ALBANY – The lottery has added a new pitch to its repertoire – and it lets New Yorkers play ball for cool, hard cash.
The planned Subway Series tickets, which are still being finalized, will feature Met and Yankee logos. Buyers will scratch off baseballs and bases to match numbers for prizes of up to $1 million.
It’s the first time the New York Lottery has teamed up with Major League Baseball.
The $5 game will be unveiled tomorrow, a day after the Yanks and Mets start the season, But the scratch-offs won’t be sold until May 3.
“The enthusiasm and excitement that new Yorkers have for baseball will surely make this ticket a home run,” said lottery spokeswoman Jennifer Mauer.
But opponents say it should hit the showers.
“They’re corrupting the great American pastime with gambling,” said State Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Queens).
MLB’s approval of the game is somewhat surprising, given its hard-line stance on gambling, which has led to lifetime bans for “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and Pete Rose.
But club owners recently voted to allow collaboration with state lotteries.
Massachusetts was the first to bat, offering a Red Sox-themed ticket that, unlike the team itself, has more than one winner every 86 years.
That game not only offers cash prizes, but also a lifetime pair of season tickets and spring-training trips.
It’s unclear if the teams or MLB will get a share of the sales.