Podcast Summary: Most Valuable Agent with Matt Hannaford

Episode: Travel Baseball: How Your Son's Response Will Shape His Future
Host: Matt Hannaford
Date: September 22, 2025

Overview

In this solo episode, MLB agent Matt Hannaford shares the thoughtful and impactful message he recently delivered to parents at the prestigious Perfect Game All American Classic in San Diego. Addressing a room full of families with promising baseball prospects, Matt zeros in on what truly determines a young player's future: not their draft position or raw ability, but how they respond to life's inevitable challenges and setbacks. His experience with top athletes provides unique insight for parents, athletes, and anyone interested in the business and psychology of baseball careers.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Advice to Baseball Parents

[00:12-02:20]

• Matt introduces the episode as a replay of his talk to parents at the elite Perfect Game All American Classic.
• The talk isn't just for parents of top high school players; the lessons apply to every family “whether you haven't even started playing travel baseball or whether you're a veteran and you've been doing this a long time.”

2. It’s Not About You—It’s About Your Son

• Core principle: The baseball journey “is not about you, the parent. It’s about your son. And it always will be.”
• Acknowledges that parents feel tremendous pressure to make the right choices, but must let their sons own their path.

3. Tale of Two Players: Player A and Player B

[03:07-07:40]

• Matt narrates anonymized stories of two real-life players to challenge assumptions about predicting baseball success.

Player Profiles:

• Player A:

  • “The mannequin at Dick’s Sporting Goods” – the prototype prospect (6’3, 230 lbs, switch-hitter, multiple All-American, top stats, drafted in 1st round, huge signing bonus).

• Player B:

  • “The cashier” – physically less imposing (5’11, 205 lbs, walk-on, strong defense and leadership, but ‘questionable power, average arm strength,’ drafted by same team at same position but in a lower round with half the bonus money).

• Interactive Segment: Betting Game

  • Matt prompts listeners to privately “bet” on which player would have the better career, encouraging emotional investment in the lesson.

    “If you had to place a bet right now, which player do you feel would give you the best chance to keep your money...Player A or Player B?” (06:40)

• Challenging Assumptions

  • Most would bet on Player A, believing draft position and tools equate to success.
  • “The draft, it feels like certainty. First round means success, right? …That’s how most players and parents, at least in my experience, think about the draft.” (08:30)

4. The Key Formula: Event + Response = Outcome

[09:40-11:00]

• “What matters, what always matters, is how your son is going to respond to the event. That’s the missing variable.”
• “E does not equal O. E plus R equals O. Event plus response equals outcome.”
• Matt’s decades of experience with Hall of Famers and MVPs confirms this: “The players who make it are the ones who respond well consistently.”

5. The Real Outcomes of Player A and Player B

[12:15-13:40]

• Player A:
  • Three partial MLB seasons, about $1.45M earned, retires early 30s after finishing in minors.
• Player B:
  • 15 MLB seasons, All-Star, World Series champion, $52.5M earned, retires at 39, never demoted after debut.
• Summary: “Both drafted the same year by the same team, at the same position. Very different outcomes.”

6. Advice to Parents: Be the Lighthouse, Not the Captain

[14:00-17:00]

• In the flood of agents, scouts, coaches, and well-meaning advisors, parents are the only real constant:

  “Over the next 11 months, it is going to be you that is the constant. It’s not the scouts…It’s not going to be the coaches…It’s not going to be the agent…”

• Your support isn’t about controlling everything or “fixing” the process:

  “When there’s a storm at sea…what [the captain] can rely on is the lighthouse. The lighthouse…does not calm the storm. It merely gives the captain confidence to navigate it. So for your son, the storm is the draft and you are the lighthouse.” (16:10)

7. Teaching Accountability, Not Excuses

[17:20-19:00]

• Gentle warning against making excuses when things don’t go as hoped (e.g. blaming a bad umpire).
• Powerful parental impact:

  “Will you be the parent who says ‘if only we had a better umpire’ and watch him learn to make excuses when things don’t go his way?” “Or will you be the parent who says, ‘At the next level, son, you won’t be able to control everything. You got to find a way anyways,’ and then watch him learn that no matter what the event is in his career, it’s going to be his response that is going to shape his future.” (18:25)

8. Bottom Line: The Draft is an Invitation, Not a Guarantee

[19:20-end]

• The draft is not proof of arrival or validation of talent. It's merely “an invitation. An invitation to prove every single day that the team that drafted them just made the smartest bet of their lives.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “The journey…It’s not about you, the parent. It’s about your son. And it always will be.” (01:50)
• “The draft isn’t the finish line. It’s just the starting point.” (09:00)
• “E plus R equals O. Event plus response equals outcome.” (10:15)
• “The lighthouse does not calm the storm. It merely gives the captain confidence to navigate it. So for your son, the storm is the draft and you are the lighthouse.” (16:10)
• “The draft, it’s not validation. The draft…is merely an invitation. An invitation to prove every single day that the team that drafted them just made the smartest bet of their lives.” (19:30)

Major Takeaways

• Draft position, tools, and hype don’t guarantee a successful career—character and response do.
• Parents play a unique, crucial role as steady support (“the lighthouse”) throughout uncertainty and adversity.
• Help your athlete respond to setbacks productively instead of making excuses.
• True success is earned not at the draft, but in how every challenge and opportunity is met with resilience and growth.