Jobs in MLB, the pros and cons (a bit off topic I guess)

[MicroBob]

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I have a few contacts within the Twins' sales office

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Taking a random shot here.
One of these contacts named Rob Malec by any chance?

Used to be decent friends but we lost touch.
I don't even know if he still works for them anymore.

[MicroBob]

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I just doubt it'd be possible to get any meaningful experience without a) having played professional ball or b) knowing the right people.

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Obviously it is my contention that the 'meaningful experience' which you are seeking is available in the minor-leagues.

[lippy]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I have a few contacts within the Twins' sales office

[/ QUOTE ]


Taking a random shot here.
One of these contacts named Rob Malec by any chance?

Used to be decent friends but we lost touch.
I don't even know if he still works for them anymore.

[/ QUOTE ]

I met a guy named Rob, but he is in his fifties.



I want to make a slight hijack about a position that I think I could get for a year or two. I interned for a large youth baseball league and became friends with a coworker that owns a team in the Northwoods League (summer ball for college kids). I think I made a very positive impression, he knows I'm very smart and at least decently baseball savvy. His turnover for GMs of his team is every few years, as to be expected with the position.

I really feel like I could get in touch with him and get work for him for a few months and work my way into that job. I've always thought about it, but never really wanted to do it. The more I think about it, the more appealing it becomes. It definitely isn't a high-paying gig, but I'd be around baseball, which is fantastic.

I just wonder if it would open any doors. I'd imagine it would help, but be far from getting me past entry-level menial jobs within an Major League organization.

[MicroBob]

Some people get jobs in the Northwoods and other similar leagues at the baseball winter meetings too I believe.

Getting a gig there can totally open doors for you.

The low-paying stuff you would be doing there would be pretty identical to what you would do in the regular minor-leagues.


More importantly, it's a resume builder.
You show up the next year applying for internships having actually already done it.

Lots of intern-applicants have 1 or 2 years of experience already and are clearly ahead of your everyday-college-kid or grad who MAYBE spent a little time in his school's sports-administration office.


One guy I know who is a GM in the Florida State League started as an intern with us in Vero Beach, then got a job GM'ing in one of the summer-college leagues (think it was in NC, but it might have been the Northwoods League), and then was able to land a job as a GM back in the 'regular' minors.


If this guy also knows people in the minors and his recommendation carries weight for the future then it's definitely an awesome opportunity for you.
I'm guessing some of his former GM's there went on to get bigger gigs with bigger teams.
He recommends you after your awesome performance with him all summer and introduces you to some guy with the Durham Bulls or Buffalo Bison who used to work for him...and you're off and running.


It's May though. This is pretty last minute to try to get something going for this summer. If you're going to try to do this for this season you probably should act quickly.

[lippy]

This would be further down the year, as in a few years. But, yeah, thanks for the insight. One of his ex-GMs is now doing something important with a AAA affiliate, I can't remember the position, but it sounded important.

Another one of his GMs is now making tons of money working for BestBuy. Go figure?

[BobboFitos]

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Why are some of these jobs heavily biased toward former players? I can understand manager and scouting, but a lot of this front office stuff would seem to favor someone with an education/background that the vast majority of former players don't have. Furthermore if what I hear on radio and television is anything close to accurate, most of these former players have a very poor understanding of the game from a statistical/econometric standpoint.

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bc people are [censored] stupid

[Kneel B4 Zod]

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I have a few contacts within the Twins' sales office... but who wants to sell tickets to Little League teams for a living?

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those are often the short term sacrifices you need to make if you want to ultimately succeed in an ultra-competitive industry.

[Kneel B4 Zod]

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I have a few contacts within the Twins' sales office... but who wants to sell tickets to Little League teams for a living?

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those are often the short term sacrifices you need to make if you want to ultimately succeed in an ultra-competitive industry.

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and just to expand on this, as Kyle mentioned above, much of what you need is access to the right people, aka networking. even on the marketing/sales end of the organization, you'll have access to the 'baseball' guys that is very hard to come by, and at that point switching to the baseball side becomes a much more reasonable goal, assuming you have all the requisite skills.

these days, I would imagine that the jobs in the data analysis side of Marketing are not that far different than the Data Analysis side of the baseball staff. it requires much of the same skills. just like on the baseball side, some organizations are much more advanced than others when it comes to marketing; the Celtics are actually a good example of a team that is pretty advanced. they sell a ton of seats for a bad team.

[True North]

[ QUOTE ]
Why are some of these jobs heavily biased toward former players? I can understand manager and scouting, but a lot of this front office stuff would seem to favor someone with an education/background that the vast majority of former players don't have. Furthermore if what I hear on radio and television is anything close to accurate, most of these former players have a very poor understanding of the game from a statistical/econometric standpoint.

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Read Moneyball and you'll have a better idea. Baseball execs like hiring people who think the way they do. Since they execs are former players, the people they hire, then, are usually former players.

[mbillie1]

Wow, thanks for all the replies. I happen to live right around the corner from the AA Mets team, maybe I should start going to some games and trying to get familiar with some of the people who work there that way. Even if it's near-impossible I can certainly try, I network very well at least so I have a shot.