An interview with famous Mets blogger Matthew Cerrone

An Interview by Tony Hung

Matthew Cerrone runs MetsBlog one of the largest sports blogs on the ‘net. He’s also been featured in the mainstream media, such as ESPN, and quoted in the print publications such as the New York Times. We sat down for a quick chat about his successes and his thoughts on creating a sports blog.

Tell us a little bit about how MetsBlog got started – and tell us: did you ever see it getting as big as it is today?
I started MetsBlog.com as a project in a digital media class in college. When the class ended, I stopped writing it. In the weeks that followed, I received a number of emails from people outside the class, in New York, apparently, that had been reading it, asking me why I had stopped. I figured, there is an audience here, and I enjoy it, so I’ll keep it going. I think I had, maybe, 100 readers. Today the site can reach close to 70,000 in a day, as it did during the winter meetings last year, though a typical day is around 30,000 unique readers every day, which continues to surprise me.

And it looks like you’ve been quoted and interviewed in quite a few mainstream media outlets. How did you make the leap from blogging to being interviewed on ESPN? Did you already have media contacts? Did they call you? Did you solicit them? Are there any tips you can share with our readers who have similar aspirations?
Yes and Yes. Prior to making MetsBlog.com my full-time job, I worked as a media relations consultant, helping politicians, authors and entertainers craft press releases, talking points, and so on, while pitching them to media outlets for appearances. Through this, I developed media contacts, but more importantly I learned how to respect what they do and frame my goals to meet their goals. However, as MetsBlog.com began to grow in popularity, producers and editors began seeking me out, which still seems odd to me.

My only advice to other bloggers who are trying to do media appearances is to treat the process as professionally as possible. The producers and editors you are contacting work very hard, and have no interest in wasting time, believe me.

You mention your relationship with with Blog Harbor on your site; exactly how has this helped you grow your blog – and what other efforts have made a real difference in helping MetsBlog getting to where it is today?
John, who runs Blog Harbor, has been a huge help to MetsBlog. Initially, he re-designed MetsBlog.com, from its early days in late-2003, when I hosted it on Geo Cities. It was a simple as simple can get back then. John, who is a huge Mets fan, was an original reader of the site and was developing a blog wing for his web-hosting company.

John contacted me and explained that as a fan of the site, he believed it was capable of much more than I was doing. The thing is, I am a writer – not a web designer.
RSS, Podcasts, Trackbacks, CSS templates, etc, was essentially another language to me. John got the ball rolling for me, and has been a very big supporter of mine. He also sounds exactly like Vin Diesel, not that that has anything to do with anything. He’s a great guy, and Blog Harbor is a great organization. I highly recommend it to any bloggers looking to step it up a notch.

Any words of advice for those interested in starting or growing a sports blog?
In terms of general advice, I would simply tell the blogger to be honest. Do not try and be Peter Gammons, and do not try to be a beat writer. The media has plenty of these people. The beauty of blogging is that it is a tool of empowerment – so be honest, be yourself and take advantage of this unique opportunity to express your opinion in a way that only you can.

In terms of technical advice, I would suggest the blogger to be simple. There is so much information online, on radio, on television, and so on, that most readers are not looking for something to read, they are, instead, looking for something not to read. By that I mean, most online readers will decide within the first seven seconds whether or not to keep reading a blog post – so make a point and expound on it from there. Don’t try and create some clever lead, or cute metaphor with clever references that attempt to make you sound smarter than you are. If you’re smart, as a reader I will figure it on my own. Give us, the blogosphere, a reason to read you, don’t just assume that we will simply because your words are on the computer screen – because at the end of the day, all the fancy graphics and bells and whistles will not make up for a lack of quality writing and strong content. I want to read what you have to say, but you’ve got to give me a reason to stay.

Last question: What do you think of the Mets chances this year?
This year? It’s tough to say. The off-season has just started, so it is tough to gauge the team’s potential without knowing who will certainly be on the opening day roster. However, for the most part, things will be quite similar to what they had last season, and that proved to work well. I like the core group of the team, which is essentially quite young and exciting and a ton of fun to watch. I think they can win, but, more importantly, I think they’ll play a thrilling and entertaining style of baseball, which has always been important to me. If you’re not yet a Mets fan, there is still plenty of time to join the bandwagon.

Many thanks to Matthew for taking the time to do this quick interview with us; with over 15 posts a day at times, the MetsBlog is a prolific source for all things Mets – and many things Major League Baseball.

This Interview was published on November 22, 2006 at 7:44 am • Did you like it? Subscribe!
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