Jerry Seinfeld couldn’t have been happier about calling in to Steve Somers on Tuesday night – half because they finally squashed the unintentional beef they had for years, and half because the Mets are looking rock solid, and Jerry loves talkin’ Mets when the Mets are worth talkin’ about.
So, it’s likely going to be a summer full of Jerry from Queens on your late-night Schmooze, and Jerry loves that so much…he told Steve he would never have even thought about buying the team.
“First of all, I don’t have that kind of money, although I’m flattered people think I do, and secondly, I don’t need more people yelling at me on the street when the Mets are doing badly,” Seinfeld told Somers. “And third, the absolute pinnacle of being a baseball fan is a seat, a hot dog, and a beer. Ownership does not make that experience any better, so why complicate perfection?”
Jerry doesn’t know Steve Cohen very well, only having met him once, but he did send the new Mets owner congratulations upon purchasing the team – and in true Cohen fashion, he responded.
“I did email him when he closed the deal to congratulate him, and he sent a nice note back – but that guy has already done some amazing things already in changing what we call tonal culture, which is so important for team chemistry, fan chemistry, and city chemistry,” Seinfeld said. “What you have now in Flushing is a smile culture; it’s an enthusiasm you can’t buy or bottle, either you have it or you don’t. You get a vibe at a dinner (with Francisco Lindor) that you don’t get through an agent with a negotiation. Going to the park to hand out things, being active on Twitter – very smart by this owner. We’re very excited with this new ownership, it’s good energy.”
Seinfeld calls it “smile culture” because it’s based on, you guessed it, the powerful smiles of guys like Francisco Lindor, Dom Smith, and Marcus Stroman.
“You bring in a guy like Lindor and all these guys, and you see the swirling smile culture. This is a powerful element in the chemistry of winning,” Seinfeld said. “When my friends and I are heading out to the ballpark, we want to see the smiles. That’s the charm of the sport, and you don’t get that in other sports. This is the visible culture of baseball that makes it the greatest game ever.”
Seinfeld has already been to Citi Field twice this season, and says “you can just feel a thing happening, there’s something there that’s fun.” And you know what else Jerry from Queens is having fun with? Listening to the other team’s fan base deal with adversity they’re not used to.
“It’s not so easy to win. If it was a matter of money, the Yankees wouldn’t be 5-10, so never underestimate the number of elements,” Jerry said. “But I’m really enjoying the Yankees fan base suddenly finding themselves in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable spot in the New York baseball hierarchy…being 5-10 really upset them! As Mets fans, when things aren’t going well, we’re fine, we’re used to it! But the Yankees fan isn’t used to tough times.”
Okay, Seinfeld was just joking a little, especially given that one of his best friends, Larry David, is a huge Yankees fan, but there is one kind of Yankees fan who is the Newman to his Jerry.
“I love Yankees fans, and I always say that I have no problem with the proud, boastful Yankees fan, even the arrogant Yankees fan,” he said. “The only Yankees fan I cannot bear is the moist Yankees fan – the wet-eyed, teary Yankee fan, who gets moist when they talk about the greatness!”
SO what is it that gets Jerry Seinfeld moist? Baseball purism – and that’s why he hates many of baseball’s new-ish rules.
“The universal DH makes me want to vomit in the street, but the extra-innings rule really makes me sick,” he said. “So the game is over earlier. Who wants less baseball” Not me! I want 18 inning games. It’s disgusting.”
So what’s the deal? Why IS it so disgusting, Jerry?
“The most valued thing in baseball is a man on base – you work for that. You’re just going to whore that out and put a guy on second in the 10th, just give that up?” he sighed. “I get the tiebreaker in tennis, but you think fans will flock to the game because it’s 10 minutes shorter? No one gives a damn. The only adjustment I’m in favor of is batters stepping out of the box. I’d be in favor of rules that change that behavior.”
Given that Seinfeld told Schmooze that he’ll be calling in regularly again this summer, you can probably expect a lot of gripes and snipes from one Jerry from Queens. For now, listen to his entire segment with Steve Somers below!
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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