PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. _ It's entertainment. Tim Tebow arrived at spring training Sunday for his first big league camp and the gossip website TMZ and ESPN, who employs him as a college football analyst, covered every stretch he did and word he said with more interest than the actual big league players here. Sandy Alderson saying that he thinks Tebow will play in the major leagues was breaking news across the country.
Baseball is entertainment, after all, and despite denying it for over a year, the Mets are openly admitting that signing the Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback with a large evangelical Christian following in 2016 was more of a marketing move than baseball decision. Sunday morning, Alderson compared it to signing New Jersey native Todd Frazier.
"I don't see why it's mutually exclusive," the Mets GM said of signing Tebow because of his fame rather than ability. "We signed Todd Frazier. OK, mostly that's because he's an excellent third baseman. But partly it's because he is from Jersey.
"There is always some level of consideration to the entertainment side of the game," Alderson said. "In Tim's case, was there a greater acceptance of that factor? Yes. On the other hand, he's demonstrated over the first year or so that he is committed to making a go of this.
"He's done everything we've asked from a professional standpoint, he's done everything we've asked from an organizational and fan relations standpoint. He's been very positive influence on his teammates. He's brought a lot of not notoriety, but celebrity to minor league baseball. He's been an asset to us, been an asset to the game."
There is nothing wrong with adding some celebrity and notoriety to the game. Tebow has openly used his celebrity for his charitable works with children.
"It is an honor to have people come out to watch and support. But again, I've never made my love for sports about fans. I appreciate the support and the platform, I really appreciate it, because we get to do what we did last Friday night when we had 537 proms around the world for people with special needs," Tebow said Sunday. "We get to build a hospital in the Philippines or take care of 2,400 orphans because of the platform that sports has given me. And again, I love that but I don't worry about the fans too much every night because I've been in places where they've been cheering and cheering for me and I've also been in places where they've been booing me. I never let the fans create an excitement or a disappointment in me. I try to be able to be thankful for them and support them, and I'm grateful for it.
"But at the same time, I don't let it affect the way I approach the game."
But let's be honest. Celebrity is behind the fact that Tebow will likely get a major league call-up as soon as this September.
"I think he will play in the major leagues. That's my guess. That's my hope and to some extent after a year and a half, it's a modest expectation," Alderson said. "So I am happy he's here. I think he's great for the team and I think it's great for baseball.
"It's phenomenal for minor league baseball. The notion he should be excluded from the game because he is not coming through the traditional sources is crazy. This is entertainment too. We can quietly entertain."
Hitting .226 with eight home runs and 52 RBIs in 126 games between low and high Class A teams isn't usually ticket to major league spring training for the normal prospect.
"There is a finite period of time for this to work. His commitment to the game has been exceptional, so we're pushing him a little bit," Alderson said. "He's here in camp not because he brings some notoriety. He's here because we want to push him a little bit and we think this is the best environment for him to get better and I am looking forward to seeing how he does, how he benefited from the offseason and hopefully, he will continue to move forward in his career."
While the celebrity has gotten Tebow here and eventually will get him to Flushing in the fall, it won't be able to keep him there. Only talent and skill which are hard for a 30-year-old to develop, will do that. But it will be truly entertaining to see if he can overcome those odds.
