By Bailey Axelrod (SMBA '11)While in Santo Domingo, the SMBA ’11 class had the opportunity to visit the Major League Baseball offices and speak with Sandy Alderson, who is the head of Major League Baseball in the Dominican Republic. Alderson has an impressive career in baseball including being the General Manager of the Oakland A’s from 1983-1997, Executive Vice President of baseball operations for Major League Baseball from 1998-2005, and the CEO of the San Diego Padres from 2005-2009. He just recently began his job in the Dominican Republic, but he is already initiating plans to change the way that baseball operates in the island country.
Alderson is being viewed as a savior for Dominican baseball and as the man that will clean up the system and make it conform to the rules of Major League Baseball in the United States. Alderson took time with the class to explain the current state of baseball in the Dominican Republic. He talked about the current system of unlicensed trainers cashing in on kids’ signing bonuses and the rampant use of steroids by young kids. There is a lot of work to be done, but with his experience and the help of the SMBA class, there is no doubt that Sandy Alderson will be able to make significant changes in the DR.
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