It’s a shame that physical tickets don’t exist anymore. Their branded designs and omnipresence made them easy mementos. When I was a kid, my dad had a 20-game Royals season ticket package, and all of our tickets and parking passes came in a bound book. Dad would tear off each game’s necessities, and away we went, making the drive from Liberty to the K. We took alternate routes and backroads in September and October 2014, as we joined thousands of other fans watching the team’s first playoff run in 29 years. In this series at Royals Keep, I’m looking back on Royals history from this century through the lens of memorabilia.
Dad’s season ticket package was just a quarter of the team’s home games, but it allowed him the ability to purchase postseason tickets. Our regular seats were section 232, row BB, seats 3, 4, 5, and 6. I will remember those numbers for the rest of my life! For the playoffs, however, we shifted to the third base side and section 223. We barely sat in our seats during the Wild Card Game, forever the best baseball game I will ever watch in person.
In 2019, the Royals switched from paper tickets to the MLB Ballpark app. “If a fan wants a paper copy of their ticket, the ticket office will print a stub for a $5 fee,” according to this KSHB 41 release announcing the change. My family and thousands of other Royals fans are lucky that this adjustment occurred years after the 2014-15 playoff runs. I’m so fortunate to have had that shared experience, for it produced my favorite baseball gift I’ve ever received.
My mom took our playoff tickets and had them matted and framed, turning each collection of tickets into a one-of-a-kind Christmas gift. For my dad, she combined her tickets with his and included the parking passes, while my brother and I got our tickets to the Wild Card Game, ALDS Game 3, ALCS Game 3, ALCS Game 4, and World Series games 1, 2, 6, and 7. What’s your favorite baseball gift you’ve ever received?
Because I watched those games in person, I think I actually have more affection for the 2014 American League champions than the 2015 World Series winners. Does anyone else feel this way? I still cried when Wade Davis struck out Wilmer Flores to end World Series game 5, but that 2014 team was incredibly special.
Ten years later, the 2024 Royals shocked baseball by improving by 30 games and sneaking into the playoffs as a Wild Card team, just as they did in 2014. Before 2024 kicked off, I asked my brother if we should take our dad to the next Royals home playoff game, whenever that may be. Now grown adults who still love baseball, my thought was we can begin to pay back our dad for the literal hundreds of Royals games he took us to in the summer heat. Little did I think we’d make it to the K that October! Aaron and I bought upper-deck tickets for us and our dad to attend ALDS Game 3, where the mighty Yankees beat the Royals 3-2. Too bad we don’t have a paper ticket, although we have this great photo and memories of saying hi to Jeff Passan before the game.
Bonus: I remain shocked by the amount of niche baseball memorabilia available online. Upon searching “Royals season ticket book” on eBay, this gem popped up: a 2014 Royals season ticket book. This can be yours for the low price of $24.99 plus shipping.