New York Mets Schedule, Ticket Prices, and More: The Ultimate Guide
It’s safe to say that the 2020 MLB season didn’t go as planned for the New York Mets. A season that began with high expectations ended with disappointment. Fortunately, Mets fans are accustomed to feeling disappointment and frustration. It’s almost a pre-requisite for being a fan. More importantly, Mets fans are resilient and never give up hope, which will no doubt be their attitude heading into the 2021 season, which will come with renewed hope. With the fanbase optimistic that this will be their year, let’s take a closer look at the 2021 season, including the Mets game schedule and must-see Mets home games, as fans will no doubt be excited to buy New York Mets tickets and return to Citi Field to support their team in 2021.
Schedule
After MLB played an abbreviated 60-game schedule in 2020, things are set up for a full 162-game season in 2021. As usual, the Mets will play a lot of games within their division. However, they will also become reacquainted with all of the other National League teams they didn’t play in 2020, which should create some interesting matchups.
First Half Schedule
Everything gets started on April 1, which is when the Mets play their 2021 season opener against the Washington Nationals. On paper, it’s a game between two teams that didn’t make the playoffs last season. However, these two clubs have developed a rather heated rivalry with one another over the past decade. Of course, Mets fans are always confident on opening day because New York has the best opening day winning percentage in MLB history, going 37-22 on opening day, including a win over the Braves in 2020 and eight wins on the last 11 opening days.
A week later, the Mets will hopefully be welcoming fans back to Citi Field with their home opener against the Miami Marlins. This is another team that has become a rival for New York over the years and a club that is no longer a basement dweller after the Marlins made the playoffs in 2020. The Mets will also play home series with the Phillies and Nationals in April. Toward the end of the month, New York welcomes the Boston Red Sox for a two-game series in a rematch of the 1986 World Series.
Outside of three games against the Diamondbacks and two games against the Orioles, the Mets will spend most of May on the road, taking on the Cardinals and then a southern road trip to face the Rays, Braves, and Marlins. However, the club comes home late in the month for a homestand that will include four games against the Rockies and three with the Braves.
Alas, that homestand is immediately followed by a challenging road trip that will send the Mets out west. Finally, during the second half of June, the Mets will get to spend a little more time at Citi Field. They’ll entertain the Padres for three games and the Cubs for four games before jumping back into division play in late June, hosting the Braves and Phillies.
When July arrives, the Mets spent a little more time in New York, albeit with a three-game series in the Bronx against the Yankees, including a game on the Fourth of July. The Mets then have the good fortune of a seven-game homestand against the Brewers and Pirates before the all-star break. Oddly enough, the Mets begin the second half of the season after the break with another series against the Pirates. However, they’ll be home for the final nine days of July and the first day of August with series planned against the Blue Jays, Braves, and Reds.
Schedule Down the Stretch
If the Mets are still playing meaningful games in August, their schedule will be an unforgiving one. They dive deep into divisional play during the first half of August. The Mets then head out west again to face the Giants for three games and the Dodgers for four games. Luckily, August will end and September will begin with another long homestand, as the Mets face the Giants, Nationals, and Marlins.
The Mets also get to spend a large chunk of September playing in front of the home faithful. Twelve of their final 18 games in September will be played at Citi Field, albeit against teams like the Cardinals, Phillies, and Marlins. There are also road games against the Red Sox and Brewers mixed in. Ultimately, the Mets will end the 2021 regular season on the road with three games against the Braves.
A Special Day
The most important game on the Mets schedule this season is important for non-baseball reasons. On Saturday, September 11, the Mets are set to host the crosstown Yankees in the second game of a three-game Subway Series. The date of the game is on the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington DC on September 11, 2001. MLB made no mistake in scheduling the Mets and Yankees to play each other on that day in what is bound to be an emotional game for players and fans on both sides of the rivalry.
Tickets
After a full season with no fans in the stadium, the demand for Mets tickets should be high in 2021. Even if the team struggles early in the year, fans will be happy to return to Citi Field wearing orange and blue. Regardless of Mets’ ticket prices, there is bound to be a high demand for tickets among fans.
Season Ticket Plans
The Mets are rolling out a wide variety of season-ticket plans in 2021 with the hope that fans can find something that works for them. It starts with a full-season plan, which means tickets to all 81 home games. Those plans start at $1,527, which amounts to just under $19 per game. On the other end of the spectrum, the creme-de-la-creme that puts you behind home plate for all 81 games costs $35,115, which is a mere $433 per game.
Meanwhile, there are two different half-season plans. There is a 41-game Weekday Plan, which consists of tickets for every home game on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday. It’s perfect for folks who don’t have to work early in the morning or those who like getting out of town during weekends in the summer. On the other hand, there is also a 41-game Weekend Plan, which gives you tickets to every Mets home game on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, as well as a random Wednesday night in April when they host the Red Sox. It’s the perfect plan for fans who work hard during the week but like to treat themselves once the workday ends every Friday.
For fans who can’t commit to a full season or even 41 games, the Mets offer a 20-game package. Here, there are three different options. First, there is the Saturday Plan, which means tickets to every Saturday home game, as well as seven other games the club has chosen. The 20-game Sunday Plan works the same way except you’ll be at every Sunday game. Finally, there is the 20-game Weekday Plan, which includes a mix of games during the season on any day between Monday and Friday. This plan includes a Friday night game against the Yankees in September, a Monday night game against the Cubs in June, and a Tuesday night meeting with the Red Sox in late April.
The Mets also get creative with a fourth type of season-ticket package called the Delta Share Plan. These packages include an assortment of games on any day of the week against any opponent throughout the season. The club has already mixed and matched games on various packages, so it’s up to you to check them out and find one that best fits your schedule. Among the Delta Share Plans, there are two different 40-game plans and four different 20-game plans, so the options are plentiful.
On the Secondary Market
If you can’t make it to at least 20 Mets games this season or want complete freedom in choosing what games you attend, your best bet is to hit the secondary market. In fact, the secondary market is where you can find the best deals if you know where to look. Usually, the best strategy is to be patient and wait until the last few days before a game or even the last few hours before a game. This is when sellers typically start to lower their prices so they don’t end up stuck with tickets they don’t intend to use. When those prices start to drop, it’s the time to strike if you want to get a great deal on last-minute Mets tickets.
Team
There are a lot of things one could say about their Mets and their propensity for disappointment. However, the one thing that you can always say about the Mets is that they’re never boring. They always seem to entertain and give fans just enough hope to keep them engaged all season. There’s no reason why that should be any different in 2021.
New Boss
For long-suffering Mets fans, the impossible has finally happened. The club is poised to enter 2021 with a new owner. After a lot of back and forth, billionaire Steve Cohen was able to negotiate a deal with the Wilpons for controlling interest of the team. The expectation is that Cohen will a little more liberal with the team’s payroll. For years, fans of grown frustrated with the team’s unwillingness to spend in free agency like a big-market club. That could change with Cohen calling the shots and paying the bills.
Granted, that doesn’t guarantee that the Mets will make a huge splash in free agency this offseason. However, it likely means that the Mets won’t go bargain hunting when it comes to addressing their biggest needs. More importantly, the team’s recent mediocrity will no longer be accepted, giving the Mets the freedom to bring in players who can make them a championship contender.
The Core Is Set
Of course, while the promise of the new owner making an effort to sign star players in free agency is appealing for Mets fans, the team already has a healthy collection of proven players on the roster. In fact, most of the starting lineup for 2021 should already be on the roster. If there had been an All-Star Game in 2020, the Mets would have likely been well-represented among position players.
The team’s best player in 2020 was right fielder Michael Conforto, who posted MVP-caliber numbers for most of the season. At the same time, first baseman Dominic Smith had a breakout season and was one of the best left-hand hitters in the National League. Second baseman Robinson Cano had a resurgent year and had all-star caliber numbers. Mets fans also shouldn’t sleep on slugger Pete Alonso, who is just a year removed from winning Rookie of the Year in 2019 and should be able to bounce back from his sophomore slump in 2020. Finally, young shortstop prospect Andrew Gimenez showed this past season that he’s ready to play in the big leagues and be a difference-maker offensively, defensively, and on the base paths.
Cy Guys
Last but not least, Mets fans should always look forward to watching the team’s pitchers. After all, the Mets are an organization that has long tried to build around pitching. For what it’s worth, the Mets have some work to do over the winter to rebuild their starting rotation. Nevertheless, they know that Jacob deGrom, who won the Cy Young award in 2018 and 2019, will be back to lead the starting rotation in 2021. He’ll be joined by lefty David Peterson, who put together a promising rookie campaign in 2020 and should be a regular in the rotation for many years to come. There’s also a chance that Noah Syndergaard will recover from Tommy John surgery and be ready to rejoin the Mets during the second half of 2021.
The Bottom Line
When it comes to performing on the field, there are no guarantees in baseball, especially when it comes to the Mets. However, history does tell us that the Mets are always entertaining and never boring. With a young core of blossoming stars, a new owner, and an always faithful and optimistic fanbase, there is no shortage of reasons to be excited about the Mets in 2021.