Francisco Lindor New York Mets
Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Steve Cohen using the “hearts and minds” approach to get more people to care about the Mets. 

The Wall Street Journal published an interesting piece on Tuesday morning about the New York Mets‘ efforts to improve their brand to engage a younger audience.

According to the report, the Cohens “have prescribed a marketing overhaul that will include an update to the team’s brand design, including customized fonts in marketing materials like photography, signage and ads, as well as new experiences and features at its stadium meant to give the Mets more cultural credibility.”

Range Media Partners LLC, which (coincidentally) is minority-owned by Cohen’s venture capital fund, Point72 Ventures, has been assigned the tall task of overhauling the overall Mets experience.

Jokes?

Among the ideas mentioned in the article are live comedy during games; the jokes write themselves with how the Mets have performed on and off the field this calendar year. I’m sure long-time Mets fan Jerry Seinfeld could write a set based on just Cohen’s twitter habits.

The Mets will also be working on improving the in-stadium experience, adding more screens and other technology to engage a younger audience.

The WSJ article mentions an event in July in which the team partnered with Airbnb to turn an unused office space at Citi Field into a one-night stay hosted by former Mets player and still paycheck recipient Bobby Bonilla.

Francisco Lindor Javier Baez
Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Younger, More Latino

Jeff Deline, the team’s new chief revenue officer, is quoted extensively throughout the article about the uphill climb in front of the Mets.

One of the target demographics identified in the piece is the Latino market. According to the article, the Mets are working on a podcast targeting Hispanic audiences and collaborations in the fashion industry.

The fashion item is of particular note with the team’s incredible, $341 million commitment to Francisco Lindor. He has been collaborating with New Balance over the past few years on shoes and clothing and could play a significant role in the team’s new approach to marketing. And he should; they paid him to be the face of the franchise.

Francisco Lindor New Balance
Courtesy IG: @lindor12bc

According to Deline, the Mets are “on pace to extend almost 90% of the sponsorship deals that are set to expire.” Which is a good number given their offseason issues this season and another postseason not including the Mets.

The good news is Deline knows the challenges in front of him.

“We’re an older, whiter demographic,” Deline told the WSJ. “I don’t think you’ll see many kids sit down and watch a baseball game from start to finish. They will watch the highlights on TikTok.”

We’ll see if Cohen’s efforts to improve the fan experience at Citi Field and online are matched by efforts to make the team more competitive in the future as well.

Tab has written about MLB, the NHL and the NFL for more than a decade for publications including The Fourth Period, Bleacher Report and La Vida Baseball. He is the author of two books about the Chicago Blackhawks and has been credentialed for the MLB All-Star Game and postseason and multiple Stanley Cup Finals. He is the co-host of the Line Drive Radio podcast.