As the MLB All Star Game came and went, fans were busy choosing players to appear in the game. Being named an all- star is a great honor, of course, and there are a lot of players who clearly deserve it.
But sometimes the guy who gets the nod is not who everybody expects.
For the New York Mets, this guy is Michael Conforto. He wasn’t even in the starting lineup at the beginning of the season. Maybe he should have been, but he wasn’t. Then guys started getting injured, and Conforto got the opportunity to fill in—and he did not disappoint. Though he’s only played 80 games this season (as of July 24, 2017), he has had 78 hits, 19 home runs, and 52 RBIs. These are solid numbers, especially for someone who started the season on the bench. While the Mets have had a disappointing season, Conforto has been a real bright spot for the team.
But because he started the season on the bench, he wasn’t on the ballot for the All-Star Game. Which forced him to be a write-in candidate. Talk about flying under the radar! In the end, Conforto ended up getting selected to be an All-Star reserve. Although he was not a starter in the game, it was still a great accomplishment for the young talent.
Think about your business as a team. Maybe everybody is a star, and everybody working together makes the place function. That’s how it should be, and maybe you have that kind of team. But there is still probably at least one employee who is functioning beyond belief, yet under the radar, without getting the acknowledgement they deserve.
This employee is your Michael Conforto, your all-star, your all-around stud, and the future of your company. How are you going to show your appreciation?
Picture of Michael Conforto taken by slgckgc under the Creative Commons 2.0 license