From HIS department to an MLB front office

Twelve years later, however, Shapiro was named executive vice president and general manager of Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Indians. Since then, he has won two “Executive of the Year” awards and has rebuilt the Indians into a perennial contender.

After graduating, Shapiro worked for a real estate company in California before being hired by the Indians in 1991. He progressed from a position in baseball operations to director of the farm system and to assistant general manager. By 2001, when then-GM John Hart stepped down, Shapiro had proven himself as a capable executive.

Shapiro stressed, however, that his time at Princeton — including his decision to major in history — was especially valuable because he could take classes in diverse areas.

“A career is something you focus on after you graduate,” Shapiro said. “Before you graduate, you just learn about different enterprises.”

Though he insists that he did not have a specific career path in mind while at the University, he admits that a job in sports business was always something that he considered. Shapiro explained that his father was a lawyer and also served as a sports agent.

“His interest instilled a strong love of the game in me — especially because he represented Hall of Famers like Cal Ripken, Jr., and Kirby Pucket,” Shapiro said. “He gave me a lot of firsthand, up-close exposure.”

Nonetheless, Shapiro stressed that there is no surefire way of becoming a sports executive.

“The sports business, particularly on the player personnel side, is such a niche business that I don’t think there’s a clear path,” he said. “And don’t forget that anytime you enter a business with only 30 competitors, the number of jobs is extremely limited.”

Instead, he would encourage students to pursue their interests regardless of the direction.

“I followed a clear passion of baseball and business,” Shapiro said. “And it seems like that is the best way of finding a job you will enjoy.”

When asked about whether he would have considered careers in other sports, Shapiro explained that he would only have considered baseball and football because he “didn’t have enough passion for the others.”

While he prefers to “stay in the present and not look ahead to the future,” it seems likely that Shapiro will stay with the Indians for a while. He recently signed a five-year contract extension, and the team has improved dramatically under his leadership. Last year, the team was tied with the Red Sox for the best record in the MLB.

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Though this year’s squad is off to a slow start with a 12-14 record, the Tribe is only three games back of the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central with five months left in the regular season.

“This is the same team that won 96 games last season,” Shapiro said. “There’s a long season ahead of us.”