Blue Jays Happy About Results From Experimental Broadcast

Unconventional CITY-TV Broadcast Helps Boost Blue Jays Single-Game Ticket Sales

The Blue Jays are describing an experimental broadcast of the team's Spring Training game against the Reds on Rogers Communications-owned CITY-TV Sunday in which non-baseball broadcasters called the action as a "triumph," according to William Houston of the Toronto GLOBE & MAIL. News anchor Gord Martineau called his first baseball game and reporter Kathryn Humphreys asked players questions such as, "Is it hard being so beautiful?" Also, several "on-air personalities functioned as ticket-sales people." Blue Jays President Paul Godfrey: "From our point of view, we were delighted with it and we'll probably do it again if CITY-TV is interested." Godfrey added that "hyping the team and selling tickets were the objectives of the telecast." Godfrey: "It was billed as a way of promoting the Blue Jays by promoting the team, promoting sales and promoting sponsors." Godfrey noted that the net's participation "increased ticket sales by 65[%] from last year's first day of single-ticket sales." Godfrey: "It was higher than any other opening day ticket sales for the Jays since Rogers took over (in 2000)." However, Houston writes, "Any similarity to a conventional baseball telecast was accidental. Martineau didn't know the players' names and Humphreys's reporting seemed just silly" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 3/4). The PROVIDENCE JOURNAL's Art Martone, who watched the game on MLB.com, wrote he was "completely befuddled" by the broadcast (PROJO.com, 3/3).