And can we get some of that in Boston?
If you want to hear a refreshing bit of baseball fandom—from a team owner, no less—I’m going to point you in the direction of Michel Martin interviewing David Rubenstein, the rookie owner of the Orioles, on NPR’s Morning Edition. The Orioles had recently been eliminated from the postseason when this aired, but Rubenstein didn’t talk too much about that, other than to wish it had been different, and touch on his hopes for next year (more on that in a minute).
I’m going to state upfront that while I listened, it was as though Red Sox owner John Henry were a little shadow figure hovering around the edges of the interview. He was a ghost who was there, but not there, you know? (Some astute reader might say that’s how he is all the time, and who am I to argue with that.) Henry never came up in this interview, nor did any other team or owner. But it was impossible to listen to Rubenstein without thinking of our owner, and how Henry’s emotions (if any) and responses would likely have been a million miles away.
Because Rubenstein’s overall vibe was delightful! He sounded friendly and sincere, and is certainly in love with his hometown of Baltimore. In fact, he couldn’t stop talking about it: how he’d grown up there, so had his parents, how they’re buried there, and he will be too.
Bawlamore, Bawlamore, Bawlamore, Bawlamore, Bawlamore! —David Rubenstein, Baltimore Orioles owner
But I’m not making fun! It was sweet and truly charming to see how much he wears his hometown pride on his sleeve. And that’s the main reason he bought the team. He’d made a fortune (he’s a billionaire, just like our owner), and though he’d served on boards and donated money to various projects, it came down to the fact that he wanted to do more for his hometown. He wanted to give back equally to the place that had given him so much.
Photo by John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images
Henry has done a lot for Boston; I’m not saying he hasn’t…but just not for a long time, it feels like.
Do you want to know what Rubenstein considered to be one of the most “satisfying” parts of first year on the job? It was connecting with the fans. How long has it been since that happened in Boston?
Here’s where it gets really interesting: Martin, the interviewer, was curious about baseball as a business. She asked Rubenstein specifically about the complications and thought process involved in trading away fan favorites in the course of running that business. You know where my mind went.
Rubenstein’s response was a thing of beauty:
…it’s not a business that is as profitable as other things that you could do with your money…I could put that amount of money into venture capital or private equity and probably make a higher rate of return. So the highest rate of return isn’t what you do when you’re looking to invest in a baseball team. There’s psychic benefits. You enjoy being a fan…you’re helping your local town. There’s the pleasure of seeing good athletes perform well. So that’s a trade-off…I don’t expect to make a spectacular rate of return… —David Rubenstein
This is not to say that Rubenstein isn’t concerned with return on investment. In the kindest imaginable way, this is what he said about fans asking for selfies and autographs:
Now, all of a sudden, 8-year-old boys and girls are asking me for autographs. You know, I don’t want to say, look, my autograph isn’t really going to be worth very much to you. Rather than explain to them [that] I’m not that important a person, I just sign the autograph. And I always remember when I was a little boy and I wanted autographs, I always thought that players that wouldn’t sign them weren’t as nice. So I’ve never turned down an autograph request or a selfie request, but I also think to myself that probably they can do better things with their time than getting my autograph. —David Rubenstein
Now I’m laughing out loud, but also, that’s super sweet! I remember that feeling too, and I really appreciate that he’s kind-hearted enough to not want to let down a fan.
Do you remember we began with Rubenstein’s thoughts on the Orioles postseason elimination? Well, he was disappointed, he said, as both an owner and as a fan. When asked what success would mean for him as an owner, he had this to say, and I wish these words could ring out all across New England (though I won’t hold my breath for John Henry to speak them):
Well, success means you win a championship…So I’m trying to do everything I can with my partners to make sure that the team has everything it needs to win a championship. —David Rubenstein