Dishing on dugouts, ballpark franks, and Scooby Doo with Matt Steinberg, director of gameday entertainment for the Lowell Spinners.
On June 18, the Lowell Spinners will kick off another season at LeLacheur Park. And while thousands will pour into the park to cheer for their favorite players, Matt Steinberg, the team’s director of game day entertainment, is nearly as popular among some fans as are the guys on the diamond. In his 15th year with the Spinners, Steinberg’s many responsibilities include making sure that fans are engaged and entertained even when there’s a pause in play. Here, Steinberg, who in the offseason is the social studies department head at Methuen High School, talks to Northshore about his fun-filled role.
What exactly do you do? My job is akin to a stage manager at a theatre. Essentially, I am the person making sure all the entertainment at the ballpark, including PA, video, music, on-field promotions, “Spinner”-tainment, and other assorted events that are not baseball or food related are running when they should be and without issue. This also includes the pre-game ceremonies, which can be a lot of controlled chaos, especially during theme nights. I like to tell my staff at the beginning of the season that, like a radio station, I don’t want any dead air, so when the ball is not in play during the game, we need to make sure that there is some sort of stimulation for the fans, whether its video, musical, or visual.
What’s the silliest thing you’ve had to do at a game? We take pride in the fact that we are all willing to embarrass ourselves every night, whether that means competing in a mascot race wearing a donut costume with a Sumo helmet (that’s my favorite) or dancing in front of our Scooby Doo Mystery Machine after tossing t-shirts into the stands. This job isn’t a job to me because every night we are having fun.
Do your students know about your other life on the baseball field? My students do know-I see them at the park often during the summer. They are stunned to see me in that light, because it’s a lot more casual than standing in front of a classroom.
What’s your ballpark food of choice? You can’t go wrong with a Ballpark Frank.
Are your kids big baseball fans because of what you do? My boys love baseball. In fact, last summer, they were old enough to come into the dugout and the clubhouse and meet a few of the guys, and they each have their own favorite Spinner now. They are at most games during the summer. -L.L.