MLB.com reporting internships/Dec. 11 deadline

In all fairness about the not being paid last year thing, I'm told the workload was lighter than years that they paid interns. Of course, I still got to the ballpark at 3:00 for a 7:30 game and stayed until midnight, but that was my choice. If you didn't want to cover a PR event when the club was on the road, you didn't have to. In years the gig is paid, you are still "on duty" when the team is out of town. Last year, that wasn't the case.

Now that the gig is paid again, I can't stress enough how great of an experience this could be. I covered the Braves last season and now have a full-time job. I got the job through contacts I made at MLB.com. Besides that, even if I'm out of the business in two years, I'll get to say I covered big-league baseball for a summer.

 

Hope you enjoyed working with Mark Bowman. I met him a few times when the Braves were in town and he seemed like a great guy. Congrats on getting a full-time gig!

 

Maybe some of you have some advice here.

Over the last three summers, two of them I spent covering a minor league team, one of them I spent covering a major league team. The minor league gigs were for a subscription site/magazine, the MLB stuff last summer for a major newspaper as part of a GA internship gig that included other sports and events.

I've also written for a team-specific baseball magazine — in short, it's a lot of pro baseball clips.

I got into this business to cover baseball. I'd love nothing more than to spend a WHOLE summer in an MLB press box. But to get to a point where I'm employed full-time to do that, am I doing myself a favor by taking this internship were I to get it? Or should I look to go to another newspaper and diversify my experiences as much as possible?

Consider that this summer will likely be my last internship opportunity because I'm graduating in 2010.

 

ha, I was thinking the same thing. I'd have loved it this was around back then.

 

Well, they do offer full-time gigs if they are sufficiently impressed. I wasn't fortunate to get one of those gigs, but I know several of MLB.com's club reporters came straight from the internship.

And dvillavicencio6, thanks. I loved working with Mark. Not only is he one of the best at what he does, but he's a great guy too. Except for giving me crap about the 06 Sugar Bowl when West Virginia beat Georgia.

 

My advice is to read this thread .....

http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/74556/

And good luck

 

Has anyone heard anything from MLB since sending in their application? I know he's doing interviews at a few schools, but any phone or email contact from people who don't go to one of those schools?

 

What's the word on this? Anyone hearing anything? I know like a million people apply, someone has to of heard something. Is it actually going to be paid?

 

I have a feeling this year's is in fact paid.

I applied this past season and wasn't selected and I applied again this year.

It took them a long time to select applicants (and subsequently send rejection notices) last year. If I remember right, it was well past the January deadline they had given.

A few folks around here were selected and posted about it. That's when you can start worrying.

 

Not that this necessarily will be the same this year, but last year when I got the internship, I don't think I heard about it until sometime around late February.

Also, I think they actually will pay this year, but last year they didn't say they weren't paying until early January.

 

Next step in process, reading an entire thread before posting. It is paid.

 

My son got a mlb.com internship last year too. It was painful for him to receive zilch, especially because the $500 a week was promised initially. It sure seems unfair, but the experience was worth it. Good luck to 2010 interns. If the pay evaporates again in 2010, take it if you can afford it!