Something Howard Lincoln Could Learn From George Steinbrenner

Say what you want about George Steinbrenner (and I often do, though sometimes not in terms fit for mixed company or youthful audiences), he is passionate about winning and fielding a winning baseball team, although he sometimes goes about it in ways that others find questionable and/or amusing (see "$200MM+ payroll" and "a team of aging superstars that 'don't play well with others'," and a decimated/sadly lacking farm system). He has a stated goal of keeping his fans happy and providing them with a product that they will continue to come out, support, and--most of all--pay to see on a regular and ongoing basis.
On the other hand, Howard Lincoln--CEO of the Seattle Mariners--has publicly said that the organization's goal is to field a "competitive" team, but that the organization also has to consider the bottom line and ROI (return on investment) to the corporate partners, and not "mortgaging the future at the expense of the present". This has been frequently construed by the local fanbase (including myself on numerous occasions), and even some of the local media, to mean that being cellar dwellers is not the object, but neither is the World Series.
When I arrived in Seattle in mid-summer 2001, the city was in the throes of Mariner-mania, for lack of a better term. Everyone on the team seemed to be having a career year at the same time, the chemistry was sublime, and they were on their way to a record-tying 116 victories in the regular season. Were it not for that unfortunate Game 6 of the ALCS in New York City, I would not be writing this entry today, because they would have gone to the World Series (might even have won, you never know). As it is, they didn't and they didn't, and it has been downhill ever since--slowly at first, but downright cataclysmically the past two seasons.
One thing that George Steinbrenner KNOWS, that Howard has yet to find out, is that going deep into the post-season and (gasp) even to the World Series generates loads of revenue, and not just for the team, but for the entire local economy. For example, had the World Series chanced to come to town during 2001, my brother-in-law was prepared to pay more than I make in six months to obtain four field level seats to each game of the Series played in Seattle. And that would have been only the beginning, because he lives in Los Angeles County, so he would have enriched not only the Mariners' bottom line, but also Alaska Airlines, some hotel here in town, and other establishments like restaurants and so on. Multiply this by however many seats were available to non-season ticket holders and other VIP's, and you can imagine the positive effects that it would have had.
Mariners' fans have continued to come out to Safeco Field despite the two back to back 90 loss seasons, but in less numbers than the normal 3 million plus per season. I went to several games during the 2005 season, but not as many as I normally would have, figuring that I could save more than $200.00 per home game by sitting home and watching the team lose (again) on TV for free. And I was far from alone. If you pay attention to local bloggers, sports writers, and "men in the street" (and it is hard NOT to), there is going to be a lot more of that going around in the 2006 season, because--even with King Felix, Yuniesky Betancourt, and some of the other youngsters that are helping to rebuild the team--barring a miracle, we are looking toward at least one more losing season.
Why? Well, it's this way, my friends. According to Forbes Magazine (yes, Howard, it's that pesky Forbes article, yet again), the team is valued at $415MM (bought for by the current ownership group in 1992 for $125MM), which places them at #5 in the MLB, behind the Dodgers, Mets, Red Sox, and Yankees, all of which are major market teams (there is no consensus on whether Seattle is a small or mid-market team at this point), but ahead of all of the other teams. By my calculations, that is a 332% increase in valuation in a little over 10 years. The Mariners have one of the best TV contracts going in MLB, and they are the only franchise for the states of WA, OR, MT, AK, and HI, not to mention all of western Canada.
Could they afford to spend more money than the announced $92MM payroll and still make a profit? Undoubtedly. Will they? Not likely. Are they in danger of losing fans and, therefore, revenue, to staying at home to watch games on TV or--worse yet--not watching at all in 2006? Definitely.
So, Howard, here is what I am suggesting.I'm willing to chip in $2.00, and I'm sure a lot of other Mariners fans would be, too, to buy you a plane ticket to Tampa to talk to good ol' George about the profitability of winning for a change. (The old adage you have to spend money to make money is a true one more often than not). Call me.........