The New York Mets or Chicago Cubs will represent the National League in the 2015 World Series. Let that resonate for a second.
Jacob deGrom flirted with danger all night long in the win-or-go home NLDS Game 5 Thursday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the long-haired fireballer and reigning NL Rookie of the Year maneuvered his way through six gut-wrenching innings to keep the Mets in the hunt. It was Daniel Murphy's bat and uncharacteristic baserunning success that stole the show, however, whose go-ahead solo home run in the sixth was the difference in the game.
The Amazins now enter their first NLCS since 2006 and first-ever postseason series with the Cubs. Equipped with a bevy of young arms and looking to break a near-30-year World Series drought, the Mets are set to host Games 1 and 2 and, if necessary Games 6 and 7 at Citi Field. Get ready to pay an arm and a leg for tickets at either team's stadium, as the 2015 NLCS is the most expensive LCS on the secondary market since at least 2010.
According to TiqIQ, the average price for Mets NLCS tickets across all four potential home games is $832.14, the second most expensive home average TiqIQ has tracked for an LCS. Each game currently owns a secondary market average above $600, with a possible Game 7 exceeding the $1,000 on average. However those prices pale in comparison to the Cubs, who are generating an average price above $1,100 at each of their three potential games at Wrigley Field.
With Games 3, 4 and 5 expected to turn Wrigleyville into an even bigger madhouse, the average secondary market price for Cubs NLCS tickets across all three games is $1,218.42. That is easily the most expensive home average for an LCS recorded since at least 2010, when TiqIQ began tracking secondary market ticket data. In fact, the Cubs own a more expensive ticket average than several World Series teams since the turn of the decade, including last year's San Francisco Giants that averaged a $1,140.19 over their three home games against the Kansas City Royals.
Of course, traveling to the games in both cities will also be a major factor for fans. NYC parking at Citi Field for Mets games 1 & 2 starts at $12, a far cry from the $25 being charged in the stadium's parking lots. Parking in Chicago starts at $50 for Cubs home games at Wrigley Field.
It has been 107 years since the Cubs last won the World Series. The team has dealt with their fair share of despair over that time, none greater than the famed Curse of the Billy Goat that has been in place since 1945. Of course, if modern prophecies are to be fulfilled, the Cubs can thank the 1989 blockbuster movie, Back to the Future II, for their success. Marty McFly's time-warp into the year 2015 depicts the Cubs winning it all, though the sweep came against an unnamed Miami team.
For the best deals on tickets for the LCS and World Series, check out the new TiqIQ app for iOS.