When Michael Pfaff was in elementary school at St. Paul’s in Garden City, he had two passions: sports and music.
One day young Michael’s parents got a letter home from school: Your kid will not do well in school if he doesn’t stop drumming on his desk so much.
“And they were right,” Pfaff recalled, laughing. “I did love drumming and took lessons, but it was clear that I probably should’ve been paying more attention.”
Pfaff, 53, clearly paid enough attention because he has had a sterling career in the sports world. Since graduating from St. John’s in 1995, he spent seven years in the NFL’s New York office in the communications department, helping with conference championship games and the Super Bowl.
He joined the Ducks in 2002 as the director of communications, and by 2006 was promoted to general manager. He added the title of Club President in 2011, and moved up again this year, becoming CEO and chief business officer.
All the while the Manhasset native and son of a broadcast ad salesman has outworked all comers and done it with a style that’s made him beloved by colleagues.
“He outworks everyone, bar none,” said Tony Amin, owner of Island Shore Physical Therapy who’s had a relationship with Pfaff and the Ducks for two decades. “He works hard and never lets any detail slip, and does it all with an approach that makes you want to keep working with him. He’s the captain of that ship and a huge reason they’ve been so successful.”
“You need someone to clean up the peanut shells from the ground, or check the bathrooms and make sure they’re clean, Mike will absolutely get in there and do that,” adds Sean Smith, who was hired by Pfaff in 2014 and succeeded him as general manger in 2024. “And he always wants to hear what (employees) have to say, whether it’s ideas we can do better, or issues they’re having. He sets a high standard for everyone to get to.”
Pfaff graduated from St. John’s University in 1995, and dreamed of being the head public relations person for an NFL team.
“I just thought that was the coolest job, because you’re involved with everything, from the players and coaches to the media,” Pfaff said.
To that end, thanks to some well-connected St. John’s professors like legendary sportswriter and educator Bernie Beglane, Pfaff was able to land in internship at the NFL during his senior year.
While there he learned from people at the top of their profession and became close friends with Michael Signora, now the NFL senior VP of communications.
“He was always very driven and passionate about the work, and tried to show initiative wherever possible,” Signora said. “I had no doubt he was going to be really successful.”
After getting hired by the NFL after graduation, Pfaff helped coordinate media and communication efforts for three Super Bowls and six NFL Drafts in his seven years there, all while keeping his dream of running a team’s PR dept. alive.
“What I began to realize was that everyone who had that job that I wanted, first left and ran a team somewhere else,” Pfaff said.
So, when an opportunity arose to return to Long Island with the Ducks, then in their infancy after starting out in 2000, Pfaff jumped at it.
And he hasn’t left since, helping guide the independent franchise to four Atlantic League championships while carving out a niche for family-friendly entertainment in a highly-saturated sports market.
“We don’t compete with the Mets or the Yankees: we compete with the movie theater or the bowling alley for your leisure dollar,” Pfaff said. “There are not that many affordable options for families on Long Island anymore, and we’re proud that we’re one of them. We’ve only raised season ticket prices $2 in the last 10 years.”
For Pfaff, the greatest challenge he faces in 2024 is maintaining affordability while costs everywhere rise.
“We have to work a little harder than other folks, because PSE&G aren’t giving us discounts, and neither are other vendors who raise prices,” Pfaff said. “Remaining relevant and staying affordable is the biggest thing for us.”
One example of Pfaff’s ingenuity and kindness took place during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. While scores of sports teams laid off workers and in some cases folded their organizations, the Ducks did not. They didn’t lay off any employees, instead keeping them on part-time and relying on New York State’s unemployment assistance program.
They even hosted an adult kickball league at Fairfield Properties Ballpark during the pandemic, with Pfaff working concessions at the games.
Smith said that the Ducks group sales in 2023 surpassed where they were pre-Covid, in 2019, “and that’s directly correlated to Mike’s leadership and knowledge.”
With his success in minor league baseball has, naturally, come offers from other leagues and teams to leave. And Pfaff admitted he did once come close to leaving, about 13 years ago when there was a chance to work in the NBA’s league office.
“But with three kids and a wife, the idea of traveling a lot and making that commitment wasn’t something I ultimately wanted to do,” Pfaff said. “I learned from the best parents in the world that you want to be as involved as you possibly can with your kids and your family.”
As for the future, Pfaff doesn’t rule anything out, but seems perfectly content keeping the Ducks engine humming. The fact that they once again lead the Atlantic League in attendance (an average of 4,652 fans per game as of July 17) proves the Ducks are still a big hit.
“This club was founded as a public trust, and it’s important to us to keep that going,” Pfaff said. “Right now as I’m talking to you, we’ve got little kids out there running the bases, having the time of their lives, and some of their parents have told me they came to Ducks games when they were kids.
“I just concentrate on what’s in front of me, every day, and I’m very fortunate to have been able to be with this organization for so long.”
