May, 2008

At 24, Jim McCloud is already living a boy’s dream, working in sports and taking advantage, in part, of the experience and relationships he developed as a member of the South Shore Baseball Club’s Seadogs 15U and 16U traveling baseball teams.

McCloud, of Medfield, is a fulltime account executive in advertising sales for CBS College Sports, as well as a representative of a sports agency where he interned, Athletes First, in Newport Beach, California. As if that’s not enough on his plate, Jim is also taking Master’s Degree courses in sports management at Columbia University.

Jim pitched and played shortstop at Medfield High and Holy Cross. His college baseball career was bitter sweet. After his junior year for the Crusaders, McCloud underwent Tommy John surgery (famed baseball surgeon Dr. Andrews of Alabama), but his senior campaign fell shot of his expectations, due to his recovery, and when the season ended he was red-shirted and received an additional year of eligibility despite having graduated.

McCloud, considering another year of playing college baseball while attending graduate school, pitched that ensuing summer for the Harwich Mariners in the highly-regarded Cape Cod League. Jim threw a shutout in his final mound appearance and decided to go out on top. “I had set goals and knew that my baseball career was going to be riding on busses and not going very far,” he explained. “My senior year (at Holy Cross) wasn’t who I was. It left a bad taste but that summer made it a happy ending for me.”

Playing for the Seadogs helped Jim on and off the diamond, particularly in the business world. “It prepared me for my college situation, fine-tuning my skills,” he said. “Playing with and against good players makes you better. Every Seadogs player on my teams went on to play in college or pro ball.

“There was a direct transfer (baseball to business) of the lessons I learned, competitiveness, and relationships I developed, even with some of the guys who are still playing baseball. I interned at Athletes First, a sports agency that has some big clients like Carson Palmer (Cincinnati Bengals quarterback). I work in baseball and have helped them sign three players.

“Athletes, in general, have a natural step up on the competition in the business world, especially in sports. Being a competitor is a natural advantage in the business world. People who work in sports are also fans. Having played in the Cape Cod League gives me a talking point. I knew that I found a niche. I offer some things others don’t have, which has put me in a good position. I’ve signed players who I met playing baseball. My former boss, for example, played college baseball and we hit it off right away.”

Baseball also led to McCloud’s tenacious, never tiring work ethic, allowing him to maintain an average day amounting to 15 hours between CBS College Sports, Athletes First and graduate school. “All the hard work I put in also represents a direct transfer today in terms of drive,” McCloud continued. “While I was playing doubleheaders every Saturday and Sunday in the summer, or spending hours taking ground balls, a lot of my friends were laying at the beach.”

Jim’s younger brother, Brian, is a member of the Seadogs 14 and-under team. Meanwhile, Jim’s playing days may be history, but he’s still living a dream.

“I don’t miss not playing because I’m still around sports all of the time,” McCloud concluded. “I’m either going to the College World Series or attending the Final Four.”

It’s all paid off for him. He never looks back at his elbow surgery and wonders, what if, because when all is said and done, Jim McCloud is a winner.

SSBC ALUMNI