Thursday, May 21, 2009

Baseball As A Profession

I was invited to speak at a Career Day for 5th grade students in my school district. The students were given a chance to vote on professions they would like to learn about on Career Day. Baseball finished in the Top 10 so I will be attending as the guest speaker. It got me thinking however, about how many kids would like to have a career in baseball. I am also wondering if they even know what careers there are in baseball.

When you hear "Baseball As A Profession" we all immediately think of being a professional baseball player. Certainly that is a way to make baseball your profession and if I might add a pretty lucrative one at that! I also believe very strongly that if that is your dream then take your shot! Why Not! Why not lay it on the line and chase your dream. I mean somebody has to make it. I know the odds and they are astronomical. That doesn't stop the same people that are telling kids it's impossible from playing the lottery.

Now you and I both know that the odds of playing professional baseball are better then winning the lottery. The biggest difference is you have some control over whether or not you make it to the big leagues. I say some because there are so many factors that are out of your control that could kill the dream. Having said that, you control your work ethic, physical conditioning, skill level, knowledge of the game, and mental toughness. If you seriously set up a plan and stick with it who knows what might happen.

If you are trading your academic work ethic for only a baseball work ethic then that is worse then playing the lottery. You need to prepare for a career while you are preparing to play pro ball. Is it tough? Yes! Is there enough time in the day for both? Barely! Will you have to sacrifice some things in your life? Yes! Is it worth it? It is if that is your true dream!

I'll end our professional baseball discussion with this thought in mind. You only live once and you are certainly only young once. If you have a dream you are committed to then you had better chase it or it will haunt you the rest of your life. You will always wonder, "what if?" If you give it your best and it doesn't work out then you can live with that especially, if you have a solid education to fall back on.

Baseball as a profession however, does not have to just mean playing professionally. There are other avenues to stay close to the game. I am sure there are many more then I will even mention here. The first one that comes to mind would be coaching. Now if we are talking about earning a living through baseball then obviously it has to be paid coaching.

I mentioned earlier about learning the game to take your shot at pro ball. If you seriously give it your best effort then if playing doesn't work out you should have a solid base to start a coaching career. If you want to coach full time then you are going to have to do it at the college level. If you have any intention of coaching at the major league level then you need to play major league baseball or have a long minor league career. They almost always hire former players.

I will tell you a great game plan if you want to become a college baseball coach. First, become a good player and play in college. It doesn't have to be division 1 just find a school that fits your needs. Second, get good grades because you will need this after you graduate. Third, after graduation find a job as a graduate assistant. You will get a free masters degree, a couple thousand dollars in a stipend, and you will be coaching baseball.

By doing this you begin to make contacts. Also, almost all college job posting want a coach with a masters degree and previous college coaching experience. By being a graduate assistant you fill all the qualifications. This is why I said earlier get good grades so you can get accepted into a masters program to become a graduate assistant.

From here on it's a matter of doing a quality job coaching and working your way to the job you want. Networking is also very important. The more friends you make the more job opportunities that become available. Be prepared however, those first few years could be a lot of moving from school to school as you climb the ladder.

Another full time or part time baseball profession is instruction. We live in a world that has become about organized sports. We start kids playing organized ball by the age of 5. Parents are willing to spend money on instruction year round in an effort to give their kid an edge.

You can find jobs some full time and some part time working in instructional facilities. They are popping up all over the place. If you are a real go getter you could start your own. Gone are the days of kids getting together and playing their own games. Now they can play and practice organized ball year round.

Other opportunities to make baseball a profession would be to become a high school coach. It's not full time but it is a paid position. Usually the coach is also a teacher or has a job with flexibility to allow him to be on time. Again it's not a full time gig but a part-time option.

If you enjoy watching and evaluating players then becoming a scout is also a great option. Being a scout is like any other profession. You start out making little money and working hard. But, if are good and can spot talent then you can move your way up the food chain. The higher you move up the more money you can make.

Being a scout would probably start as a part time job but has the opportunity to become full time. Think about it for a minute, you are getting paid to go watch baseball games. Not a bad deal because if you love baseball that much you would have went for free and offered your opinion anyway!

How about becoming an umpire? Although this doesn't interest me in the least bit it is a baseball profession which could be part-time or full-time. You can umpire from Little League all the way to the big leagues and you get paid to do it at all levels.

A friend of mine just started umpiring Babe Ruth Games. He makes something like $50 a game. He does about 7 games a week. That totals an extra $1400 a month in season. Major League umpires are making 6 figures and all other levels somewhere in between.

There are other ways as well such as sports writing, athletic training, strength and conditioning coaches, equipment managers, and front office type personnel. Maybe selling or manufacturing baseball equipment. Selling and manufacturing is really pushing the idea of baseball as a profession but I guess it depends what your definition and interests are.

In Conclusion

If you are serious about making baseball a profession there are plenty of opportunities out there for you to choose from. All of us baseball nuts growing up will always choose to be a Major League player first. I say go get it! Swing for the fence you might just hit a home run!

If you are smart however, as you are working on becoming a professional ball player also be preparing for what you will do if it doesn't happen. That's not negative thinking it's being proactive and intelligent. Never put all your eggs in one basket because if that basket falls you'll have nothing left to eat! Best of Luck!

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