His hand was stinging, but Greg Dobbs did not mind. He went undrafted six years earlier, signed for $30,000, spent four years in the minors, reached the majors, and then was waived by Seattle after playing sparingly over three seasons. Perhaps, Dobbs thought, that was it.
Instead of flaming out, Dobbs logged 11 seasons in the majors. The principles that helped him become a pinch hitter were what kept him in the game. And now he relies on them in his second career as a financial adviser. After he retired, he considered becoming a sports agent or working in a front office before he decided to find something away from the game. He wanted a new challenge. Dobbs landed a finance job in Beverly Hills and then joined UBS — “the big leagues of finance,” he said — in 2018. Dobbs became licensed and passed tests such as the grueling Series 7 and Series 66 exams, studying the same way he prepared every day for the relievers he might face that night.
“Listen, that’s all you can ask for as a player,” Dobbs said. “Just give me the opportunity and allow me to do the rest because I will do the rest. I’ll do what it takes. I’m incredibly grateful.” He stretched in the tunnel, took a few swings in the cage, and read the notes he compiled about the Mets bullpen. He was prepared for everyone, especially Sosa, whom he played with in Seattle.