This year, I finally decided to travel to Los Angeles to watch a Dodgers game in person!
Now that I am in my 60s, I do not want to keep putting off the things I truly want to do.
I thought,
“If I am ever going to see Shohei Ohtani play at Dodger Stadium, now is the time!”
and decided to make the trip happen.
Although the actual trip was still several months away,
I purchased tickets for two Dodgers games on the first day tickets went on sale.
I bought both tickets through the official Dodgers website, but purchasing tickets on an English-language website was definitely nerve-racking.
In this article, I will share what I learned from actually buying the tickets,
including the mistakes I made and some useful tips that may help you avoid the same problems.
If you are planning to watch a Dodgers game in Los Angeles,
this article includes several important things I wish I had known beforehand,
so I hope you will read through to the end.
I Panicked When Dodgers Tickets Suddenly Went on Sale
I purchased my tickets through the official Los Angeles Dodgers website.
The whole experience was much more rushed than I expected,
so I want to share what happened to help other travelers avoid the same situation.
The Actual Ticket Sale Schedule Was Earlier Than I Expected
Beforehand, I had found information suggesting that
Dodgers tickets would usually go on sale around two to three months before the game.
Because of that, I checked the official Dodgers app from time to time,
but assumed there was still plenty of time.
However,
tickets actually went on sale at 3:00 a.m. Japan time on February 13 — more than three months before my game.
Even more surprisingly, tickets for games through November were released on the same day.
I Was Lucky to Notice the Announcement in the App
At around 10:00 p.m. on February 12, I happened to open the Dodgers app
and noticed that ticket sales would begin the following day.
I had only been checking the app every few days,
so I had almost missed the announcement.
I also did not receive any ticket-sale notification through the Dodgers email newsletter.
If I had checked one week or even ten days later,
I might have missed the seats I wanted entirely.
Just thinking about that still makes me nervous!
My Ticket Strategy Fell Apart: It Was Bobblehead Night!
My Original Plan Was to Keep Ticket Costs Down
Dodgers ticket prices can vary significantly
depending on the opposing team, popularity of the game, and seat location.
Unlike many baseball tickets in Japan,
prices can vary considerably even within the same seating section.
So I intentionally chose dates against a team that was not expected to be one of the most expensive matchups,
and had already booked our flights and hotel around those dates.
Then I Discovered One Game Was Bobblehead Night
When I checked the app at 10:00 p.m. on February 12,
I discovered that one of the games we had planned to attend had been designated as a Bobblehead Night.
Tickets for promotional giveaway games can be considerably more expensive
than tickets for games without special events.
So suddenly, this was no longer going to be one of the cheaper games.
On the positive side,
fans entering the stadium early enough can receive a special bobblehead giveaway.
I Waited Until 3:00 a.m. for Ticket Sales to Begin
I had learned that Bobblehead Nights are especially popular
and that good seats can sell quickly.
Shohei Ohtani Bobblehead Nights are particularly popular,
so I decided to be ready exactly when ticket sales opened at 3:00 a.m. Japan time.
That was 10:00 a.m. on February 12 in Los Angeles.
Because of the time difference between Japan and the United States,
I stayed awake and waited for ticket sales to begin.
Mistake #1: I Was Completely Unprepared
I Had Not Researched the Purchase Process
I had assumed that ticket sales were still weeks away,
so I had not researched how to purchase tickets through the official Dodgers website at all.
As soon as ticket sales opened, I started to panic.
I ended up taking screenshots of each page
and carefully checking what I needed to enter as I went.
Ticket Pricing Was More Complicated Than Expected
Prices vary not only by seating section,
but even by individual row within the same section.
The actual ticket prices were higher than I had expected,
so I strongly recommend deciding in advance
how much you are willing to spend on a ticket.
Having a clear budget makes it much easier to stay calm during the purchase process.
The Pressure of Knowing Tickets Could Not Be Easily Changed
By this point, our flights and hotel were already booked.
If I could not buy tickets,
the main reason for traveling to Los Angeles would disappear.
I was also nervous about accidentally purchasing the wrong tickets,
because tickets may not be refundable once purchased.
My hands were literally shaking,
and even the photos I took during the process came out strangely blurred!
Many Seats Were Already Unavailable When General Sales Opened
Even immediately after general ticket sales opened,
many seats were already unavailable.
After looking into it, I discovered that
there had apparently been a Mastercard presale the previous day.
It was relatively easy to find two seats together,
but finding three or more adjacent seats was already much more difficult.
In this screenshot, the pale blue areas indicate seats or sections that were unavailable.
(The image is an example and is not from the exact game we ultimately purchased.)
Mistake #2: I Missed My Dodgers Fan Club Discount
I also made one more expensive mistake.
I Missed the 15% Ticket Discount from the Official Dodgers Fan Club in Japan
I had joined the official Dodgers fan club in Japan,
which had an annual membership fee of ¥18,000.
One of the membership benefits was a
15% discount on game tickets.
To receive the discount,
tickets had to be purchased through a special URL sent by email when joining the fan club.
Unfortunately, I mistakenly assumed
that I would simply enter a discount code during checkout.
So I went directly to the official Dodgers website and completed the purchase there.
As a result,
I was unable to use the fan club discount.
This was a painful mistake.
Because I missed the 15% discount,
I ended up paying approximately ¥21,000 more in total.
I was too accustomed to Japanese online shopping websites,
where discount codes are often entered during the final checkout process.
I definitely regretted not checking the fan club instructions more carefully beforehand.
What I Learned from Buying Dodgers Tickets for the First Time
My first experience buying Dodgers tickets did not go perfectly.
However, I was very lucky to notice the ticket sale date when I did.
If I had discovered the sale later,
I might not have been able to buy the seats I wanted,
or I may have had to pay even more for tickets later.
Most importantly,
I was relieved that we successfully purchased tickets for two games during our stay in Los Angeles.
In the next article, I explain:
- How to buy Dodgers tickets through the official website, step by step
- Which seating areas we chose
- How much we paid in total
Important Notes
- Ticket prices and purchasing procedures may change.
- Always check the latest information on the official Los Angeles Dodgers website.
- Please purchase tickets at your own discretion and responsibility.
We also prepared a separate guide covering everything we arranged before our Los Angeles trip and Dodgers games.
If you want to know what we packed and prepared to avoid travel problems,
check the article below.
