A word to the wise: Don’t ever make a friendly bet with Jed York, because the San Francisco 49ers owner and CEO will hold you to it.
On a recent episode of his podcast “The TK Show,” Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News told a story about the time Jed York forced him to pick up a $2,100 dinner tab. It all started when Kawakami had become increasingly critical of the York family and was skeptical about them building a new stadium in Santa Clara. He told York and a fellow reporter that he would buy them lunch if the stadium was built before 2014.
I stand by my offer: If 49ers build a Santa Clara stadium by Sept. 2014, I'll buy @mattbarrows & @jedyork lunch in Napa (& I might have to)
— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) December 14, 2011
York took the bet and won, with Levi’s Stadium opening in August 2014. As Kawakami explained, lunch somehow turned into dinner at The French Laundry — an incredibly expensive restaurant in the Bay Area.
“That’s pretty hefty,” Kawakami said. “He’s challenging me. Then, he texts me and says, ‘Can I bring my wife, too? You don’t have to pay for her, but can I bring my wife?'”
Kawakami says he sat down for dinner with York, his wife and two other reporters, who picked up their own tab. At that point, he said his relationship with York was starting to “fray” because of the way Kawakami was criticizing the team. Is that why York didn’t stick to his word about picking up his wife’s portion of the meal?
“Jed didn’t make a move to pay for his wife. I’m just waiting for him,” Kawakami recalled. “I’m paying for his wife now on a bet over Twitter that was supposed to be lunch.”
When all was said and done, Kawakami had to shell out $2,100.
“If I thought Jed was sticking it to me, I’d almost be okay with it,” he said. “I don’t even think he knew. I don’t think he knew what $2,100 means to a sportswriter who didn’t inherit a billion-dollar team.”
While he has repeatedly insisted that the hefty dinner tab has nothing to do with his feelings toward York, Kawakami said he believes it is symbolic of the young team owner’s mindset. He also believes it is that same mindset that led to this ugly situation.
Needless to say, Kawakami earned a very valuable lesson that day. No pun intended.
H/T Deadspin
