Fans barred from big-league ballparks in 2020 had to pay a lot more for Opening Day tickets. Instead of luring fans back banned by lowering ticket prices, most major-league baseball teams instead chose to fleece the market.

At least that was the case as the season opened this week with a roaring ca-ching of the cash register in many ballparks.

The World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers, for example, hiked their first-game ducats a whopping 282%, according to TickPick, a no-fee secondary ticket marketplace.

When the Dodgers play their first game at home against the Washington Nationals April 9, the average price of a ticket will be $215.58, up from the $56.45 the team charged for Opening Day 2019.

Fans were banned from ballparks last summer because of concerns over the highly-contagious Covid-19 virus. This year, they’re allowed in but on a limited basis.

Teams bank heavily on game-day revenue, which includes parking and concessions receipts, to help them meet such expenses as player payroll.

Across the board, TickPick reported Opening Day prices up 53% when compared with the first game of 2019. It said the average ticket price for 2021 openers is $162.21, up from $105.74 in 2019.

After the Dodgers, who also top the 30 teams with a $246,429,833 payroll according to Spotrac, the teams with the most dramatic increases are the New York Mets (174%), Los Angeles Angels (160%), Kansas City Royals (157%), and Oakland Athletics (148%). All were active adding veteran players through trades and free-agent signings.

The Dodgers, for example, signed the top pitcher on the market, Trevor Bauer, to a three-year, $102 million contract in the wake of his Cy Young Award season with Cincinnati last year. And the Mets not only signed eight free agents but also acquired star shortstop Francisco Lindor and starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco from Cleveland in one of the biggest swaps of the winter. Then they gave Lindor a 10-year, $341 million contract extension hours before his self-imposed Opening Day signing deadline.

Many teams offer tiered ticket pricing, with higher rates charged for tickets to special games, such as openers, or against regional rivals (Yankees-Mets or White Sox-Cubs, for example). According to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, the 30 big-league teams lost nearly $3 billion last year.

Several teams, including the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees, claimed losses in excess of $100 million.

Charges for parking and concessions are also on the rise in many ballparks. Parking passes at Globe Life Field, home of the Texas Rangers, begin at $55 on StubHub.