Player diary: the pluses and minuses of social media
As a college athlete, I appreciated the use of social media. I was able to grow as a player on the field and began to build my platform and share my perspective on who I was outside of being just a baseball player.
With that came one of the first questions I always get, what's with the "El Platano" nickname? Well, it came from two of my close friends, who showed up at the opening weekend of the season at the University of South Florida and shook “platanos” as I got the save. From there, I continued to get more attention as a player — and on social media. "El Platano" became a character unto his own.
Personally, creating "El Platano" has been great way to develop a brand from college, now to the professional ranks. Platano is a sort of charismatic character, and it's been fun to develop that. It can be a nice release from the game and the everyday grind. And that character has shown me new ways of staying true to myself while encouraging a more outgoing and loose presence on the mound. I’ve always been that guy who just enjoys what I do, and in spite of success or failures I always try to stay true to myself. Having that as the cornerstone of my personal brand has been great.
Being able to tweet experiences that you go through as a player, and give a voice to the routines and activities that go on behind the scenes is very important for fans. And I find I have fans who most interested in me as a player, and some whose primary interest is of me as a person.
Either way, people learn about me by following me on social media. They learn that I have a voice beyond just what you'd expect to see from a player on the mound, or in the weight room. I'm providing knowledge, positivity, and perspective for those that care to learn about me behind the tweets and Instagram posts.
But it's funny, like everyone else at times I do get caught up in sending voice memos or using the talk to text. Plenty of times my words get completely mashed and mixed up into something I couldn’t imagine tweeting! You have to be careful when it comes to social media.
Social media has been a great way to keep in touch with old friends and teammates, especially my college teammates. One thing some of my buddies and I would do would be live tweeting and posting our opinions of ride experiences at Busch Gardens. We dubbed ourselves the “coaster junkies and enthusiasts,” as if it was our second job.
OK, I think “characters have reached tweet limits,” so that's all for this week!
Andrew Perez is a left-handed relief pitcher in the Chicago White Sox system.