PORTLAND, Maine - The vice president of the Red Sox was in Portland today to offer some advice on how to be successful in managing a sports team.
Charles Steinberg, who's also senior advisor to Red Sox president Larry Lucchino, says teams must never take their fans for granted.
It may sound like obvious advice, he says, but many teams don't follow it, especially when they're performing well - and Steinberg says that's the best time to build goodwill among the fan base.
"You reach out when you're on top," Steinberg says. "Five years from now we could be terrible. You can't go to people when you're terrible and say, 'Be loyal to us now.' "
Steinberg was speaking at a Business of Sports Symposium at the University of Southern Maine, organized by the Maine Sports Commission.