Franchise Notes

Jersey Giveaway Part Of Grizzlies Promotional Plans For This Season

In Memphis, Ronald Tillery reports the Grizzlies' home schedule is "filled with unique giveaways, including several designed to promote the team's young nucleus as well as capitalize on" G Allen Iverson's popularity. Iverson "will play a huge role in the team's marketing, advertising and promotional efforts," as the first 3,000 fans for the December 4 Mavericks-Grizzlies game will receive a replica Iverson home jersey. Iverson will appear in "print, radio and television ads, and billboards, posters and Web content." Meanwhile, for the October 28 opener against the Pistons, fans "will be asked to 'Blue-Out' FedExForum," and throughout the season the Grizzlies "plan to give away items such as mini hoop sets, playground basketballs, rally flags, mesh hats, tote bags, BBQ sets and player cards." Fans also have opportunities to "take home Rudy Gay wrapping paper in time for Christmas, a Hasheem Thabeet growth chart and an O.J. Mayo shooting arm sleeve" (Memphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL, 9/24).

RAISE THE ROOF: BLOOMBERG NEWS' Tariq Panja cited a March prospectus drawn up by investment banks Rothschild and Merrill Lynch as indicating that EPL Liverpool co-Owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett "proposed increasing the soccer club's average ticket price by 8[%] and raising [US$163M] from investors and loans as pressure built to refinance debt" of US$470.4M. The proposed increase was "one of a number of revenue-boosting plans outlined in the document," as Liverpool "may convert 1,000 regular seats into corporate seating by July 2011 and establish its own soccer academies." Meanwhile, the prospectus indicated that Liverpool would have about US$32.4M per season to "spend on new players, a figure that 'will grow together with increases in broadcast revenues'" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 9/23).

HITS KEEP ON COMING: On Long Island, Ken Davidoff notes Mets GM Omar Minaya's power "has taken multiple hits, the latest coming with the firing" of Special Assistant Ramon Pena, who, like former Mets VP/Player Development Tony Bernazard, "carried an awful reputation throughout the industry." The firings of Bernazard and Pena "say much about the Mets, and about the thinking of ownership." Each "had the burden of creating organizational depth," and both "came aboard as friends" of Minaya. Minaya now has "far fewer allies in the organization" (NEWSDAY, 9/24).

DIFFERENT SHADE OF BLUE: ESPN.com's Buster Olney cited a source as saying that Cubs Dir of Amateur & Pro Scouting Tom Wilken is a "possible candidate to be the next GM of the Blue Jays, if Toronto cuts ties with J.P. Ricciardi." Wilken "worked for years for the Blue Jays before joining" the Cubs (ESPN.com, 9/22).