PEOPLE OF INTEREST
The
Mets Man
BY SUSAN BURGESS
PHOTO BY SUSAN BURGESS
38
ust say “baseball” to Paul Taglieri and his blue eyes will
sparkle and he will break out into a boyish grin.
At 37, he’s living his dream job as director of Florida
operations for the Mets at Tradition Field in St. Lucie West. “I
went to college wanting to play baseball because I played all
my life,” he says. “I came from a very athletic family in New
Jersey, and we were outside playing baseball, football, basketball,
all the time. My father coached us. And I developed
a passion for sports.”
He was accepted at Florida Southern College in Lakeland,
majoring in sports administration. He tried out for baseball
in college, but realized he wasn’t good enough. Later, he was
given an internship with the Detroit Tigers during spring
training in Lakeland. “It was very hands-on. I did whatever
they needed me to do. And it was absolutely awesome, being
around superstar players.’’
Determined to excel at sports administration, he moved
back to New Jersey after his 1991 graduation to work for the
NBA’s New Jersey Nets in sales and marketing for several
years. He gained administrative experience with the Boston
Red Sox and then the Auburn Doubledays, a minor league
affiliate of the Houston Astros, until he returned to Florida in
1999 and started his dream job with the Mets.
“I still feel as amazed and awed today as I did when I did
my internship with Detroit. I wake up every day and come
to work in a stadium. Every day I think how fortunate I am.”
He and his wife, Laurie, have a 9-year-old son, Zachary,
and an 11-year-old daughter, Samantha.
“The children grew up
at ballparks. My son is a
big Mets fan and he’s
here with me on weekends.
I’m sure it’s very
exciting for him, just like
it was for me when I met
baseball stars like Cecil
Fields and Lou Pinella.”
His job is always challenging,
he said. “My job
is to put people in the
seats. Every year for the
last five we’ve beaten our
own attendance record.”
Minor league games –
the St. Lucie Mets – average
1,600 fans per game
now. In 1999, it was 400
per game. When the New York Mets are in town for spring
training, the 7,000-seat stadium averages 6,000 fans per game
– compared to 4,000 per game
in 1999.
Part of it is the growth of Port St. Lucie, but part of it is
sheer creativity and drive on the part of Taglieri and his staff.
Promotions play a big role in getting fans out during the
minor league season, he said.
“During spring training, my focus is on selling the advertising
and the ‘fan experience,’ ” he says. “When someone
says they had a great time at the park, it makes me put my
chin up in the air and smile.”
J