Steinberg Reflects on His Baltimore Orioles Roots: Bird Tapes Podcast

Before entering academia—and long before holding leadership roles in the front office of the Boston Red Sox—Communication Studies Affiliated Faculty member Dr. Charles Steinberg worked in the public relations department of the Baltimore Orioles.

Steinberg recently spoke with the Bird Tapes Podcast about his early start in professional baseball, beginning in high school.

During that time, he tracked individual pitcher-batter matchups for future Baseball Hall of Famer and Orioles manager Earl Weaver—data that helped inform lineups and in-game decisions. Just 18 at the time, Steinberg quickly took on significant responsibility within the organization.

John Eisenberge writes:

He’d witnessed the Orioles’ transformation from a virtual mom-and-pop operation in the ’70s to a big-shouldered corporate entity under team president Larry Lucchino, Charles’ mentor. An insightful observer, Charles may not have played baseball but he got baseball like few people I’ve known. If you were moved by the last game at Memorial Stadium, it was very much a Charles production.

That early experience launched a career that would take Steinberg to roles with the Orioles, San Diego Padres, and Los Angeles Dodgers. After many years as executive vice president of the Boston Red Sox, in 2015 he was named president of the Pawtucket Red Sox (now Worcester Red Sox), the Triple-A affiliate of the MLB team.