Imagine being in a foreign country with no friends and just working. On top of the fact, that everyone around you speaks a different language than your native tongue.
This is what Ryan Taylor works with for his everyday job. Little did the MLB prospects know that Taylor has been capable of speaking their native language since he was in high school.
To become an international scout for an MLB team you must be able to stand out amongst the rest of the candidates. Spanish was how Ryan stood out against his fellow competition.
But even though that is how Taylor stood out, he was much more than someone who spoke Spanish.
He knew baseball.
Taylor knew how to identify baseball talent in other countries. He could find the qualities that could eventually translate to Major League Baseball. Taylor could also help the players polish their games and adjust to living in a completely different country, the United States.
“Mr. Hoover was the main reason I got into Spanish because of his passion for it," Taylor said. "I thought to myself if a guy like him can learn seven different languages while being from America then I can learn one.”
It wasn’t just a challenge that Taylor said he enjoyed when he began learning Spanish. It was something that quickly became a passion of his own, as he found Spanish to be something he could see in his future career.
From the moment he graduated high school, Taylor said he knew he wanted to double major with Spanish and broadcast journalism. This led him to the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, from which he graduated in 2020.
Not everything after college is smooth sailing as the workforce can be hard to find a job that suits what you want. Taylor knew he needed to be patient and wait for his opportunity. He also became much more prepared after an interview with the Chicago Cubs.
“The question I was asked was do you want to be on the baseball side of things or the business side of baseball?" Taylor said. "I answered confidentially the baseball side of things. This didn’t go well as I thought I knew baseball but boy was there a ton I had no clue about. I knew from that moment on that I needed to become more prepared when I got this chance again.”
Taylor got that chance when he applied for a job with the Atlanta Braves as an intern in the summer of 2020. This time he was prepared for their questions.
“I spent months reading about baseball advanced analytics in preparation for my next interview," Taylor said. "I had to make sure I was prepared this time around and I was.”
Taylor got the internship and moved his way up to being an international scout for the Atlanta Braves.
One of the more challenging things of being an international scout is to be ready to live in a different country far away from home.
The scouting team will be sent to the Dominican Republic for nine to 12 months while the team observes prospects and build relationships with them. They do this as these kids look at them to help them achieve their dreams. Building a relationship with them is a big step to leading them to success.
Not everything is smooth sailing in the Dominican Republic, though.
“To be honest food poisoning is a big deal," Taylor said. "I know it’s not a great answer, but you have to be very careful with what you eat and drink here as it isn’t the same as home.”
On top of being cautious when deciding what to eat and drink it can also be challenging to be away from family for an extended period. That includes not being able to talk for a month on end with loved ones.
While there can be challenges, the best part of this job, according to Taylor is the travel and learning new cultures while helping young athletes make their dreams become a reality.
“To a lot of these kids, this is their way out of their home country to a life that is promised to be better," Taylor said. "This is their livelihood, and they expect us to help him.
"When breaking down the process of being an international scout you first scout players and decide which ones will be signed to your organization."
After Taylor has completed his evaluation and signed the players they needed to, it is now their job to make sure they get adjusted to the United States.
This is the process where Taylor’s interns’ step in to make sure the players get adjusted to their new culture in the states. The interns provide them with living areas, travel guides and money for living.
Imagine being an 18-year-old going to a country away from home by yourself with nothing but baseball to play. That’s what these young prospects' lives are from the moment they are a young kid.
This is how the players of the Dominican Republic become some of the best players in baseball, according to Taylor. This is also why this job can be so rewarding. You get to see the best stories and see someone’s life dream come to fruition.
When the players arrive in the states they are also provided with a translator as well and have someone to always help.
It's a team effort to help these players achieve their dreams. This is where Neal Dave steps in as part of the player development staff for the Braves. Dave stays in Florida to help these players adjust to living in the United States after they have completed rookie ball in February.
“My favorite part is probably seeing how talent can be from anywhere," he said. "It’s fascinating to learn about where the talent comes from and who the next talent crop will be."
This isn’t a job that is about seeing profit from these players. Instead, Dave said it’s about making a difference in these players’ early journey.
They work as a collective group with the same goal of helping the Atlanta Braves and making sure these young athletes’ lives are changed forever. While helping them adjust to somewhere they have never been in their lives.
This job takes a lot of hard work and dedication which can bring some of the best results. That is why Dave and Taylor believe it is a dream job they are working every day.
“Without a doubt, the job itself never feels like a job and we are all working towards the same common goal of winning a championship," Dave said.
This type of attitude partly explains why the Braves won the World Series in 2022. This is also why 11% of all active MLB players are from the Dominican Republic.
“That’s all they do there," Taylor said. "When you get there, one of the first things you could see is kids playing with stones and bamboo for their bats. This game means something completely more over there.”
The job of an international scout is simple: find the talent to help the organization and once you do help the players become the potential player you see in them.
International prospects continue to funnel through Major League Baseball. And the drive to find the next Juan Soto, Manny Machado or Rafel Devers only intensifies.
Taylor and Neal will continue to work on their ultimate goal of bringing another championship to Atlanta. They know it all starts with them finding players to sign to the organization, helping them develop their skills and helping them succeed in the United States as a person.
