From the Dugout to the Boardroom: How Coaching Baseball Makes Me a Better Marketer (and Vice Versa)
If you’ve ever coached a group of 9-year-olds through a baseball season, you know it’s a little like running a marketing campaign: unpredictable, messy, and weirdly satisfying when it all comes together.
I spend my days working in marketing—building go-to-market plans, fine-tuning value propositions, launching products—and my evenings coaching baseball. And somewhere between teaching kids how to track a fly ball and aligning internal teams on a campaign launch, I realized these two worlds have more in common than you’d think.
Here’s how coaching baseball and marketing feed into each other—and why doing both makes me better at each.
1. It’s All About Communication
In marketing, if you can’t clearly articulate your message, your audience tunes out. In baseball, if you can’t clearly explain how to run a cutoff play, a kid ends up throwing to third while the runner strolls home.
Coaching has forced me to become a better communicator. Kids need simple, clear instructions—and fast. That clarity has carried over into my marketing work. I’ve learned to avoid jargon, get to the point, and tailor my message to my audience, whether it’s a customer or a kid in right field chewing his glove.
2. Every Player (and Channel) Has a Role
Just like you can’t build a team with only shortstops, you can’t build an effective marketing plan using just one channel. Coaching has taught me to recognize individual strengths and put players in positions where they can succeed. Some kids are power hitters. Some are scrappy base runners. Some are there for the snacks—and that’s okay.
In marketing, it’s the same game. Social, email, SEO, events—they all play different roles. Knowing how to build a balanced “lineup” of tactics is part art, part science. Coaching reinforces that instinct.
3. The Game Is Always Changing
In baseball, no two games are the same. One day, your pitcher can’t find the strike zone. The next, the other team bunts six times in a row and throws you off your rhythm.
Marketing works like that too. Algorithms change. Budgets shift. Competitors launch. Coaching has made me more adaptable. I’ve learned to make in-game adjustments—whether that’s calling for a bunt or pivoting a campaign mid-quarter.
4. Celebrate the Small Wins
You don’t wait until the championship game to cheer. You celebrate when a kid finally hits the ball. Or remembers to run to first and not third. It’s easy to pick out stuff like that at the Little League level, but look at the kids playing to make it to Omaha and the College World Series. They celebrate EVERYTHING with a purpose and I believe it makes them play better.
In marketing, it’s easy to get fixated on the big splashy moments. But coaching reminds me to acknowledge the milestones along the way—a click-through improvement, a killer piece of content, a well-run campaign. Those small wins build momentum.
5. It’s About Developing People
At the end of the season, my goal isn’t just to win—it’s to help each kid improve, build confidence, and (hopefully) still love baseball.
In marketing, especially as a team leader, I carry the same mindset. Great campaigns are nice. But developing great teammates? That’s the legacy.
Bottom Line:
Whether I’m in a dugout or a boardroom, I’m still doing the same thing: building a team, solving problems, and trying to help people win.
Coaching baseball doesn’t just make me a better dad. It makes me a sharper marketer. And marketing? It’s taught me how to bring structure, creativity, and strategy into the chaos of a Little League season.