Morning Report 10.25.15 | Uribe to Kansas City, Mets getting Richer, So are Season Ticketholders

Kristie Ackert/ Daily News - Juan Uribe will be heading to Kansas City with the Mets Sunday morning, whether he is on their World Series roster or not. The veteran infielder, who has been recovering from a chest injury, tried to make a case for being activated, taking live batting practice at Saturday’s mandatory workout at Citi FIeld. “Obviously, he looks great in BP. The live pitching today should help indicate some things, how he feels, even though he hasn’t played in a couple weeks,” said Terry Collins, who doesn’t expect a decision until Monday. Even if Uribe is left off the roster — and a team source said it was doubtful that Uribe would make it — “We’re going to take him anyway, because he’s been to this dance before and his presence in clubhouse and bench would be huge,” Collins said.

(Alexander Han - This is great news, whether Uribe plays or not. To me he is one of the keys to the team. A very solid pair of hands in the field, a clutch hitter, Uribe was one of the clubhouse leaders in August and September, in particular to the Hispanic players. How many times did we see Cespedes going to Uribe in the dugout. Frankly, if he is 100% healthy but still rusty from the time off, I would still add him to the roster over Matt Reynolds. Looking forward, although he may be nearing retirement, I would try to sign him for one more year if possible. A real winner.)

Martin Z Braun/ Bloomberg News - Riding on this season’s playoff run, the team projects total 2016 attendance will rise by 500,000 to 3.1 million, generating an additional $25 million in revenue, according to a person familiar with the estimate. That’s on top of a 20 percent attendance increase this year. In 2014, Citi Field generated about $117 million in revenue and had about $84 million in expenses, including a $43 million payment in lieu of taxes, according to a financial statement filed by Queens Ballpark Company LLC, a Mets subsidiary. 

(Alexander Han - the Mets finances are shrouded in secrecy, but trying to puzzle it together, it sounds like Bloomberg is saying the Mets could expect a $25m increase from 2015 vs 2016, on top of a possible $20m from 2014 to 2015. Add to that the increase in SNY revenue, which I'm guessing could be the same order of magnitude, plus revenues from 2015 playoff ball and marketing opportunities from the pennant and maybe more, and you're looking at a potential uplift of revenue for the Mets (which include Citi Field as well as SNY etc) from $263m in 2014 - when the current $100m payroll was devised - to $350m+ for 2016 and future payrolls. A massive step change in fortune, and plenty of cash to spend some of it on Cespedes and Murphy and still leave some to service debt. 

Mark Townsend/ Big League Stew - With Games 3, 4 and 5 scheduled for Citi Field, ticket resale services say the average asking price for seats was sitting on $1,667.82 as of Thursday. That already makes them the costliest tickets in baseball history. And those numbers only figure to rise in the days ahead. In fact, on StubHub, they have a pair of Game 3 tickets going right now for $1 million. The previous record price, according to TiqIQ.com, was held by the 2010 San Francisco Giants at $1,661. The Boston Red Sox were close behind with a $1,660.96 average during the 2013 World Series. 

(Alexander Han - speaking of money, wow. Too bad I didn't get allotted World Series tickets. If I had been lucky enough to get tickets, do I sell them and buy a nice new TV screen to watch the baseball game. Probably go for the game and hope for an unforgettable experience...)