I attended lots of Sky games last year, mostly because the 2021 WNBA champs are awesome and the arena vibe is groovy, but also because ticket rep Michael Amato is so tenacious. After I bought cheap seats for a single game, I was slightly taken aback when a rep reached out immediately, then genuinely surprised that his approach felt less like an act of desperation and more like a warm invite. My man on the inside is Michael, a Des Plaines native who’s spent a few seasons selling the Sky, working his way from intern to account executive as he completes a bachelor’s degree in sports marketing at DePaul. While in retrospect I’m sure he used legit promo codes and his knowledge of the ticketing system to get me great discount seats, at the time it sure seemed like an old-school Chicago hookup. I eventually sprang for 2023 Sky season tickets, but the package was so inexpensive that I feel like I bought it after hours off the back of a truck.
I also own cheapskate-level White Sox season seats, and everyone I’ve dealt with there has been great (though when the office had to make calls in fall 2020, the week of the La Russa hiring, my guy sounded world-weary and abused). But Michael is special. When he sent out a Christmas message to his accounts, he added: “If you ever need anything, even a conversation, my line is always open.” My ticket rep not only helps me watch Rebekah Gardner go hard to the hoop, but he’s also there for the pick-and-roll if I need to get around holiday depression.
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