Watching the U.S. Mail for Baseball – Episode 1
A short while ago we e-mailed every single Major League Baseball Club asking for them to reply to us with some interesting promotional items that we’d be able to showcase with our audience.
We figured that It would be fun to see what the teams send and how attentive they are to fan requests via e-mail.
The responses, thus far, have been shocking.
To start, a few of teams outright refused our request for promotional materials. This list included the following:
The Philadelphia Phillies (“While we wish you the most success, we will not be able to participate in this program.”)
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (“Please note that we are unable to participate in the promo campaign for the Start Spreading the News, Yankees Blog due to inventory. Best of luck with your project!”)
The Tampa Bay Rays (“Thank you for reaching out! Unfortunately we will be declining the offer at hand.”)
These reactions surprised us. We recall sending letters to teams as kids and receiving a pocket schedule, or stickers, and sometimes even photos and autographs. I was surprised that some Major League teams would not be interested or able to send some items to help generate interest in their teams and/or the game.
A few other teams reacted in a different manner:
The Baltimore Orioles enthusiastically stated that they’d send a fan pack, but that the request had to come by mail (“We would be more than happy to mail out a fan pack; however, all fan pack requests must be mailed…”) I sent the letter of request. I’m eager to see what they send back!
The Houston Astros were also very pleasant. They asked that I complete an on-line form, which I did. (“Thank you for reaching out to the Houston Astros! If you would like to receive a complimentary Astros Fan Pack, please visit… and complete the registration process.”).
The San Diego Padres wouldn’t promise any items but encouraged us to sign-up for their fan rewards program, which I did (“Unfortunately, we are not able to provide promotional items at this time. We do, however, encourage you to sign up to become a member of our Compadres Fan Rewards program…”).
The Los Angeles Dodgers stated that they couldn’t send any items but attached a digital fanpack (which is extremely well done and quite informative) and offered to sign us up for their digital newsletter (“Thank you for contacting the Los Angeles Dodgers! We appreciate you taking the time to write to us and share your request. While we are unable to mail any promotional items, we are very happy to be able to send you our digital fan pack! Attached to this email you will find some Fun Facts, and more! Enjoy!! Please also take a moment to sign up for our Dodgers Home Rundown newsletter…”).
The San Francisco Giants, like the Orioles, asked that we send a letter (they also asked for a self-addressed stamped envelope) for some items. I sent the letter. (“Due to an overwhelming amount of requests, we cannot send any promotional items. However, we would be happy to send a Fan Pack. Please note that all requests must be submitted via mail.”)
and finally, for now,
The Toronto Blue Jays also sent a link for their digital fanpack (“Thank you for your interest in the Toronto Blue Jays Baseball Club! Please feel free to obtain a Fan Pack by clicking here to be redirected to the Fan section of our website…).
It is my hope that I have some actual team items to share with the next post in their series
