Forty Under 40: Eric Edelstein
by January 1, 2008 12:00 am 395 views
Keeping stats on himself as a Little Leaguer gave Eric Edelstein his first clue a job in baseball wouldn’t come on the field.
“At the end of the year, I realized my stats would not make me a Major League player,” he said. “But at a young age, I realized, ‘I gotta be in sports. It’s what I love. I’ve got to find a way.’”
Edelstein, 30, found his career in sports and found his way to Northwest Arkansas when the Wichita Wranglers began their transformation to becoming the Naturals in 2006.
A native Ohioan, Edelstein began volunteering with the Cleveland Indians after high school and worked with the club throughout his time at Bowling Green State University, where he earned a degree in sports organization management in 2000.
“Get a foot in door and don’t ask for a paycheck right away,” Edelstein advises. “Prove you’ve got something.”
From there it was on to the Buffalo Bisons, the Jamestown Jammers and finally Wichita in 2003, holding the GM jobs at the last two stops.
A fan at heart, Edelstein enjoys producing nightly events for thousands and isn’t treating Springdale as a stepping stone.
“It would be disrespectful to say there’s something bigger for me,” he said. “This is a tremendous opportunity and responsibility. If I retire here, I’ve achieved more than I could imagine.”