Day 28: Let’s Hear it for New York

Jakob Gutierrez 2015

It’s crazy to think that we’re halfway through what was described to us as, “The Best Summer Of Our Lives.” We’ve been in the Big Apple for four weeks now and it didn’t cross my mind until Jenna Pittleman, MSBA Operations Coordinator, sent out the mid-summer reviews. It seems like it was just a few days ago I was meeting my roommates and the rest of the MSBA crew.

“I look forward to creating memories that will last a lifetime with my fellow MSBA participants, staff, coworkers, and everyone else in one of the most opportunistic cities of the world.”

I’ve grown up being told to make the most of every opportunity, live life to the fullest, and never take anything for granted. Well, all of these ideas keep running through my head as I reflect on how fortunate I am to be living in New York City and participating in the Manhattan Sports Business Academy. Let’s make note of the wonderful opportunities we’ve been blessed with during the last few weeks.

  1. Acceptance into MSBA – A program that grants admission to 25 handpicked, young, sports business professionals throughout the world. There’s no program of this kind and several successful leaders in the industry have validated that many times.
  1.  Unbelievable internship experience – Working at Major League Baseball as an Intern for the Brand Advertising & Marketing department has been second to none. I’ve had the opportunity to meet Commissioner Manfred, learn the functions of a league office marketing department as it relates to in-season operations, and pitch a campaign idea to the Chief Marketing Officer, other executives, and those I work alongside in my department.
  1. Networking – Throughout my time in New York, I’ve made an introduction to over 100+ individuals in the sports industry in four weeks time. Individuals ranging from CEO’s to entry-level professionals that are gaining traction in the industry, which claimed to be one of the toughest to break into.
  1. Witnessing history – Yes, we had the chance to watch American Pharaoh win a Triple Crown. On top of that, we also caught Alex Rodriguez blast his 3,000th hit to right field on the first pitch of his first at-bat against Justin Verlander in the first inning.

While there’s so much more, I’ll leave it at this. This sort of thing doesn’t happen to a Midwest kid. If it does, it’s not often. It’s sort of like I’m living in a dream. I look forward to creating memories that will last a lifetime with my fellow MSBA participants, staff, coworkers, and everyone else in one of the most opportunistic cities of the world.
Let’s hear it for New York.