CLEVELAND — These chairs at Cleveland's Progressive Field have seen a lot over the last three-plus decades — three World Series, five Cy Young winners, iconic walk-off homers, and millions upon millions of cheering fans.
Now, the legendary hunter green seats are set to become a distant memory, but those same cheering fans had a chance to make those memories a tangible part of their lives forever.
Problem is, that chance didn't seem to last very long.
The Guardians on Thursday announced they were selling a number of the retired seats for $300 a pair "while supplies last," with a portion of the proceeds going to Cleveland Guardians Charities. All customers had to do was log on to CLEguardians.com/retiredseats to claim their piece of history.
However, after only several hours, web browsers going to the page are now greeted with this message: "We have sold out of our available inventory this offseason."
Yes, the chairs are no longer available for purchase. The team has not specified how many were even procurable in the first place, nor has it stated if more will be on sale in the future.
The seats were pulled from sections 103-125 (right field) and 169-179 (left-field line). Fans were limited to buying only one pair, which each featured two chairs with the recognizable "golden batter" logo on one side.
The green seats have been an enduring part of Progressive Field since it first opened as Jacobs Field back in 1994, as identifiable as the stadium's toothbrush light towers and 19-foot wall in left. When the city of Cleveland approved a renovation plan for the facility, the team confirmed it would replace all the green seats with navy blue ones, a process that began a year ago and is expected to be fully completed in time for the 2025 season.