The Mets Police

Dear David Howard,

Knowing I wanted to write you this letter I just asked my son, "Would you rather go to a Met game or a Yankee game?"

"Yankees."

I asked him to give me a reason.

"I just like it better."  Since he is 6 years old I accepted that answer.  Then he added, "The Yankees are much better."  I can't argue with him right now, neither can you.

I think you are making a mistake when you talk about Old Timer's Day as a financial investment.

Maybe it cost the Mets a few bucks back in 1994.   Maybe it will cost you a few bucks in 2010, but what about the seeds you sow?

Come October, my kid and his friends are going to watch baseball.   They are going to watch the Yankees in the playoffs, and they are going to talk about the Yankees at school.

He's going to want to go to a Yankee game.   He's my kid.  I want to make him happy.

Those 30 tickets I bought in 2009?   Since you've made it clear that you don't care about the fans, that makes me hostile.  Maybe 15 of those games become Yankee tickets.  

That makes my son get even more exposed to the Yankees.   Those David Wright jerseys at Modells stays on the hanger and become a Jeter jerseys.   Not because I am a turncoat, but because I'm going to buy for my son what he wants.

Some day he will be an adult and he'll root for whoever he wants, no matter how I steer him.

These are the seeds you need to sow.

Have that Banner Day and let us walk around with a corny handwritten "Give Niese A Chance" sign.   The memory of us walking on the field will be one more bit of fandom in his blood.

Have that Old Timer's Day and let my son learn about Mookie Wilson instead of Reggie Jackson.   I can understand the point about not having an actual game - but what if you did something like having the Diamond Vision (I know you don't call it that but I do) play the Buckner clip, let the crowd go wild, then Howie does a quick intro and Mookie comes out.   Surely there's one cool memory for anyone you'd have back.

The investment is in the long term.   A winning team will always result in 3 million frontrunners filling your stadium.  You need to worry about the lean years, the 30 caps he'll buy in his lifetime, the t-shirts, and what he passes along to his kids.  

You can worry about the balance sheet in 2010 and make 2020 the next guy's problem.  I just don't think it's the responsible thing to do.

Invest in my kid.

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