(April 11, 2017) When the Gary SouthShore RailCats Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations left the team in late March, they needed to move quickly to hire a replacement. They contacted STAA. Less than three weeks later, STAA member Jared Shlensky is on his way to Indiana.
“I wouldn’t have known about the opening if I weren’t an STAA member,” says Shlensky. In Gary, Shlensky follows fellow STAA member Dan Vaughan.
2017 will be Shlensky’s fourth straight summer calling baseball. In 2014, he was a broadcasting intern with the Joliet Slammers. A year later, it was onto a similar position with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Shlensky spent last summer with the Waterloo Bucks. However, Gary represents the first opportunity for the Palos Heights, IL native to be a No.1.
“I don’t have to relocate — Gary is about 40 minutes from my hometown.” Shlensky smiles.
After receiving notification of the opening in an STAA job leads email, Shlensky was quick to apply. When it came time to follow-up, Shlensky did something counterintuitive.
“Even though it said ‘no phone calls’ in the job description, I actually called anyways,” he says. “I think that got my foot (name) in the door, and ultimately, the job.”
Since becoming an STAA member in 2014, Shlensky has learned how to make himself more appealing to employers. “For example, I never would have created a website if it wasn’t recommended by STAA,” he says.
“I’ve been an STAA member since 2014 and haven’t regretted it for a second!”
(Visit Jared’s STAA Talent Page).