Name: Tyrone Brooks
Position: MLB Front Office & Field Staff Diversity Pipeline Program Senior Dir
Age: 42
Where I’m from: Glen Burnie, Md.
Where I call home: Pittsburgh -- transitioning to N.Y.
Focusing on right now: I’ve been meeting with all 30 clubs throughout the spring trying to familiarize them with our new program. We’re trying to add minorities and women throughout the game, especially in front offices.
Best advice: Understand your skill set. Employers are going to look at how you can come in and really add value to their organization. This is a relationship-driven business, so it’s important that you’re out meeting people, establishing those relationships.
A must for a new hire: Have passion for the game. If you don’t have a burning desire, you’re going to flame out pretty fast. People having knowledge of analytics also is a key component in our game right now. Being bilingual is a huge plus, too.
Exec I admire: Royals Senior VP/Baseball Operations & GM DAYTON MOORE. I worked with him for 10 years while with the Braves. He was always someone I could rely on for advice and was a great sounding board. Definitely someone who was always looking to help me and put me in the best position to be successful. Also, Braves President JOHN SCHUERHOLZ and Pirates GM & Senior VP NEAL HUNTINGTON.
First thing in the morning: I always get my daughter ready for kindergarten and enjoy having breakfast with her and my son, who’s only 1. When I was with the Pirates, I loved being able to take her to school. The hours working with the club and getting home late at night made that morning time always vital.
Talking tech: Having devices like the iPhone has made it much easier to communicate. Having that ability to check things on your phone and send off emails has always been vital. At the Pirates I oversaw the personnel staff, so being able to communicate with our scouts and their evaluations of players in that manner was big.
Must-have music: Everything from COLDPLAY, to U2 to JAMES BROWN to DRAKE. I think back to when I was a young kid, my dad had a bunch of old records from my grandfather -- that got me started on Motown. The rap from the early ‘90s was such a good era with SNOOP DOGG, DR. DRE, A TRIBE CALLED QUEST and EPMD.
Food for thought: I always love going to Chicago for its pizza. If you’re looking for food, that place has it, even good barbecue. I’m not a huge cook at home -- my wife does the bulk of it. But my specialty is French toast. Breakfast is definitely my best area.
How I unwind: Taking advantage of all the streaming that’s available. I love to catch up on shows like “HOUSE OF CARDS” and movies on Netflix. I’m also a huge fan of “LAW & ORDER: SVU.” We also love going to S.F.. It’s a special place for me because my kids were born there.
Day in the life: In ‘09, I created the Baseball Industry Network on LinkedIn. It has 29,000 members now and there are a lot of individuals who have gotten their foot in the door through that. They’ve been able to meet others and then pass it on. That’s what this game is really supposed to be about. If you make your way through and you’re having success, you can’t forget those behind you who are trying to come along.
