during rough economic times.
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The full-season, front-row $2,500 tickets behind the dugouts were reduced to $1,250. Still, at $1,250, those tickets will remain roughly twice as expensive as the highest-priced seat at Citi Field, the Mets’ new home.
The Yankees top seats aren't the only ones selling poorly. Fans are reselling tickets around the stadium for less than face value online, Crane's New York reported. Thirty-dollar grandstand seats are available for $11, and $50 seats in the outfield terrace section start at $17.
With the Yankees struggling to win games on the field, fans are selling their tickets for as low as a third of the price.
"They need a winning streak," fan Kevin Edwards told the New York Daily News. "In order to fill the seats, they need to start winning."
