The Cincinnati Reds just arrived in San Francisco to kick off a West Coast road trip with major playoff implications. Before they left, Reds owner Bob Castellini sent each player a letter:
Your performance on the field has been awsesome all year. You NEVER
quit. Good luck on your West Coast swing. Please know upon your return
we will have done everything we can to fill the stands in these last
crucial homestands. You deserve nothing less from our fans and
management team.
Professional baseball players are among the most competitive people on earth, and they're obviously well-compensated--the average MLB salary was $2.6 million in 2005. It would be easy to assume that they don't need any extra motivation. But I love Castellini's approach here-he's clearly aware that a pat on the back can be important even when it might seem superfluous, and he's sending a great message to everyone in the organization: We're all in this together, and everyone's role is important.
Apparently inspired, the Reds came back from an 0-3 deficit to beat the Giants last night 6-3. Grrr. (Thanks to Geep at the SportsFrog for the heads-up.)