Despite throwing a perfect game Sunday against the
Twins, marketing experts say that Yankees P David Wells
"does not make a perfect pitchman," according to William
Neuman of the N.Y POST. ProServ President Bill Allard: "He
threw goose eggs all day Sunday, and he'll turn up goose
eggs in the national marketing game as well. It's a one-
time situation. What marketers are looking for is sustained
success and consistency." Neuman reports that the perfect
game "did raise his value" in the New York market, "with
experts speculating he could get $10,000 to $30,000 for one-
day appearances" (N.Y. POST, 5/19). Wells' agent, Gregg
Clifton, said that he "is fielding offers for endorsements
and speaking engagements." Wells was scheduled to appear on
the Howard Stern radio show and "Regis and Kathie Lee" today
(N.Y. TIMES, 5/19). Wells was a guest on the "Late Show"
last night with David Letterman. Letterman: "Usually, as
you know, a perfect game at Yankee Stadium is when nobody
gets hit with a chunk of falling concrete. ... After the
game, Wells was pretty excited, as you can understand, and
he celebrated by retiring 27 Heinekens in a row." Wells
said that while NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani offered him the key
to the city, "I told him that's not a good idea. Too many
doors I need to open out there, and that wouldn't be a good
idea. I'd let all my degenerate friends in the city. I
think they would fit right in" (CBS, 5/18). ESPN's Peter
Gammons said that Wells has "become a working class hero,
he's kind of an iconoclast, and I think now he's going to
end up a Yankee for a long time" ("SportsCenter," 5/18).
FIRST RATE: MSG Network drew a 4.52 rating for Sunday's
game -- equivalent to about 305,350 homes -- exceeding the
30-game season average of 3.44. WNBC, which was showing
Pacers-Bulls Game One, saw its rating drop from a 9.8 to an
8.1 at 4:30pm, as the perfect game was coming to a close
(Richard Sandomir, N.Y. TIMES, 5/19). MSG's ratings rose
"almost every quarter hour" starting with a 2.4 at 1:30 and
reaching a 7.1 by the end of the game (N.Y. POST, 5/19).
IF ONLY EVERY DAY WAS BEANIE BABY DAY: After drawing
49,820 to Yankee Stadium for Sunday's Beanie Baby promo, the
Yankees attendance is 26% ahead of last season, and "within
reach of the all-time [Yankees] record." Through 16 home
dates, the Yankees have drawn 486,851, "well ahead" of last
year's 385,670 (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/19). Giuliani: "When the
[Orioles] are not giving out Valentino [Beanie Baby], they
get 50,000 people per game (N.Y. POST, 5/19).
