Profile: Scott Wilson’s retail experience prepared him for Kernels post

CEDAR RAPIDS - Scott Wilson was one of those kids who rode his bicycle to baseball games at the old Veterans Memorial Stadium back in the day. He did it a lot.

'I don't think I ever realized that people even worked there,” Wilson said. 'It was just show up, and they played the game.”

Wilson never figured he'd be employed by the local ballclub someday. The Marion High School and Coe College graduate was in the retail industry for 16 years, an employee of Kmart, Linens ‘n' Things, Kirklands and Harry & David.

Tired of moving his family around the Midwest - they lived in six different cities - Wilson decided it was time to come back home and stay there. He saw a job opening with the Cedar Rapids Kernels for a director of operations, applied, interviewed and got the job.

That was nine years ago. The 2015 season is his first as the club's general manager.

'I think I was twice the age of every other applicant,” he laughed. 'No, I didn't have a degree in sports management, but those majors weren't very prevalent in the '80s …

. I just figured if I could manage 21 stores worth $65 million, I could do this job.

'I thought it would be fun to be in baseball.”

He still feels that way. Wilson, 45, was promoted in the off-season to GM in a reorganization of the front office.

'The biggest change for me is the day-to-day communication with the teams,” Wilson said.

On top of his normal duties, he deals directly with managers and umpires and the Minnesota Twins, the Kernels' parent club. He also whether to postpone a game or if to delay its start because of weather.

'We are very fortunate we have the team assembled that we do here,” Wilson said. 'We have people who have been here for so many years, and that is a luxury in minor league baseball. Everyone knows their job and how to do it well.”

That includes the time-honored tradition of pulling tarp. You might remember last season when high winds during a thunderstorm blew the tarp onto Wilson, Chief Executive Officer Doug Nelson and others while they were trying to place it onto the field.

Nelson suffered a broken collarbone, Wilson a dislocated shoulder and others concussions during the scary accident. But they're all healthy and back to tarp-pulling duty this season.

'I'm not the point guy on that anymore,” Wilson said. 'I've moved down a couple of rungs.”