Not only does Newsday’s Anthony Rieber have the keen sense of history to dub one of his mailbag correspondents “The Jerome From Manhattan Of The Internet”, but in stark contrast to the New York Post’s Phil Mushnick, he neither views a change in start time for Sunday’s Phillies/Mets game as a consumer rights violation, nor an assault on the sancity of the American family. In short, he’s a non-hysteric with some perspective on how the real world operates. What he’s doing writing for a New York tabloid, I have no idea.
Q: Hi Anthony, can you tell me which brainiac I have to thank over at Shea for changing the game time of Mets Etch-A-Sketch giveaway day [Aug. 6] from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. and ruining my Sunday afternoon family outing for which I have not cheap “Gold” tickets? Yes, I know ESPN wants the change, but can’t the Shea people say, ‘No, sorry, we have a big kids giveaway that day and we don’t want to anger all of our ticket purchasing fans?’ And shouldn’t the Mets’ website have some type of notice or announcement of the time change along with an apology? Who’s responsible for this mess?
— Bob E.
A: Hi Bob. The Mets only get 1/30th of the blame. Major League Baseball gave ESPN the right to snag Sunday games and move them to night for national broadcast in the last TV contract. So I guess the person on the Mets to give the 1/30th of the blame is the owner, Fred Wilpon.
To answer your other questions: No, the Shea people can’t say no to ESPN; they already sold that right. Yes, the Mets should make the game time change more accessible on their web site (between you and me, don’t you think a few people will show up, say, around noon on Sunday because they don’t know the game time has changed? I know a few of my sportswriter colleagues who have done that). And as far as who’s responsible? Ultimately, I would have to say you are, Bob, because you assumed the risk that they would change the game time when you bought the tickets. Sorry.