Veeck proud of the way Miracle's promotions department thinks

By SCOTT HOTARD
Naples Daily News

FORT MYERS — The Fort Myers Miracle are one of 15 franchises up for the Larry MacPhail Promotional Trophy, given annually to one minor-league team for outstanding promotional work.

Mike Veeck can't be surprised.

Ever since the Miracle held "Billy Donovan Night" back on June 20, Veeck, part-owner of the club, has been greeted by e-mails from University of Florida fans.

Now, the writers haven't always expressed gratitude. In fact, most of them have chastised Veeck for the Miracle's poking fun at the Florida basketball coach.

But any feedback, as far as promotions go, is good feedback. It means that people noticed.

"I just came down here to try and figure out a way I could hog the credit," Veeck said with a laugh, as he spoke with reporters Monday afternoon inside Hammond Stadium. "Because as my detractors will tell you, that's what I'm best at -- taking credit I don't deserve."

It's clear "Billy Donovan Night" -- the Miracle's most memorable promotion of the 2007 season -- was the brainchild of the club's on-site officials, who jumped at the chance to parody Donovan's return to Gainesville after signing a contract with the Orlando Magic.

Thing is, Veeck, a Charleston, S.C., resident, might in fact deserve a degree of the credit. Not just for that one, but for any promotion that seems a bit unusual.

The son of legendary baseball owner Bill Veeck, the king of zany promotions, Mike himself has set trends in promotional tactics. He has pushed the envelope for years. Though he's rarely in Southwest Florida anymore, his legacy inspires those who are.

"Mike sets the bar pretty high," said Miracle assistant general manager Andrew Seymour, who is also the club's director of promotions, "as you can imagine. We've got a lot of work to do to keep up with some of the things he has developed."

Veeck's a baseball man. He is known for finding innovative ways to put fans in stadium seats, and for encouraging his employees to do the same. He is part owner of six minor-league franchises -- the St. Paul Saints, the Sioux Falls Canaries, the Brockton Rox, the Charleston RiverDogs, the Hudson River Renegades and the Miracle, Minnesota Twins affiliate.

But Veeck's legacy has stretched beyond the game he grew up in. He spends as much time in airports as in dugouts or stadium suites, flying about the country to speak for business gatherings. He has an appointment today in Fort Myers, where he's the guest for a realtors' conference.

He will surely talk about how much it means to cultivate a strong working environment. He will say that "Fun Is Good," the slogan that has become synonymous with Veeck and the teams he co-owns.

The Miracle get it, he said.

Veeck served as president of the club its first few years in Fort Myers. He has watched from afar since Linda McNabb succeeded him in that role.

"Never did I think that these people would develop this club into what it has become," Veeck said. "The MacPhail Award is huge in baseball, but more importantly, it says what the Miracle are dedicated to, which is still the community."

They showed that back in June with the Billy Donovan promotion, allowing fans an opportunity to negotiate their way out of a ticket purchase if they weren't satisfied with their experience. The timing was there, since Donovan had just escaped the contract he signed with the Magic.

But the Miracle are no one-hit wonder. Also last year, the team hosted "Don't be a (Cincinnati) Bengal" promo, a jab at the NFL team as crime reports stacked up.

Veeck said that's what makes a good promotion -- the ability to jump on a newsworthy subject as it breaks, and to put a creative spin on it.

"That's why they're a finalist for the MacPhail Award," Veeck said of the Miracle, who have been in Fort Myers since 1992. "There is no other organization in our group that is as quick."