At 10 a.m. on Thursday frustrated fans spent their mornings on the Ticketmaster website jockeying for tickets to the Blue Jays’ seemingly inevitable first trip to the playoffs since 1993.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Talking points for this weekend's social chatter
"@BlueJays Ticket Update: ALDS games are all now sold out. Small amount of inventory still avail for Wildcard game. Check back regularly." @BlueJays, Sept. 24, 11:40 a.m.
Where were you at 10 a.m. on Thursday? Let Sept. 24, 2015, be forever remembered in the city as the day frustrated fans spent their mornings on the Ticketmaster website jockeying for tickets to the Blue Jays' seemingly inevitable first trip to the playoffs since 1993. Stephen Brooks, the senior vice-president of business for the team, tweeted that 70,000 people were in the digital queue at one point to buy what amounted to – after the team, season-ticket holders, sponsors and other VIPs took their share – "several thousand" seats in the 49,000-plus capacity Rogers Centre. Jays fans are right to be excited: The stakes haven't been this high for the team in decades. The social implications, however, are precarious. Here's how to handle the awkward gathering of friends and family this weekend, where winners and losers in the Jays sweepstakes will mingle in close quarters.
1. For the winners: Don't gloat. Offer the news of your good luck as if they were condolences on the death of your best friend's mother's cat. But once you've identified the members of your tribe, take the conversation to another room where you can giggle and high-five each other with abandon.
2. For the losers: Now's your chance. Lay claim to the revered role of playoff host, inviting everyone to your place to watch the games. Don't forget to make up the guest rooms, though – playoff baseball takes forever.
3. For the scalpers: Go home, no one wants to talk to you. (Especially if you're the one on StubHub seeking $10,000 a ticket in the nosebleeds.)
4. For the non-fans: The answer to, "Is the game over yet?" is always no – playoff baseball takes forever.
Cliff Lee