Tommy Goodman
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BASEBALL DIGEST ALL STAR EDITION A Special Publication of Arnall Golden Gregory LLP By Abe J. Schear Tommy Goodman July 2019 “A Baseball Ambassador” * * * Schear: I am talking with Tommy enjoyed listening to it as well throughout Baseball we have long said is an American Goodman. Where did you grow up? the summer. It always provided the sport and, of course, that includes all of I grew up in Reston, Virginia. cadence of the evening. There was America. In fact, the history of baseball in Did your family like baseball? the regularity of the broadcast whether the Caribbean (and in Cuba in particular) Yes, my family loved baseball. Believe I listened to TV or radio, so it didn’t is every bit as passionate and colorful as it it or not, I played soccer mostly growing matter. is in the United States. up but I was a huge baseball fan. There What are your first memories of Tommy Goodman evokes that passion and were no Nationals back then so we baseball? is Executive Director of the Caribbean had to drive up to Baltimore to see I don’t know if this is my first, but Educational Baseball Foundation. As professional baseball, but we loved doing my clearest is opening day at Camden such, he has explored how baseball can it. Yards (April 6, 1992). I was a teenager bring people and countries closer together, Who were your favorite players for the by then so that when the magic of this relying on that little white ball to stimulate Orioles? sport occurred, especially watching it mutual interests. Cal Ripkin, far and away the favorite. live, kind of hit me. Even today, there Again, different teams, different players. is nothing like that stadium and that As you will read, the history of baseball in Brady Anderson, Mike Mussina before stadium packed on an April day was even countries like Cuba is similar to that in the he went to the evil empire, the Yankees, more magical with a 2-0 Orioles win. United States, though it is more about the game and less about the business. Tommy shares with us the emotions of Caribbean “The mission statement is to build youth baseball in a way that will encourage many to explore the shared histories and, perhaps, focused bridges between the US and our even go watch a game or two. Caribbean neighbors with a shared passion Thanks so much to my friend, Jay Epstien, for this introduction. for baseball.” and a couple of others were favorites. Rick Sutcliffe pitched a three hit shutout. * * * Did you play baseball as a youngster? There was a fly-by, so a lot of excitement Not much. I played some neighborhood because Baltimore is a great baseball baseball. I was limited to one sport town and, with that new stadium, it just by my parents and that was soccer. I reached a new level. So that’s not my tell people I like to watch movies even first, but my clearest memory. though I’m not an actor. I was always a And the ballpark really revitalized not fan of watching baseball. only downtown but a neighborhood as Did you watch it? I guess you were well. Abe J. Schear is an attorney with Arnall young enough so you never listened to Our tradition with my dad and my mom Golden Gregory LLP and is a member of it much on the radio. You probably was to go out and get crab cakes for the firm’s Real Estate Group. Contact Abe watched it on TV. lunch at the inner harbor and walk over at 404.873.8752 or [email protected]. I did a combination of both. I always to the game. I remember two years A r n a l l G o l d e n G r e g o r y L L P | July 2019 later, the All Star Game was there along things. When I got to law school, I took other parts of Central America. I learned with the home run derby and all the international law classes and sport law through research and through talking to excitement around the stadium. There classes and I realized that a lot of what people. I started to travel down there. were all these other things to do around sports laws are is really domestic laws The initiative had to be started from there besides the inner harbor so it was with sports related issues. I also realized the grass roots level. The model of the awesome. that being a sports agent, though there Cohen Group was really to get hand in When you were little did you throw are elements of sports law, it was as glove with the client so you become ball with your siblings or parents? much a business and salesmanship as a member of the client’s team. Over How did you learn how to play? anything else. I tried to become involved time I became a trusted member and Not much. Mostly just neighborhood in sports and baseball for a little while through trips to Cuba, dealing with folks kids. Like I said, I was not into and I just focused on the international related to Cuban affairs in Washington, organized baseball so it was mostly just affairs. I moved to DC after law school, at the Cuban Embassy and at the State Department, then I really became one and the same with the client and that led “Baseball really is the common language that me onto the path I’m on today. You are with the Cohen Group now? we both speak.” Nope. I left about 18 months ago to become the first Executive Director of through watching the Orioles and playing tried a bunch of different things in the the Caribbean Educational Baseball with kids in the neighborhood. legal space, worked for the federal Foundation. For a while, I was with And did you collect baseball cards government, worked for a law firm, the Cohen Group working for this when you were a child? and I wasn’t satisfied. Then I ended up organization and they were a client, Oh yeah. I don’t collect them now but moving over to the Cohen Group, which but then they became a non-profit I still have them all. I can’t even put a is an international business advisory firm organization and they needed an number on it. headed by former Secretary of Defense, Executive Director so now that’s the only I still have mine. It’s nice when you Bill Cohen. hat I wear. come from a family of collectors What are the initiatives there and how as opposed to cleaners. That’s all I I started to get satisfied with the that is going? can figure. No reason I still have my international aspects. From there, The mission statement is to build youth cards from when I grew up except my around 2012, I got an email from my focused bridges between the US and mother never threw anything away. boss and the subject line was :”Cuba our Caribbean neighbors with a shared baseball” and there was a client who at passion for baseball. It was started by a So tell me, somehow you got into the the time was a Triple A general manager former general manager of the Pawtucket business of baseball. I know after high for the Pawtucket Red Sox who had Red Sox, Lou Schwechheimer. He now school you went to college and after a really fascinating project involving leads an investment group that owns college you got a job. Why don’t you Cuba related to baseball. So, for me, it the Marlins’ AAA team (which is now tell me how you got from the end of was a turning point in my career and my the New Orleans Baby Cakes, but is college to being involved in baseball, life. Finally my interest in international moving to Wichita starting next year) because it certainly is an interesting, affairs was going to be wed with my and the Port Charlotte Stone Crabs. He circuitous route. With the foundation of being a baseball fan as a kid and collecting baseball “The Cincinnati Reds had their Triple A team cards and playing in the neighborhood, in Havana.” I didn’t know how that would marry up to a professional career. I got my interest in sports because I was tapped first traveled to Cuba 15 years ago and interest in traveling and seeing the world into client needs for that project and that established a vision. We wanted to build when I studied abroad in Spain. After led to all of my work in Cuba and the a bridge despite the political difficulties. graduating from University of Virginia, I other parts of the Caribbean. There were a lot of years of mistrust wanted to continue sort of exploring the Did you just have an opportunity between the US and Cuba, but despite world so I got a job as a school teacher because you were at the Cohen all that, baseball really is the common in Costa Rica for three years. Right after Group? Was this a big group or was language that we both speak. We set out that I went to law school and I thought this sort of an exploratory mission to to help make relations better through this maybe through the law I could get back work in Latin America and in Cuba? board and also to help the kids in Cuba into baseball as my professional career.