They just competed for six months straight, their legs tired, their bones achy.
They’ve traveled the world, the bus miles taking their toll.
They’ll get a week or so back home; their lives are normal, and the grind is far away.
But it’s looming; it’s always looming — it’s what life as a professional baseball player necessitates. Two weeks from now, most players will be back at their off-season homes, back to training and work, and all gearing up for next season after the last one just ended.
“What these guys do in the offseason, it ends up being just about as hard as games,” Pittsburgh Pirates Florida workout center manager Robert Pandrini said.
Never one to hold back, Pandrini spoke in an interview at the University of Oregon’s PK Park, traveling during the summer season before returning to Florida for the Fall through Spring Months. He has no say in the baseball side of the operation, mostly unlocking doors and sorting equipment. But make no mistake, he’s seen it all.
He’ll see players skip workouts and sleep in, as well as the grinders, the ones who will do anything to advance to the next level.
“That’s what separates the talented from the workers, Pandrini said. “And the players that have both are the ones that make it… the work they do, it’s what separates who stays and who goes.”
———————————————————————————————————————
For some, a winter home is a new country, a step away from the American culture and everything they’ve ever known.
For others, it’s a way to get at-bats — traditional or not.
Alberto Rios, a former second-round pick in the Angels organization who missed significant time this season, chose one of those untraditional routes, signing with the Australian Baseball League’s Sydney Blue Sox for the 2024-2025 season.
“I missed some 80 games this year. Instead of training this off-season, it was important through the orgs. eyes (and my own) to go out and play. I’ve played one year at school, and this is my first year in pro ball. Getting ABs and live experience is the most important part of my development. It made sense every single way.” Rios said to Ryan Falla of Angelswin.
What the ABL offers is a perfect way for players to get appearances without worrying about the stress of higher competition.
But for those who have seen MLB-caliber pitching, the Dominican is also an often-used route. Journeymen Robinson Cano, Starlin Castro, and Miguel Sano appeared in the championship game a year ago.
But do players just sign with whatever club makes the most sense for their skill level at the time? It’s not that simple, Pandrini says.
“For some guys, they get told ‘you’re going here’, and they are just a fish out of water.”
Things move fast for the countless minor leaguers. There’s turnover, everyone wants your job, and your life can change for the worse in an instant.
A stray bench or clubhouse corridor can house some of the most devastating conversations or news a player can imagine.
“I’ve seen it,” Pandrini said. “Not in Florida, but out on the road, guys getting called in by their manager, and boom, the only job they’ve ever known is gone… and for most of these guys, getting cut means it’s over.”
However, during the fall and winter work, these players transform from good to great, utilizing each organization’s tools to their advantage.
“I mean, the facilities are unbelievable,” Charlie Szykowny, an infielder in the Giants’ organization, said. “They make it so we have no excuse not to perform.”
Everyone is in a similar situation, and the cyclical process that follows is brutal—the best rise to the top, and the rest get left behind.
“The minor leagues are made for the top 3% of players to make their way to the big leagues,” Pandrini said. “And it’s for the rest of them to have a place to play until they realize they won’t make it.”
“I mean, I don’t like it when people say, “There is no offseason,” he said, “because, well, yes, there actually is. It’s an awesome opportunity to get better both physically and mentally for six straight months.”
Players aren’t getting cut in the offseason; that’s what the summer months of games are for, but the decisions they and their agents make and the work each player puts in help avoid one of those doomed conversations in a dark hallway.
“For some of these guys, they want to go home when the season is over,” Pandrini said. “But realistically, they have maybe two weeks, and when the triple-A season is over, it’s time for the real work to begin, wherever that may be.”
“And the ones that will make it love it… and the players that don’t won’t. It may sound cutthroat, but it’s just that simple.”
Photo Credit: A general view of a bat rack in the dugout of the Tampa Bay Rays before the game between the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays before game two of a day/night double header at Yankee Stadium on September 21, 2011 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Rob Tringali/SportsChrome/Getty Images)
