The Hot Corner | Baseball teams try to adjust to economy

It was only a matter of time: the economic downturn has finally hit the sports section.

Obviously, the recession in the global economy has touched just about everyone in many different ways. And now, it appears to be coming to baseball.

One of the big stories out of New York last week centered around a bunch of empty seats at the new Yankee Stadium and Mets' brand new Citi Field. The offending seats were located down the baselines in some of the higher-priced section of the ballparks, and in the case of the Yankees, were largely empty for five of the six games in the stadium's inaugural homestand. And they've caused quite an uproar from a variety of figures.

One such person was Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, who told the media that the teams would be discussing changes in ticket prices. His comment, not a mandate to the clubs by any means, was met with a lukewarm response by the Mets and no comment from the Yankees.

The storm continued as Don Garber, head commissioner of Major League Soccer, also took notice of the empty seats, saying "It's incomprehensible that you watch a game, and there will be front row seats empty."

While it's an isolated incident, it does beg the question of what niche sports will fill in this changing economy. The question can be asked from two sides: from the production end and the consumer end.

Thus far, production seems to have been effected minimally, at least in terms of on-field product. With the exception of several high-profile situations in the world of European soccer, including the accumulation of massive debts and severe losses by a number of major financiers, the four major American sports have come through largely unscathed to this point.

While there have been some instances of distress-one of the most notable being the Phoenix Coyotes receiving financial assistance from the National Hockey League-there hasn't been a lot of talk about the crisis in sporting circles. Some teams have been less aggressive in seeking free agents, especially in baseball, but there hasn't been a huge body of evidence to suggest that things have irrevocably changed in how teams attempt to put together a winning product.

The most obvious changes, and necessarily the first to be seen, would come in the form of the consumption end: are people still paying to see games, buy merchandise, etc.?

As Garber and many others have been so quick to point out, attendance in the Majors is down so far this season, with five percent fewer fans going through the gates as they were at this time last year (the comments are ironic coming from Garber, whose league saw lower attendance numbers in 2008 despite being in the midst of an ongoing expansion plan). While many are hesitant to extrapolate the decline just yet, it's something that may cause worry down the road.

But the nuances of finance in each sport make the models difficult to predict. A sport like MLB, which drew nearly 79 million fans to its 30 ballparks last season, gets a great deal of its revenue at the ballparks on gameday (tickets, concessions, merchandise, etc.). But sports like the NHL, which makes greater proportions of their money from television contracts, may benefit from fewer people making the trek to games.

Regardless of the individual dynamics of each sport, there is no doubt that the business of sports has to adjust to the economic conditions like any other industry, especially in light of what each franchise stands to lose (the net value of a baseball franchise in 2009 is about $482 million, according to Forbes).

Which brings us back to New York. Early indications from Yankees' and Mets' fans appear to be that management of those teams may have overvalued their stately new homes. Apparently, the new economic landscape makes it somewhat infeasible for families to take out a second mortgage to take a family of four to a game.

In Yankee Stadium, for example, field seats between first and third base, which don't even include the first 19 rows (they're in another price bracket), are going for $375 each. At Citi Field, the cheapest seats in the stadium in the Promenade Reserved stratosphere section are going for $23 each for "Gold" games (basically the teams you would actually want to see), but they require clearance from the tower at La Guardia Airport. Those prices don't even include the exorbitant suites and luxury boxes that can top out at $2625 to see the Bronx Bombers. All that on top of $20 to park and food (hello, $9 Italian sausages and $10 Budweiser draughts).

In this day and age where budgets from the smallest household to the largest company are tightening up, tough decisions have to be made. The corporate cuts are especially influential for the sports industry, as company seats to entertain clients, which accounts for most of the purchases of field boxes at MLB stadiums, could be among the first to go.

For sports teams everywhere, decisions will have to be made on just how valuable their product is to the average consumer. And it looks like the New York teams may be first up to bat.