Opening Day sold out in just 26 minutes. Reds chief operating officer John Allen doesn't know if tickets to the team's final game at Cinergy Field will go quite that fast, but he expects it to be close.

        Tickets to the Reds' last three games at Cinergy go on sale at 9 a.m. Saturday. Cincinnati will play the Philadelphia Phillies on Sept. 20, 21 and 22.

        Mr. Allen said close to 20,000 tickets should be available for each game. Reds officials believe the series could be sold out by the end of Saturday.

BUYING TICKETS

Tickets for the Reds' final series at Cinergy Field (vs. Philadelphia, Sept. 20-22) go on sale from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. They are available at:   • Cinergy Field ticket windows, near Gate 13 on the west side of the plaza level   • Reds Dugout Shop in the Westin Hotel downtown   • All area Tickets.com outlets, including Meijer stores, Hader Hardware and some Play it Again Sports locations   • www.cincinnatireds.com   • (513) 381-REDS or (877) 647-REDS.   The south side of the west ticket area at Cinergy will only sell tickets to the last game; the advance ticket windows will sell tickets to all games of the final series.   Tickets.com outlets will sell only last-game tickets until sold out, then sell tickets to the other two games of the series.   Ticket prices are $32, $24, $16, $15, $14, $9 and $5. There will be an additional $3 charge for each ticket for the final series.   No more than six tickets per person can be purchased for the final game. There is no limit for the Sept. 20 and 21 games.

        “This only happens once,” Reds director of marketing Cal Levy said. “We're looking forward to a good response.”

        The team has special promotions planned for each game. Former players and Reds officials are being invited to the final game. Afterward, home plate will be moved from Cinergy to Great American Ballpark, where the Reds begin play in 2003.

        Demand for tickets to the Phillies series would be high even without the Reds being in first place in the National League Central Division, but now fans might consider the final three games could be more than just nostalgic — they could be the last home leg of a pennant race.

        Steve Wolter, owner of Sports Investments, said a “full” (unused) ticket from the final game at Cinergy could be worth $100 to $200 in three to five years and a used ticket stub $50 to $75. Values will increase in time, of course. An un used ticket from the last game at Crosley Field is worth $750 today, Mr. Wolter said.

        “But Crosley's a much more historical ballpark,” he said.

        Only tickets from the last game will be worth anything after the game.

        If fans don't get tickets to the last game Saturday, prices next week will be in the $45-range for red seats and around $165 for blue seats at Riverfront Choice Tickets, said Jeff McDonald, the company's public relations director.

        Should the Reds remain in playoff contention and with announcements of Big Red Machine players reuniting, the prices will only go higher, Mr. McDonald said.

        If Pete Rose — who is banned by Major League Baseball from participating in any related events — would end up coming, that “would drive it through the roof.” Mr. McDonald estimated it would then cost more than $100 just to get in the stadium and around $250 “for decent seats.”

SPECIAL EVENTS

• Friday, Sept. 20 (7:10 p.m.): Fireworks Night   • Saturday, Sept. 21 (7:10 p.m.): Cinergy Field/Riverfront Stadium Replica Night   • Sunday, Sept. 22 (1:15 p.m.): Commemorative Ticket Holder and Lanyard Day. Former players and team officials are being invited. In a postgame ceremony, home plate will be moved from Cinergy to Great American Ballpark

        Phil Meyer, former director of marketing and membership for WCET-TV who now lives in Bloomington, Ind., is part of a five-man team planning to work the phones and internet Saturday in an effort to get tickets to the Cinergy finale.

        Joining him are his wife's brother Greg Borchers, and his wife's sisters' husbands, Sean Strapp, Brian Campbell and Dave Burns.

        Mr. Meyer, who now works at WTIU-TV in Bloomington, is a University of Cincinnati season ticket holder who has tickets to attend the Ohio State-UC football game at Paul Brown Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 21.

        “My 12-year-old son (Andrew) is a big Reds fan, and when we moved last summer, he made me promise to try and get tickets to the last game at Cinergy,” Mr. Meyer said.

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