MSBL League President Spotlight: Skip Bradley, San Antonio MSBL

Compiled by Steve LaMontia, Director of Communications

Editor’s note: Skip Bradley is an institution.  He has been the San Antonio League president for 31 years, attends the MSBL World Series as a player as faithfully as the sun rising and setting, and was an easy choice for MSBL Founder and President Steve Sigler to profile in our 2023 League President Spotlight series.

We are tweaking our usual question-and-answer format slightly here and just letting Skip chat with us for a while.  Below is the result of Skip’s candid answers to our questions, in his own words.  Skip is truly a man of action and someone to be taken seriously.  Enjoy!

“In the early 90s, my softball left fielder said he was pitching a baseball game the same Saturday we were having a softball tournament.  I was the tournament director at the time.  He told me that there was an adult baseball league in San Antonio.  I asked if I could go with him.  He said yes.  I resigned from softball and have been running SAMSBL ever since, totaling over three decades.

I had been a softball league president for several years with 56 teams.  We had eight teams per night for all seven nights of the week.  I had it very organized.  Players loved it!

When I went to that first baseball game, I saw several of my softball players playing in the game.  They did not know I played baseball.  The baseball league president immediately resigned and told me to organize this baseball league like I can and get us some better fields to play on, so I did!

The most valuable lesson I learned was about dealing with people.  Many players thought that they were “owed” a spot on a team because “they were so talented”.  But my opinion prevailed, which was “you play with class at all times in MY League or you don’t play at all”.  

I had secured the privilege of playing on the best fields in the entire city, with all first-class facilities.  I demanded that all league members become aware of our impeccable IMAGE and REPUTATION for adult baseball and PROTECT same at all costs.   Our adult baseball history had Tex-Mex leagues for the previous eight decades.  Excellent talented players, but with drinking in the dugout, arguing with umps, fighting, and stabbing, the image for them was terrible.  The cops were called nearly every weekend to stop something.

I am very proud to say, never once have the cops been involved in our League in over 10,000 games, except as players or just spectators.

I was asked about my advice to a first-year president.  Set your standards very high and maintain them even at the expense of losing friendships.  My opinion of an incident always prevailed.   If I, alone, thought that any incident was detracting from our impeccable IMAGE and REPUTATION, I would attack that player, or coach, with vigor.  I always told the Field Superintendents that I would address any problem they had with my league, promptly. 

The national presence’s most important principle is that no non-member can play in national tournaments.  That is so important to local presidents.  When non-members are allowed to play, it undermines the local leagues’ ability to recruit. What inspires me to continue is that I am good at what I do.  My players know what I want and where I stand.  We have won over 60 national tournaments in all age brackets,  except 75+.  I expect to win one this year.”