Handling Plan B: General Manager to Sports Journalist

Peter Sweeney

On Sunday, I met Peter Sweeney in Newhouse three to film our interview session. Interviewing Sweeney would be interesting, I thought. At first impression, he comes off as a quiet and reserved guy until you mention sports. Sweeney comes alive. Rightfully so, as Sweeney grew up in a sports-centric household due to his father’s religious following of New York sports teams. The television stayed on sports of some sort nightly.

“Growing up in that culture on an every night basis is what eventually made me into this you know sports fanatic that I turned out to be.”

This upbringing shaped Sweeney’s career choice and major in college.

“I got into this idea where I wanted to be the next general manager in baseball.  You know, I seen what Theo Epstein had done."

Theo Epstein became General Manager of the Boston Red Sox at the age of 28.

With general manager as his goal, Sweeney majored in Sport Management at State University of New York College at Cortland.

It was here that he got his foot in the door with baseball.  He served as the director of baseball operations of the Cortland Red Dragons.  

A year later, he landed an internship with the New York Yankees working in baseball operations.

With his degree and stacked resume, Sweeney graduated college in 2010 ready to make his mark on the Major League Baseball world.

After several stints with minor league baseball operations, Sweeney decided to apply for full-time positions with the Tampa Bay Rays.

He finished second for the jobs.

“So while I was pretty depressed that I didn't get either full-time job or something in baseball operations I finally had nothing on my plate and that opened the door for me to say, you know what let’s try to get into Syracuse, lets go after this grad school thing.”

Sweeney’s goal of becoming the next Theo Epstein began to give way to his nagging desire to become a sports journalist. He got accepted to Newhouse and his pursuit to be a journalist is now underway.

On the first day of graduate school, Sweeney made a cup of coffee like he does normally. Except, this time, he grabbed a coffee cup given to him by his mom that his late grandmother once owned.

The quote on the cup read “Life is all about how you handle Plan B.”

Sweeney is beginning to realize that maybe sports journalism is actually his plan A. 

Video of my interview with Peter Sweeney

Peter Sweeney Interview

Growing up what was the key factor in you developing your love for sports?

I think the key factor was my father's religious following of the New York sports teams. Every night at 7 o'clock the Rangers, Knicks, Giants, Yankees was on in the house and there was really no choice to that.  We were watching it. If you wanted to watch something else that was on at that time you better find another TV because you know they were watching the game. So that kind of culture, growing up in that culture on an every night basis is what eventually made me into this you know sports fanatic that I turned out to be.

So how did that experience with you know growing up with sports under your dad and then developing your own love for sports, how did that lead you to your sports involvement in college?

I got into this idea where I wanted to be the next general manager in baseball.  You know I seen what Theo Epstein had done, I think he was like 26 when he became the GM of the Red Sox.  I love fantasy baseball, and I said you know this is what I want to do.  So in high school I started looking at colleges for a Sports Manager Major and that’s when I wound up going to Cortland State where I ended up working with the baseball team quite extensively.  

Ok and so with your involvement with baseball in college what was the direction you wanted to go initially out of college?

As I said I had this idea in my brain that I was just going to be this freak general manager in baseball.  I thought that that was where my path should go so I sent my resume out to every major league baseball team and I wound up getting some opportunities in baseball operations from that.

Ok and so what were some of the series of events that made you or that gave you the opportunities in baseball. May not have been where you wanted to be but it still gave you that foot in the door for baseball?

The first baseball job I did have was actually during college. I was a summer intern for the New York Yankees. I had good grades and eventually was able to score an internship so that was a good experience of my sophomore summer.  So that combined with my experience in college with the baseball team led me to my first job post college in baseball which was with the Arizona Diamondbacks. So pretty much a few weeks after the college World Series Cortland had made it that year. I was off to Missoula Montana which was the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks rookie ball team where I spent the summer and somewhere I think that I never really expected myself to be going.

And so from all of that working with minor league teams and doing the video for them and doing other things, kind of doing whatever they needed you to do for the teams right?

Right. Yes. Slavery

So what were some of the jobs that you went after trying to move up so to speak in the MLB Stature?

After the diamondbacks I was offered to be a video guy again for the diamondbacks at their Triple A level and what I wanted to do was work for the actual major league team. So an opportunity came along with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2011 to be an intern but a video intern for their entire minor league system. So what would happen would be the pictures would film in the minors and they would send all that video in to me and it was my role to take that video and make sure that all the rays exec, it was in a position so that all the rays executives could see it whenever they wanted to.

And so some great opportunities opened up right for you?

Yes I didn't get a job that year full time but I was asked to be an intern the following year.  This time at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg as an amateur scouting intern so I was kind of surrounded with the draft.  I was doing things for the draft you know, prospect reports you know gathering data, pretty much again anything they wanted me to do. And then actually one cool thing is that I ended up getting to draft the player in the 40th round of the draft. I can now say that I draft someone in a major league sport.  I said their name and that was a really cool experience as well.

And so with the Rays there were some unique opportunities that opened up and you went for it, how was that?

Right at the end of my second internship there were no openings in baseball operations that they felt that I was  a fit for but there were opportunities in the communications department and in the corporate partnerships departments and I decided no I’m now 23 24 I should probably be getting a full time job doing something.  So I threw my name in the hat really prepared, interviewed I thought pretty well and for both roles I ended up finishing in the top 2. So you know it is what it is, at that point I really didn't know what I was going to do so I returned to New York.

And so what was going through your mind when you know you finished second with those jobs but you have had a huge amount of experience in baseball and clearly this is your love, so what was going through your mind when you didn't get those jobs?

At that point I was pretty not depressed but it was kind of rock bottom at that point career wise for me.  I know that it’s a lot of worse things that can happen to you but it was a low point for me for sure and it actually.  You know I look back now and I think that was a blessing in disguise because I had always had this journalism thing in the back of my brain.  2011 after that first internship with the Rays I considered applying to Syracuse. Didn't do it because I just had another internship you know available for me take so I ended up doing that. So that prevented me from kind of doing what I always wanted to do. So while I was pretty depressed that I didn't get either full time job or something in baseball operations I finally had nothing on my plate and that opened the door for me to say you know what let’s try to get into Syracuse lets go after this grad school thing.  Because I knew it was the best program in the country.

And so after finishing up New House where do you want to go in life or per se what’s the next chapter that you would like for your life?

My dream goals/job right now is to work on Sports Center doing highlights and I would also maybe like to get into radio.  I think Scott Van Pelt has a really nice career doing what he does kind of similar type of thing.  Obviously I know for sure you know even going through baseball I’m not going to walk out the door and be a Sports Center anchor.  I don't expect that but what I do expect is to put myself in position right after school to get where I want to be.  I want I need to get on that track and you know whatever the first station of that track is you know I’m willing to do and just willing to bust..do my best to reach my goal.

So talk a little bit about how getting into New House, what was going through your mind about you know getting the acceptance from New House?

It for me was do or die. I was working at the time after the Rays I went back to New York and I was working at the time in New York City for this job company called NYC Social and what they do is they provide rec league for city dwellers like in their 20's.  You go play kickball and then you go to the bar afterwards as for specials that’s what I was doing. While that was fun it really wasn't what exactly I saw myself career wise doing so for me getting into Syracuse was do or die.  I applied into one place I said if I can't get into the best I’m not going to go back to school I will figure it out.  So when I got that...I was happy.  It was like a sigh of relief.  Like thank God I finally kind of back on track where I want to be.