Cheapest Legit Way to See the Yankees This Weekend: Tickets, Parking, and Transit for the Rays Series at Yankee Stadium

Three official Yankees ticket channels, City Parking (the team’s official partner) self-park rates at all four YSP garages, MTA-verified subway, Metro-North Yankee Clipper, and bus options, plus the bag policy and re-entry rules in full. No resale links.

The Yankees host the Tampa Bay Rays this weekend at Yankee Stadium — Saturday, May 23 at 1:35 p.m. and Sunday, May 24 at 1:35 p.m. If you’re hunting for the cheapest legitimate way into a Yankees game (no resale markups, no "guaranteed" third-party seats that often aren’t), every pathway in this guide goes through official channels only. Here is exactly where to buy, where to park, and how to get to the gates.

The Only Three Official Ticket Channels

For Yankees home games, only three channels are operated or licensed by the team itself. Anything outside this list is a resale platform.

Yankees Single Game Tickets at mlb.com/yankees/tickets/single-game-tickets — this is the team’s primary single-game ticket page.
Pinstripe Pass at mlb.com/yankees/tickets/specials/pinstripe-pass — the Yankees’ standing-room entry product, historically the cheapest published price point for getting inside the stadium on a given date. Quantities are limited and offered per game at the team’s discretion.
Yankee Stadium Box Office at One East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451 — same-day single-game tickets are sold in person.

The team also lists Ticket Specials and Flex Plans for buyers willing to commit to multiple games. Flex plans are not always the cheapest single-game cost-per-seat, but they’re the only published way to lock in lower-tier inventory across a slate of dates without going through resale.

What to Avoid

Resale sites — including ones that bid aggressively for "Yankees tickets" search results — are not the team. Prices on those platforms include service fees that the Yankees do not control. If the cheapest ticket on a resale site is below the team’s published Pinstripe Pass price, that is a signal to check the team’s site first, not a signal to buy.

Getting to the Stadium: Transit Beats Driving

Subway (MTA-confirmed)

The 161 St-Yankee Stadium station is directly in front of the stadium on East 161st Street and River Avenue. Per the MTA’s official Yankee Stadium transit guide, the 4 train and B/D trains stop here. The MTA also notes this is an accessible trip.

Metro-North (with Yankee Clipper for weekend games)

The Yankees-E 153rd Street station is on Metro-North’s Hudson Line — the MTA describes it as a 15-minute ride from Grand Central. For weekday-evening and weekend Yankees games, the MTA runs direct Yankee Clipper trains from the Harlem and New Haven Lines straight to Yankees-E 153rd Street. Both Saturday’s 1:35 p.m. game and Sunday’s 1:35 p.m. game qualify for Yankee Clipper service. Note that the Yankee Clipper does not run for NYCFC games or for 1 p.m. weekday Yankees games.

Bus

The MTA’s official guide lists the Bx1, Bx2, Bx6, Bx13, and BxM4 as stopping near Yankee Stadium. All MTA buses are accessible.

LIRR

Long Island riders take a train to Grand Central, then ride Metro-North to Yankees-E 153rd Street or transfer to the 4 train at 161 St-Yankee Stadium. The MTA TrainTime app sells a single ticket from any LIRR station through to the stadium stop.

Cheapest Legal Parking: City Parking Is the Official Partner

This is one of the most-misreported facts about Yankee Stadium. The Yankees’ official prepaid parking partner is City Parking — not SpotHero, and not any third-party reseller. Per the Yankees’ official directions and parking page: "Prepaid individual-game parking must be obtained from City Parking."

City Parking operates a system of seven garages and lots with over 9,000 spaces surrounding the stadium. Prepaid reservations are made at yankees.cityparking.nyc.

Published self-park rates at the four main Yankee Stadium Parking (YSP) facilities, directly from yankees.cityparking.nyc:

YSP 1 — 161st Street Garage: 20 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY — $49 Self Park
YSP 2 — Gerard Avenue Lot: 1011 Gerard Avenue, Bronx, NY — $49 Self Park ($325 Bus)
YSP 3 — River Avenue Garage: 950 River Avenue, Bronx, NY — $49 Self Park
YSP 4 — Ruppert Plaza Garage: 1 Macombs Dam Park, Bronx, NY — $49 Self Park

For drivers on the Major Deegan (I-87), the Yankees’ page directs northbound traffic to Exit 4 or Exit 5, and southbound traffic to Exit 5.

Gate Map: Pick the Closest to Your Section

Yankee Stadium has four gates, per the team’s official gate locations page:

Gate 2, adjacent to left field — enter via Jerome Avenue and East 164th Street
Gate 4, behind home plate — enter via East 161st Street and Macombs Dam Bridge
Gate 6, adjacent to right field — enter via East 161st Street and River Avenue (closest to the subway exit)
Gate 8, adjacent to center field — enter via River Avenue and East 164th Street

For specific gate opening times by game, the Yankees publish them on their Know Before You Go page; arrive early for weekend day games as security lines build well before first pitch.

The Bag Policy Is Strict — And There Is No Storage

Direct from the Yankees’ policies page: each guest may bring in one MLB-compliant bag — soft-sided, no larger than 16 inches by 16 inches by 8 inches — plus one smaller soft-sided personal item like a handbag or clutch. Hard-sided bags and containers are prohibited. Bag-size bins are used at entry to confirm dimensions, and the bag must fit without modification.

Critically: "There is no storage area for any items at Yankee Stadium." If your bag fails, the team cannot hold it for you. Plan accordingly — especially if you’ve taken Metro-North in for the day.

Re-Entry: Don’t Plan On It

Also direct from the official policies: "Guests are not permitted to leave Yankee Stadium and return on the same ticket. Re-entry will be permitted only in the case of an emergency." If you’re leaving to grab cheaper food across the street, you are not getting back in on that ticket. Eat first or eat inside.

Water Bottles Yes, Cans No

Per the policies page: empty reusable non-glass water bottles up to 24 oz are permitted, as are unopened soft-sided single-serve containers (juice boxes, small milk cartons) and clear factory-sealed plastic bottles of water 1 liter or smaller. Cans and glass bottles are prohibited. This matters if you’re trying to keep a family-of-four day affordable.

Restrooms and Accessibility

Yankee Stadium’s accessibility features — per the NYC Tourism + Conventions official venue listing — include wheelchair accessibility, large print, Braille, open/closed captioning, TTY, and an assistive listening system. For accessibility-related ticketing and entry questions, the Yankees direct fans to the Disabled Guest Services page. The MTA confirms both the 161 St-Yankee Stadium subway trip and the Metro-North trip to Yankees-E 153rd Street are accessible.

Restrooms are located throughout the stadium across all levels; the team’s Yankee Stadium Reference Guide is the official map for facility locations.

Eat Before the Game (Or Bring Your Own)

The team allows guests to bring food for individual consumption into Yankee Stadium — apples and oranges must be sliced or sectioned. That clause alone is the single biggest cost-saver for a family. If you’d rather grab something nearby first, two of the most-recognized pre-game spots within a short walk of the stadium are:

Yankee Tavern, 72 East 161st Street — a longtime Bronx tavern across from the stadium.
Bronx Drafthouse, 884 Gerard Avenue — a beer bar and restaurant a short walk from the venue.

Verify hours directly with each establishment before you go; both sit within blocks of Gate 4 and Gate 6.

Last Subway and Bus After a 1:35 PM Day Game

The 4 and B/D lines and the Bx-series buses all run continuously throughout the afternoon and evening for a 1:35 p.m. day game. Day-game departures around 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. don’t bump up against any "last train" concerns. Always confirm real-time service on the MTA TrainTime app before leaving the stadium — planned weekend service changes are the most common cause of trip delays from the Bronx.

The Single-Sentence Cheapest Path

Buy through the Yankees’ single-game ticket page or check Pinstripe Pass availability, take the 4 or D train to 161 St-Yankee Stadium, walk in through Gate 6, and bring a soft-sided 16x16x8 bag with food you’d rather not pay stadium prices for. That is the cheapest legitimate way to see the Yankees play this weekend.