From stepping on the mound as a starting pitcher to recruiting and developing players alongside Major League Baseball legend Derek Jeter, former UMass Lowell baseball standout Geoff DeGroot '15 has had a career journey most sports fans only dream about.
 
After a successful collegiate career for the River Hawks, DeGroot signed a free agent deal with the New York Yankees, where he spent time playing in the minor leagues for the Tampa Yankees and the Trenton Thunder. He then made the transition into the front office world, landing a job with the Miami Marlins in 2018 and has since been named the Director of Player Development.
 
Now, three years later, DeGroot has become an important figure in the development of the future of the Marlins' organization.
 
"Last year was the first year I moved exclusively to player development and directing our entire minor league system from AAA all the way down to the DSL," said DeGroot. "I've been promoted now to Director of Player Development, which has been really great."
 
"So, we have three scouting departments here: amateur scouting which pretty much covers all high school and college players for the domestic United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico as well. We have an international scouting department that scouts amateurs in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico and Colombia, to name a few places," he said. "Then we also have our professional scouting department, who basically handles all professional players that are all already in affiliated baseball both in the major leagues all the down to the Dominican Republic as well as independent leagues and teams in Japan."
 
In his role, DeGroot works with over 70 coaches, coordinators, trainers, video managers, and front office members who are responsible for over 200 players within the professional and minor league systems. In an industry like professional baseball, there is no such thing as a 'normal' day at the office.
 
"There's definitely not [a normal day] in this job, I don't think I've had two days that are the same," he explained. "During the year we're really managing rosters, making sure everybody is covered and overseeing the individual objectives for each of our players and making sure we're working on the right things and helping them progress towards the big leagues. Whereas the off season is, basically, looking at ways we can improve our process, hiring any open positions that we have and preparing for the next year."
 
His career success is thanks, in part, to his time spent at UMass Lowell with the baseball program and the team culture, forged by head coach Ken Harring.
 
"UMass Lowell, I tell everybody, I wouldn't trade my time there for the world.," DeGroot exclaimed passionately. "I loved playing every second for Coach Harring. He's had a huge impact on my life, and I really wouldn't trade it for the world. If I could do it all over again, I would go to UMass Lowell. I made some incredible friends there that I still talk to every single day of my life, some of the best friends that I ever will have, and I made some incredible memories and it's a place that's very near and dear to my heart so, I'm very proud of having gone to UMass Lowell."
 
DeGroot's first two years were the final two years of River Hawks' Division II era as part of the Northeast 10 Conference at the Division II level. As the team transitioned to Division I, DeGroot said that the competition provided new challenges for his team, as they laid the groundwork for future River Hawks in America East. From the beginning, Harring knew DeGroot was on his way to success.
 
"Geoff was a very hard working, motivated, dedicated, and talented player. He was a guy who set the example by working hard and doing his job. He was also more concerned about the team than himself. He set the tone everyday with his professionalism and attention to detail," said Harring. "When the Yankees signed him, I told the scout, Matt Hyde, that he would be running an organization someday. His view of the game, and his advanced knowledge and maturity, have put him on the fast track to being a big-league General Manager someday. His passion for winning and his selfless attitude, are a perfect combination as he continues the fast track up the ladder in Major League Baseball. He is a true River Hawk and has been extremely generous with his time with my current players. I am so proud of all he has accomplished."
 
Following his time at UMass Lowell, new experiences and opportunities presented themselves, but DeGroot always stayed in contact with his former coach, even as he signed a professional deal with the New York Yankees. His experience and time spent working with Harring proved to be good preparation for the future.
 
"I still talk to Coach Harring frequently. He's just somebody who I felt always had my best interest in mind, and he was always honest with me, he never sugar coated anything, and I felt like he genuinely wanted what was best for not just me but for all our teammates," said DeGroot. "I knew that I wanted to go to UMass Lowell and the main reason I wanted to go was because of Coach Harring.
 
"He came to watch me play, he came to my house, met my family, and he was very honest with me and helpful about the campus. I could just tell this is a guy I want to play for."
 
As the years pass, DeGroot still remembers his time at UMass Lowell fondly, cherishing the moments and friendships that will stay with him forever.
 
"Some of my best memories are just the times that I have with my teammates, in the clubhouse or whatever it was. Off-campus, whatever we were doing, it's just some of the fun that we had together, those are the things you don't forget and those are the things you probably miss the most."
 
As a member of the program's inaugural Division I team, he also has some very special memories from on the field.
 
"I remember getting the first win in Division I history and I was happy to be a part of that. And then I remember the second weekend we're in Division I, we went down to play Cincinnati and Virginia Tech and I remember we beat Cincinnati the first two games and beat Virginia Tech the last three games, which was really cool."
 
Those victories had only solidified what DeGroot, and the team, had already known about the program, something that Harring had instilled in every player from the beginning; they could compete with anyone.
 
Now an MLB franchise professional, DeGroot has garnered the respect of his peers and executives in the Marlins organization. Gary Denbo, the Vice President of Player Development and Scouting for the Marlins, was immediately impressed with DeGroot's interpersonal skills and passion for the game.
 
"I first met Geoff when he was attending high school. I immediately recognized he was respectful, well spoken, intelligent, determined and had a passion for the game. He was very mature for his age and seemed to be well-grounded," said Denbo. "I followed his college playing career closely. When he went undrafted out of college, the organization I was working for (New York Yankees) decided to sign Geoff as a free agent to help solidify the pitching depth in the organization. After a year in the organization as a player, he was presented with an opportunity to continue his baseball career in the player development front office serving players and staff. He was a standout employee. When I left the Yankees to come to work with Derek Jeter and the Marlins' organization, I made it a priority to bring Geoff along to assist in building the Marlins player development and scouting departments."
 
Like Harring before him, Denbo knew that DeGroot would be a great asset to any baseball organization and have a long future involved in the game.
 
"Geoff has been impactful in the development of our player development systems and processes over the last four seasons," Denbo added. "As an assistant in the player development and scouting departments, Geoff created strong, professional working relationships with our players and staff.  His work ethic was exceptional.  Geoff brings high character, integrity, positive energy, and he consistently strives for excellence in his work."
 
The same values he brought to the diamond, DeGroot brings each day into his work with the Marlins. The desire to win and constantly improve every day is something that did not go unnoticed within the Miami front office.
 
"Geoff earned the promotion to Director, Player Development with his exceptional work. He continues to create great working relationships with the entire Miami Marlins Player Development staff, works well with our Directors from Amateur Scouting, Pro Scouting, and International Scouting and continues to search and find ways to improve our organization. He recently added a Sports Science department to the organization that will enable us to be on the cutting edge of the latest technology and expedite the development of our players. He displays a service mentality as he leads our players and development staff.  While his work is done mostly behind the scenes, Geoff will play a big part of the Miami Marlins continued rise to becoming a sustainable championship organization. His future is very bright."
 
DeGroot and his wife, Brooke, have been married for just over three years and are expecting their first child in the coming months.
 
"This is the proudest accomplishment of my life," he concluded.
 
They also have a two-year-old Boston terrier, Bean, who is excited to welcome the newest addition to the DeGroot family.