Out of the Park: Navigating Change
Last week, the Royals announced plans for a new downtown stadium, built in partnership with Hallmark on the historic side of their headquarters. The reaction was exactly what you’d expect: Some people saw the future, others saw what they were losing.
It was a scene I’ve seen play out before.
When Kansas City opened its new airport a few years ago, plenty of folks grumbled, mostly about parking. If you guessed that the number one fan concern about the new stadium is also parking, you would be correct. The discomfort of navigating change usually dissipates after the reality of it sets in and we start to live it, which is exactly what happened with the airport.
A couple of days after the announcement, the Royals wore their new City Connect jerseys, as they will every home Friday night going forward. When they were first unveiled earlier in the month, the feedback came in loud from both sides. Some fans loved them while others hit the roof. What got lost in the shuffle is how much of the design process came from kids, because the change is really about them.
Years of research went into asking the next generation what they thought was cool. For the uniform’s second outing, people had already started to adjust and I saw significantly more fans walking around in the new colors. It didn’t hurt that the team won that night, prompting them to wear City Connect again on Saturday and Sunday to sweep the Angels. Some things - like superstition - never change.
One month into Royals.TV, we’re still exploring what this thing can be. New cameras, new angles and new ways to bring fans closer to the game than they’ve ever been. An entire youth fan base is going to grow up watching baseball differently than the rest of us did, and that’s the point.
As I travel the country talking to companies who are wrestling with AI and change in the workplace, I keep coming back to the fact that navigating change is rarely embraced in the moment. But it's usually accepted in hindsight. The downtown stadium will feel like a loss of Kauffman Stadium until it becomes the place where kids’ memories are made. The new jerseys will feel strange until the day a young fan pulls one out of their closet because it's their favorite.
In the meantime, our job is to lean harder into the things that don’t change. Trust. Relationships. Showing up for each other while the ground shifts beneath us. That’s the real work, inside and Out of the Park.
Local flavor
Last week, Susan and I celebrated her birthday by checking out two new Kansas City spots that both fit perfectly with this month’s theme of navigating change.
First up was dinner at the Rock Island Bridge, which calls itself America’s first entertainment district on a bridge. It’s a 120-year-old railroad bridge that sits 60 feet above the Kansas River, and has been reimagined for dining, live music, and events. We ate at the River House and soaked in a one-of-a-kind vibe that you can’t get anywhere else in the city.
Next we went to Atlas9 in the Legends District. We stayed a few hours, which wasn’t nearly long enough. The entire concept has the feel of a 90s movie theater and includes an immersive art experience, live performers, hidden mysteries to solve, multi-sensory installations, a speakeasy, and a pizza joined called Splice Bros.
It was easy to get lost in it all, and was truly unlike anything we’ve ever experienced. USA Today named it one of the top new attractions of 2026, and its easy to see why. I’ll be recommending it to everyone and can’t wait to go back.
Kansas City’s two most innovative new additions are proof that change - when done right - gives a city something it didn’t know was missing.
Dugout dialogue
This month’s Dugout Dialogue isn’t a sit down interview, but rather a demonstration.
Rex Hudler and I have been doing these for years out at the Little K, but this one was different. We shot the entire segment at the Little K, the kids’ diamond beyond left field at Kauffman Stadium, with nothing but an iPhone and a drone, and it turned out to be one of the coolest pieces we’ve put together.
Two and a half minutes of Hud being Hud, a diamond built for kids, and a look at what’s possible when you mix old-school baseball with new technology. I hope you’ll check it out.
In this month’s discussion with Chief of Staff’s Casey Wright, we talk about the different ways navigating change shows up in the job market. Click below to hear his perspective.
speaking engagements
Last month was a busy one on the speaking front. I had the honor of keynoting the Inspiration Breakfast benefitting the Veterans Community Project, and delivered keynotes for Standard Beverage, CFM Distributors, and UMB Private Wealth. I also had the opportunity to spend time with the next generation of leaders speaking to students at Avila University.
I’m so grateful when schedules permit speaking engagements during the baseball season, at home and on the road, without missing a pitch with the Royals.
Next month is equally exciting, beginning on May 7th when I will emcee the 125th anniversary celebration of Jewish Family Services in Kansas City, an organization that has been strengthening lives in the local community since 1901. On May 21st, I’ll deliver the keynote at the National Association of Women in Construction event at Kauffman Stadium, which feels like a perfect setting to keep conversations about navigating change going.
The theme, more and more, comes back to the same place: Growing anxiety over the rapid ascension of AI. In the middle of it all, my belief remains that trust and relationships matter more now than ever. If you’re navigating those same questions inside your organization, I’m offering a limited number of free, 15-minute virtual sessions. Just reach out.
To inquire about my keynote series, event moderation or custom video content, just click the link below. A member of my team will get back to you right away.
Rounding the bases rewind
I’m a storyteller above all else and there’s something to be said about people who go out and create their own change. That’s exactly what stood out to me in a recent podcast interview with guest Chris Clinard.
What began as a simple idea to get the right books into the hands of young men has turned into something so much bigger. Through Books4Guys, Chris is building more thoughtful, intentional leaders, one page at a time.
This episode illustrates why navigating change doesn’t always require a leap. Sometimes all it takes is a single step to pave the way for everything that follows.
If you haven’t listened yet, this is one worth going back for.
Finally, I want to extend another huge thank you to each of the guests who rounded the bases with me this month:
Our schedule is already booked into summer, but we are always looking for interesting guests with standout stories. Would you or someone you know make a great guest on Rounding the Bases?
To discuss sponsorship opportunities, please email my Executive Producer Ashleigh Sterr: ashleigh@joelgoldbergmedia.com.
Keeping the score
I’ve spent most of my career talking about change. Clubhouses turnover and lineups shift. A rookie gets the call while a veteran hangs on. Sports broadcasters learn quickly that nothing stays the same for long.
What happens when change inevitably happens? And even more importantly, when your entire idea about how to navigate it is challenged?
That’s exactly what happened during a recent interview on my podcast, Rounding the Bases. I was joined by a mother-daughter duo who found purpose in the most unlikely place.
Angel McDonald is the Executive Director of Mother’s Refuge and Judy Henderson is author of When The Light Finds Us. Theirs is a story of a mom who spent 36 years in prison for a crime she didn’t commit. And on the outside, a daughter who never stopped believing that one day she would come home.
I knew the headline going in, but could not have prepared for the story of how they navigated it.
newsletter signup
Do you want an exclusive first look and access to behind the scenes photos you can’t find anywhere else? Sign up today and get Out of the Park delivered right to your inbox.