CFSM Press Releases

Former Detroit Tiger weighs in on hot topic in MLB

5/19/2004 - Sports Central Radio Show, Nicole Katsoff

If you missed “Sports Central” on May 6th, you missed former Major League Baseball All Star Chet Lemon and National AAU Baseball Sports Manager Jeremy Bullock discussing the new contract that Major League Baseball signed with Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios to promote Spider-Man 2. The $3.2 million deal required all Major League teams to put a Spider-Man 2 logo on the bases during Interleague play games on the weekend of June 11-13. Host Jason Aughey led the debate with the following questions.

Question 1: How do you think this contract will effect baseball?

Chet: “Baseball has always been a conservative sport and this new contract shows how it is starting to keep up with the changing times. In such a dramatic contract I was surprised that the amount of money was so low.”

Jeremy: “Fans have always appreciated the fact that baseball has always been conservative. In a sport that has no salary cap for the players, this contract could potentially bring in a lot more money for salaries. There are already advertisements all over the stadiums as well. I have to admit that I feel a little cheated that I will have to watch my favorite players slide into the Spiderman 2 logo instead of the old fashioned white base.”

Question 2: Where does this advertising stop?

Chet: “I think that the league would base its decisions on future advertising based on how fans responded. If there seemed to be a negative response from not only fans but players, coaches, and owners, I don’t think that they would continue to advertise like this in the future. With such a small amount of money at stake it would not be worth making everyone upset.”

Jeremy: “This deal is intended to appeal to a younger demographic. I do not feel that baseball needs to appeal to the younger crowd. I think that if they were going to try and attract fans that they should try to attract fans like my father who they lost during the 1994 strike.”

Jason, Chet, and Jeremy seemed to be in agreement in the fact that they did not think that this would be a long-term advertising scheme. They thought that baseball was better left “untouched” in that sense. They seemed to think that the conservative and traditional game is what keeps the fans coming back for more.

NOTE: On May 6th, Major League Baseball Properties and Columbia Pictures agreed to remove the Spider-Man 2 logo from the bases. After receiving negative feedback from fans it was decided to advertise around the stadiums instead.

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