Learn Somebody Else's World

Outfielder Mike Yastrzemski flew with the Giants from San Francisco to New York last Wednesday, spent Thursday golfing, and got off the course around 6 p.m. ready for a weekend series against the Mets, only to find out he had been traded to the Royals.

By morning, he was on a flight to Toronto as the newest member of the Kansas City Royals. Hours later, he made his debut and homered in his first at bat.

This wasn’t just a whirlwind travel story. It was a window into how quickly someone can find their footing not just on the field, but in a new culture.

If you’ve ever been the new person in a room, you get it. I felt it when I walked into 8th grade homeroom five days after moving from Philadelphia to Chicago, or on day one broadcasting Royals baseball in 2008 in a new city.

“You got to put your guard down. You got to come in and be yourself right away,” Yastrzemski told my broadcast partner Jeff Montgomery and me in an interview for our pregame show.

He suggested putting his phone down and playing cards or video games with his new teammates could create immediate chemistry.

“You have to learn somebody else's world when you're stepping into it. I think that just shows that you're committed to their success… I’m going to be pulling for that guy next to me and almost celebrating his successes more than I do mine.”

That’s a guy who gets it. That’s culture. That’s leadership.

That’s small ball.

What are you doing to make the new person feel like they belong?

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