The Mets Dance Team: do the Mets even understand their own customers?

There is an old saying that it is far more expensive to gain new customers rather than keeping the existing ones.

It looks to me  like the Mets PR team got stressed that the Dance Team is being mocked, and they got the Post to do some cleaning up for them.

Per the Post, MetsVP of Brand Marketing Trisha Donlin, whose Linkedin tells us – My extensive experience in content production, particularly on TikTok and Reels, aligns seamlessly with the dynamic vision for the New York Mets – said…

“I had to think about what makes Queens, Queens and what makes New York, New York,” Donlin said over the phone Sunday. “That’s where I thought about diversity, different performance styles, street dancing. Looking at subway performers, looking at the fact that we have the greatest talent pool in the United States with Broadway. All of that played into the identity of this team.”

The team — led by head coach Gina Mormando, a choreographer and dance mentor for more than 20 years on Long Island — will perform before games and between innings, including during the T-shirt toss and seventh-inning stretch.

There will be times when the dancers are in the aisles with routines more freestyle than choreographed.

Now what’s interesting to me there, is the Mets seem to think they are a baseball team for Queens.

Obviously The Mets have great research about their own fanbase, but based on what I know about the fanbase by the Eyeball Test – I think they are overplaying this Queens thing, and I am FROM Queens.

 I found this from 1998, attributed to The City Of New York, which had 15% of the fans being in Queens.  Obviously, that’s from last century and a lot can change in 25 years.  That study, again a quarter century old, had 26% of the fans from Long Island, which seems right to me.

The New York Times covered some frontrunnerism in 2015 – and tat too suggested a Nassau fanbase.  But again, the Mets should have some actual data on where the ticket-buyers live.

The Mets have done this sort of thing in the past.  There was the Los Mets initiative.  There was the time they were going to tap into the “Asian market” in Flushing.   What the Mets like to do is ignore the people that actually like the product.

“Of course you’re going to have long-standing fans that don’t want change,” Donlin said. “But we’re really optimistic that people are going to embrace this because the talent is really undeniable. This team sucks you in in a big way.

“It’s going to rally the crowd in a big way. … I think fans will see what we see.”

The Post also took some time in the article to wax Steve’s car, as a former coworker used to phrase things.  I find the entire article curious, but to me it seems like someone in the organization wasn’t happy with the buzz, and told the PR team to pick up the phone and the Post played along.

I continue to have my speculation as to who is behind this and why Steve is feisty about it.  Time will tell.

I will also be curious to see how Gary and Howie handle this.

And one more thought – what’s this franchise going to be like after a summer in which the fans turn on Steve, AND Steve doesn’t get his casino.  Will he get bored with that project and get kind of hands off, while the dance team people run the show?

Compilation of Mets Police “Seinfeld” episodes

I thought I’d collect these for you guys.

The Dinner  – Steve has some Japanese agents over to his house

The Phone Call – Ohtani signs with the Dodgers because Steve never called.

The Rejection – now Yamamoto has signed with the Dodgers

The Airing of Grievances – Frank is unhappy with the Mets off-season

The Santa – in an attempt to get good press, Steve volunteers at the mall.

The Gift – Steve gets a thank you gift from Ohtani

The Aura – Steve explains why he hired Carlos Mendoza

The Queens Crew – Steve’s latest idea is to add a dance crew

The Opposite –  since spending a lot of money didn’t work, Steve decided not to sign anyone.

The Uniforms – Steve is excited about the team’s new uniforms

The Copycat – the Yankees start to copy one of Steve’s ideas

The Fried Rice – a new food stand in Queens goes sideways

The Outage – due to the AT&T outage, Steve is unable to join a conference call with Japanese sports agents

The Impression – even though the Mets didn’t sign anyone, Steve feels they made an impression.

Mets Police is a mix of news and parody. This is the parody part.

Steve Cohen doesn’t seem to like you making fun of the Mets dance team

ICYMI here’s my take on the Mets dance team

From her name and photo, Charlotte appears to be a Yankees fan…

And Steve responded to this.  Is he on twitter searching for what people are saying about his Dance Team.   Hi Steve!

My theory here is that Steve doesn’t care about the dance team, but it’s a project that someone else is working on, and Steve is being protective of someone else.

Anyway, if Steve can’t take an innocuous line from a Yankees fan, he’s in for one heck of a ride this summer with his first time owning a bad baseball team without that new car smell.

Here’s today’s Mets probable pitchers for you diseased gamblers.

Exciting Mets Baseball..

Yesterday, the Mets fell to the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-2, in Jupiter. Right-handed pitcher Luis Severino made his first Grapefruit League start and threw 2.0 hitless innings. Infielder Mark Vientos launched an opposite-field solo home run in the second to put the Mets on the board. Minor league right-handed pitcher Blade Tidwell allowed three runs over 1.2 innings and tallied four strikeouts, including Jordan Walker, Nolan Gorman, Nolan Arenado, and Matt Carpenter. Catcher Tomás Nido recorded an RBI single in the eighth. Right-handed pitchers Sean Reid-Foley, Eric Orze, and Cam Robinson each threw 1.0 scoreless inning in relief.

ARMS APLENTY: Through seven games this spring, Mets pitchers have posted a 2.36 ERA (16 ER/61.0 IP), the best mark in the majors. The staff’s 1.18 WHIP is the third-lowest in the majors, while their .219 opponent batting average is the fourth-lowest mark. Mets starting pitchers have pitched to a 2.13 ERA (3 ER/12.2 IP), the second-best mark in Grapefruit League play and the sixth-best mark in the majors. Mets relievers have pitched to a 2.42 ERA (13 ER/48.1 IP), the lowest mark in the majors.

ROCCO’S UNCLE: Over his last three games, outfielder Trayce Thompson has reached base safely in six of his eight plate appearances. On February 26 at Washington, Thompson went 2-3 with a grand slam and an RBI single. Two days later, Thompson went 2-2 with a double and a home run vs. St. Louis. Yesterday at St. Louis, Thompson went 0-1 with two walks.

VS. MIAMI: Today the Mets will play their first of seven Grapefruit League games against Miami. Last season, the Mets went 9-4 against the Marlins, their best record against a division foe. Mets pitchers posted a 2.51 ERA (32 ER/114.2 IP) against Miami last season, their second-lowest mark against a single opponent behind only Arizona (2.14). This season, the Mets take on the Marlins at Citi Field from June 11-13 and August 16-18. New York will play at loanDepot Park from May 17-19 and from July 19-22.

In the 2023 season, Pete Alonso showcased his power hitting ability by finishing third in the majors in home runs with 46 and second in RBI with 118.  He once again failed to lead the team to the playoffs, having won only one playoff game in his career.

For you diseased gamblers:

Saturday, March 2 – 1:10 PM at Miami:

Mets:

LHP Sean Manaea
RHP José Buttó
RHP Christian Scott
RHP Mike Vasil
RHP Jorge López
RHP Michael Tonkin
LHP Brooks Raley
Marlins:

RHP Eury Pérez
RHP Calvin Faucher
LHP Patrick Monteverde
RHP Roddery Muñoz
RHP Sixto Sánchez
Sunday, March 3 – 1:10 PM vs. Houston:

Mets:

RHP Adrian Houser
RHP Dominic Hamel
LHP Jake Diekman
RHP Michael Tonkin
LHP Nate Lavender
Astros:

RHP José Urquidy
RHP Brandon Bielak
RHP Luis Contreras
RHP Seth Martinez
RHP Cole McDonald
LHP Parker Mushinski
RHP Oliver Ortega
LHP Bennett Sousa

Nice looking Mets caps for a change

These are all nice.  I might have to send @mediagoon to the MLB Shop, but he’s not gonna be happy when he sees wha they cost.   Rhymes with Mixty Live.

Aime Leon Dore Ballpark Hats.
Available now at MLB NYC.

#MLBStoreNYC