Howard Lincoln sure can spin a tale. Jim Moore (the Go2Guy) wrote a column where he talks to Lincoln and Lincoln.. well, he lies.
The column (possibly conveying Lincoln’s argument) points out that after the Angels won the World Series in 2002, they raised ticket and concession prices. Their payroll went up by $17m as they tried (wrongly) to bring everyone back around for a second run. So you’d be excused for thinking there was some kind of causation.
Ticket prices and concessions are driven not by payroll (or tickets, food, and drink would be free at Husky games, and they are not), they should be driven by supply and demand: the Angels drew many more fans at the end of 2002, and there was money to be made hiking prices when they came back. But in reality, they’re not even driven by supply and demand, pricing models, or anything: it’s driven by guesses. The Angels saw the Mariners making a ton of money and copied everything, down to the concession prices, which are lower.
If you ever get a chance to talk to someone who does this for a living, ask them how they set concession prices. They pretty much look at other sports venues in the area and then add a quarter or two to every item. Seriously.
Lincoln roasts this chestnut about the family atmosphere:
“We provide a fan-friendly atmosphere,” Lincoln said. “We have staff people who are trained to watch for excessive drinking. We’re not Yankee Stadium and we don’t plan to be Yankee Stadium. We don’t want to have that kind of environment.”
Beer at Yankee Stadium is $7. If Lincoln thinks that beer prices drive conduct, we should already be Yankee Stadium. Or, Yankee Stadium should have all the charming atmosphere of Safeco Field.
Maybe, and I’m just speculating here, Yankees have a rabid fan base (too rabid, perhaps) in no small part because they have throughout their history invested heavily in their teams, won championships, and built a tradition passed through generations.
So he’s right there — Safeco Field’s not going to be Yankee Stadium.
Here’s the whopper:
“The idea that this ownership group is somehow getting a dime out of this business is not true,” he said, adding that he wants to win a World Series as much as the fans do.
This is a total, absolute lie. The team made $10m last year in profits above and beyond the $30-$40m the team admitted they took out in another line item to defray past claimed losses. And that’s just what they fessed up to. If anyone can tell me where the Mariners spent that extra $10m — as Lincoln maintains, player acquisition, player development, scouting, or something else — I’ll give them a dollar, because the M’s are not spending $10m more on anything this season.
Still, as much as I’ve ragged on him before, I have to tip my cap to Moore for taking up a cause I’m interested in and at least attempting to go after Lincoln. It would have been nice, though, if he’d been well-informed enough to argue with Lincoln at the time rather than leave after 15 minutes feeling defeated.
It is unfortunate to me that we tolerate lying for a purpose in mainstream society, that we think “well, what did we expect him to say?” when considering the falsehoods of someone like Lincoln. If having major league baseball is a great community booster, something that transcends being a simple business, doesn’t that also carry with it an equal responsibility to act morally, and to conduct yourself in a forthright manner?
Or, to paraphrase Lisa Simpson’s dentist, “Why must you turn our baseball field into a house of lies?”