Howie — a Mets game-day agent

A tiny Eve agent that recaps last night and previews tonight every morning at 9am ET via iMessage (Linq). Silent when there's nothing to say.

Architecture

agent/
├── instructions.md        # voice — terse, opinionated, Mets POV
├── agent.ts               # model config (Vercel AI Gateway)
├── channels/
│   ├── eve.ts             # HTTP channel for dev QA (curl / TUI)
│   ├── linq.ts            # iMessage via Linq (Vercel Connect)
│   └── daily-digest.ts    # internal channel the 9am cron talks to
├── lib/
│   ├── live-monitor.ts    # poll MLB + push scoring/final updates
│   └── live-subscriptions.ts
├── tools/
│   ├── get_mets_game.ts   # MLB Stats API (Mets = team 121)
│   ├── get_mets_club.ts   # standings, last-ten, streak, transactions
│   └── broadcast_daily_digest.ts
└── schedules/
    ├── daily.ts           # 9:00 AM ET
    └── live-monitor.ts    # every minute while subs are active

The morning cron starts a turn on daily-digest. Howie calls get_mets_game and get_mets_club, then broadcast_daily_digest texts the digest to configured iMessage recipients. When there's a game today, the digest ends with a LIVE opt-in line. Users who reply LIVE get a reminder 10 min before first pitch, scoring plays, and the final. Reply STOP to cancel.

Prerequisites

• Node 24.x
• A Vercel account (deployment, AI Gateway OIDC)
• A Linq line via eve add channel/linq

Setup

1. Install dependencies

npm install

2. iMessage (Linq)

Howie uses Eve's first-class Linq channel. Vercel Connect holds the API key. The webhook is /eve/v1/linq.

This project already has connector linq/howie on the dedicated line +1 (205) 396-6998. To recreate that on a new project:

npx eve add channel/linq --yes

Complete the browser Connect flow so Eve can create or link a Linq account and number.

Env vars:

IMESSAGE_RECIPIENTS=+1XXXXXXXXXX,+1YYYYYYYYYY    # who gets the 9am digest (E.164)
IMESSAGE_ALLOW_FROM=+1XXXXXXXXXX                 # optional inbound allow list
LINQ_CONNECT_UID=linq/howie                      # optional; this is the default

Only numbers in IMESSAGE_ALLOW_FROM can text Howie back. If you omit it, Howie uses IMESSAGE_RECIPIENTS (then legacy IMESSAGE_RECIPIENT). There is no open-to-the-world default.

Manual use: text Howie at +12053966998. Example: "what's the Mets game tonight?"

3. Upstash Redis (live updates)

Live opt-ins are stored in Upstash Redis (via the Vercel Marketplace). In local dev without Redis env vars, subscriptions fall back to .eve/live-subscriptions.json.

One-time setup from the project root (requires vercel login and vercel link first):

npm run setup:redis

That runs vercel integration add upstash/upstash-kv, provisions a Redis database, wires it to this project, and pulls env vars into .env.local. The integration sets KV_REST_API_URL and KV_REST_API_TOKEN (the SDK also accepts UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL / UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN).

To refresh env vars later:

npm run env:pull

4. Model credential (local dev)

The default model is openai/gpt-5.4-mini via the Vercel AI Gateway.

For local eve dev, set one of:

• AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY from the Vercel AI Gateway, or
• vercel link in this project (OIDC token pulled automatically)

On Vercel production, link the project and the gateway authenticates via OIDC — no API key in env.

QA (step by step)

Run these in order before deploying.

Step 1 — Install and typecheck

npm install
npm run typecheck
npm run build

eve build should succeed and list daily under schedules.

Step 2 — Smoke-test the MLB tool

Start the dev server:

npm run dev

In another terminal, trigger a session on the Eve HTTP channel:

curl -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3000/eve/v1/session \
  -H 'content-type: application/json' \
  -d '{"message":"Call get_mets_game for 2025-09-15 and summarize in one line."}'

Copy the sessionId from the JSON response, then watch the stream:

curl -N http://127.0.0.1:3000/eve/v1/session/<sessionId>/stream

Confirm the agent calls get_mets_game and returns a sensible recap.

Step 3 — Fire the daily schedule (dev dispatch route)

This runs the same path production cron uses and texts the digest:

curl -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3000/eve/v1/dev/schedules/daily

Response example:

{ "scheduleId": "daily", "sessionIds": ["..."] }

Watch the stream for that session id. You should see tool calls to get_mets_game, then a short assistant message. Check your configured iMessage recipients for the digest.

To test a specific date pair without waiting for real calendar days, temporarily edit the prompt in agent/schedules/daily.ts with known game dates (e.g. a 2025 postseason date), re-run Step 3, then revert.

Step 4 — Verify silence on off days

Trigger the schedule on a date when the Mets have no game yesterday or today (or edit the prompt to use two off-season dates). The agent should end without an assistant message — nothing should be sent.

Step 5 — Health check

curl http://127.0.0.1:3000/eve/v1/health

Deployment (Vercel)

Step 1 — Link and set env vars

vercel link

In the Vercel project Settings → Environment Variables, add for Production (and Preview if you want):

Variable	Value
IMESSAGE_RECIPIENTS	comma-separated +1… digest recipients
IMESSAGE_ALLOW_FROM	optional inbound allow list; defaults to recipients
LINQ_CONNECT_UID	linq/howie (optional)
KV_REST_API_URL	auto-set by npm run setup:redis
KV_REST_API_TOKEN	auto-set by npm run setup:redis

Do not commit .env. AI Gateway auth on Vercel is via OIDC after link — no gateway key required in prod.

Step 2 — Deploy

vercel deploy --prod

Or push to a Git-connected Vercel project.

Step 3 — Confirm cron

In Vercel Settings → Cron Jobs, confirm jobs exist for:

• 0 13 * * * — daily digest (9:00 AM EDT)
• * * * * * — live monitor (polls MLB when users are subscribed)

In November when the US falls back to EST, change agent/schedules/daily.ts to 0 14 * * * and redeploy.

Step 4 — Production smoke test

curl https://<your-app>/eve/v1/health

Optionally drive the live deployment with the Eve TUI:

npx eve dev https://<your-app>

Step 5 — Watch the first cron

After 9am ET, check Observability → Cron Jobs and Logs in Vercel. Confirm the run started a session and the digest arrived on iMessage.

Things worth knowing

• Daylight saving. Cron is UTC. 0 13 * * * is 9am EDT (summer). In November, switch to 0 14 * * * for 9am EST.
• No skip risk. The recap runs at 9am the next morning, so last night's game is always Final.
• Scope. Howie only covers Mets baseball — off-topic messages get a short refusal before the model runs.
• Dedicated iMessage line. Howie texts from +12053966998 through Linq. Replies from unknown numbers are dropped.
• Live updates. Reply LIVE after the morning digest (or anytime on game day). Reply STOP to cancel. The monitor cron runs every minute but exits immediately when nobody is subscribed.
• Beta. Eve is in public preview — expect framework changes.