Mr. Miller's BLOG

Like father, like son?
Posted on August 25, 2009

I won't say that the honeymoon between Blackhawk fans and Rocky Wirtz is over. What Wirtz has done in his short tenure running the team has been praised in the media across the country down to the common fan in Chicago.

Yet in Mary Ellen Podmolik's column from Sunday's Chicago Tribune, Rocky Wirtz offers this advice to the Ricketts family, who now owns the Cubs':

Don't raise ticket prices across the board. Particularly in the current economic climate, a team needs to make it possible for an average family to attend a game. Instead, come up with a pricing structure that only raises some ticket prices. "You've got to be able to raise prices and not give anyone shock therapy."

Say what?

This from a guy who's raised ticket prices 30% to 70% in just two years? This from someone who's priced long-time, loyal, Blackhawk fans out of the stadium? The same one who has approved "premium" games in which ticket prices have jumped 15% from their normal face-value?

I know of a family of four who will not be attending a game this year because of prices. Personally I've seen my own seats move back about 15 rows while increasing in price by an average of $8 a ticket. Another friend has been forced to look at StubHub for 'cheaper' seats and still has to fork over $52 per seat. And let's not forget the scores of fans who have turned to the Chicago Wolves for their hockey fix.

Next thing Rocky will tell us is that pay-per-view home games is the wave of the future in the NHL. Or that the illegal ticket scalping operation that McEgo started with the Cubs was a smart business decision.

Rocky: Don't insult us. The marriage isn't over yet.

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