Cal Poly Pomona alumnus Tim Mead said goodbye to his years as a Los Angeles Angel last year and hello to his next position as the president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York.
After entering CPP as a third-year transfer student majoring in business, Mead decided to switch to journalism after discovering that it would allow him to be surrounded by the one thing he has always loved: baseball.
“(Transferring to CPP) was probably the best decision I’ve ever made. I always say, ‘I’m as proud to be a Bronco as someone is to be a Trojan or a Bruin,’” Mead said.
Mead began his journalism journey by covering sports such as baseball and field hockey for CPP’s student newspaper, The Poly Post, before becoming the sports editor.
CPP lecturer Christopher Ruh was the entertainment editor of The Poly Post at that time and worked alongside Mead. Ruh recalled the kind of person Mead has always been.
“Tim always had a charisma and personality that allows him to connect to people, and that is how I remember him. I think it came out in his writing and the work that he did,” Ruh said. “You have to take into account his love for baseball, his love for people and the way he created connections.”
Mead graduated from CPP in 1980 and his persistence and dedication landed him an internship with the Angels not long after.
After working his way up in the organization, Mead rose to become the vice president of communications.
In June 2019, everything Mead knew for the past 40 years changed when he accepted a new position as the president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
“I had a conversation with the chairman of the board, Jane Forbes Clark. We met in Florida, had a great lunch and talked about the institution and her expectations,” Mead said. “When we first initially met I thought it was more for her to find out if I was qualified for the position, rather than an interview. Within an hour and a half, when I reconnected with her via phone, she made the offer to me.”
On June 11, the Angels didn’t just celebrate a 5-3 victory against the Los Angeles Dodgers; they celebrated the end of an incredible era for Mead, dousing him in a Gatorade shower following his final game with the organization.
“I have always valued and respected the privilege to be one of the caretakers for the Angels for all those years,” Mead said. “The opportunity to be part of the team here, in Cooperstown, and to serve as a caretaker for not only this institution but the history of the game, is something that was equally as humbling.”
Mead packed his bags and traveled to Cooperstown on June 14, where he began his first official day on the job on June 24.
“The Hall of Fame is only his second professional job,” Ruh said. “He spent all his career with the Angels and then he tops it off with his second job as the president of the Baseball Hall of Fame. I just felt a sense of pride that somebody that I worked with achieved so much, in every way that you might say is the right way.”
Mead’s character and heart are always at the forefront of conversation. During his time as a Bronco, Mead also worked alongside current CPP lecturer Sid Robinson, who took over as sports editor for The Poly Post after Mead accepted a position in the sports information office on campus.
Robinson recalls many memories working with Mead and they are still in contact to this day.
“He is about as kind and generous as anybody I have ever met,” Robinson said. “He is real and he will always make a point of calling you back or getting back to you. I was the president of a baseball booster club for a high school program and all I had to do was ask and he came out and was a keynote speaker at our banquet. He never hesitates, but I’m not the only one he does that for; he does that for everyone.”
At CPP, Mead built many relationships within the athletic department, including former baseball head coach John Scolinos. Mead felt so inspired by Scolinos that he set out on a mission to get the baseball field named Scolinos Field.
“Tim always carried the Cal Poly flag very high,” Robinson said. “He was probably the most influential person in getting the baseball field named Scolinos Field. (Mead) could easily be in the Cal Poly Hall of Fame, as he really made that happen.”
Baseball has always been a primary focus and love for Mead, and while one might miss witnessing the crowd and team’s reactions to the wins and losses of the game, Mead is still surrounded by the game itself.
“(My favorite part of the new job) is being at the center of baseball, both its present and its past, with a look toward its future,” Mead said.