Interview'I've Been Living In A Comfort Inn': A Few Things About Life As A Pro Baseball Player
Welcome to the first installment in a new feature here at brandonsneed.com: "A Few Things About ...", in which we explore awesome things people are doing. (And, yes, I am sort of ripping off Esquire's format for "What I've Learned," where we remove the questions and just leave the answers. But hey, it's one of my favorite magazines, so that makes it okay. Right?)
Kramer Sneed—my younger brother—was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 32nd round of the 2010 draft. If you’re a clueless Kramer fan, and not a baseball fan, here’s a breakdown of Kramer and what it meant when he was drafted by the Yankees.
Kramer's first love in life was basketball. Well, sports in general; basketball was his baby. Being 6-4 and lefthanded, though, he wisely decided to pitch in college. He went on to become the first player drafted out of Barton College in about 15 years.
There's some irony here. Unlike Kramer, I did go to college shooting for a career in baseball. And, unlike Kramer, I didn't make it.
Now he's in the thick of it, working like whoa to get where everyone around him is trying to go. The majors. The Show. Where "you hit white balls for batting practice and the ballparks are like cathedrals and other people carry your luggage and the women all have long legs and brains. Where the pitchers throw ungodly breaking stuff." Where every day is the greatest day of your life. (At least, according to Bull Durham.)
Before that, all but the most unbelievable of ballplayers spend a few years grinding through the minors. Here's a look at how Kramer got where he is, how he's doing, and what life's really like in the minor leagues. Enjoy.
A Few Things About Being a Pro Baseball Player
with Kramer Sneed, New York Yankees
I feel very lucky to be where I am now. Many guys have been close and not made it so this is great to have this chance.
“The Show Goes On” by Lupe Fiasco is one song I love to play before heading to the field. It reminds me that life or my career do not stop whether I do something great or fail. It is a great reminder of the grind that I am on going through this job opportunity.
I had no aspirations of playing professional baseball as a freshman at Barton College. But the summer after my sophomore year, while playing in the Coastal Plains League with the OBX Daredevils, I began to realize that I might have what it takes to get to that next level. I took that confidence into the fall of my junior year. Put in the time in the weight room and on the field, and good things started falling into place.
“Your flight leaves at 10 a.m. Have fun up there. I know you’ll do great.” That’s what the scout who drafted me, Scott Lovecamp, said the day after I signed a professional contract with the Yankees organization. Needless to say, this was one of the best moments of my young life. I was flying into Staten Island to join the short-season A ball team, a part of the New York-Penn League.
I struggled. Pretty much everyone does at first. But I loved every minute of it. Once I got the butterflies out, it was off and running for the rest of the season.
Staten Island was a great place to play. We had crowds ranging from 600 to 6,000 depending on where we were playing. (Editor's note: Seriously one of the coolest places you could play baseball. Or watch it, for that matter. Took a trip up there with my other brother, Logan, and my dad last summer.)
Contrary to popular belief, minor league baseball is not all fun and games. We do not get paid much. We ride buses, mostly two to a seat. We live off of fast food and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. But at least I know I love it. Even with all that, I still don’t want to do anything but play baseball the rest of my life. It’s a good job.
Most [baseball] movies make it look like an easy lifestyle to live. Exceptions are The Rookie and For the Love of the Game. In The Rookie you see how hard it is to have a family that you have to be away from and how it takes its toll on you. In for The Love of the Game you can see how a guy is torn by playing the game he loves and being with the woman he loves.
I had a little idea of what to expect for spring training. I spent three weeks in an instructional league in Tampa in the fall, and it was similar. Although official spring training doesn’t begin until Monday March 7, we have been running, fielding and throwing bullpens since I showed up here Feb. 21.
We basically show up at the field every morning around 9 to change then chill until it’s time for stretching. We stretch for a half hour then warm up for about 20 minutes. After that we either throw a bullpen or do a dry side (basically, going through our delivery as if we are pitching but without actually throwing a ball). Once we finish this we will go do the conditioning for the day. This normally involves a different variation of sprinting. We finish off our day by chilling with each other in the locker room playing cards and deciding where to go eat lunch.
Same as always with baseball, one of the coolest things is the bond with teammates. This new environment is no different. The entire pitching staff became very close very quickly, and the instructional league in the fall only helped our friendship. I have made friends that hopefully I will be playing ball with for years to come. These guys understand me and this game in a way my parents and siblings and close friends outside of baseball cannot. I love that about this profession.
The camaraderie you see among players in the minor leagues of movies like major league and The Rookieand even For the Love of the Game is very real. Guys are competing against one another for spots on the major league team, but you still develop friendships and bonds. It would be no fun to go through this long journey as a loner or with the mindset “me against the world.”
We all want to move up as quick as possible to get our shot at the major leagues. Some guys have more of a singular focus on that one goal where as others take time and enjoy where they’re at in their career at the moment. I tend to lean toward the second group because I believe that with everything there must be a balance to help you deal with the ups and downs of the profession.
I have been living in a Comfort Inn. But thankfully I’m moving into a house with five other pitchers at the start of actual spring training.
Playing against guys drafted higher than me, or considered a bigger prospect than me really brings out my competitive edge like nothing else. I have always loved proving people wrong in every sport I have played. This is no different. I loved it when I struck out Derek Dietrich in a game this past season (All-American third baseman at Georgia Tech drafted in the second round). That is just one instance of the small victories that one must hold onto in this game of failure and fatigue.
I have learned so much about different strategy on pitching and mechanics in my first few months of professional baseball. I have also learned that I have much more to learn. Baseball is such a mental game that one can never learn enough.
The hardest part has to be mentally preparing yourself to perform every day at your highest level. It is so easy to just go through the motions, especially in spring training, when repetition is a second language.
The best part is the guys you become friends with and the fact that I get to play baseball every day of my life and get paid to do it.
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Thanks for reading. If you know of someone doing something awesome that should get interviewed, then let me know!
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Reader Comments (8)
This was really cool. Great inside look at minor league baseball.
Thanks dude. Glad you liked it.
2010* draft?
Unless there's some weird, go-back-a-year type thing when it comes to labeling drafts.
either way, awesome post! :)
Gah, I'm dumb. And a lousy excuse for a reporter. I need an editor for this site. Any takers? Pay is in happy thoughts for you sent out to the universe by Phoebe the fictional character from Friends.
Enjoyed catching up on your stories - haven't been to your site in a while. Great stuff, keep up the dream.
Thanks Dave. Good to see you around here.
Well, I feel as if I'm already your editor since I'm usually the one catching your silly mistakes..
This is true. Sending happy thoughts now ...