Look who's a proud auntie!

Last month my nephew sent me a cryptic text, teasing "exciting" news about his future, adding that he had to see my face when he shared it. 

Naturally I've been going crazy with curiosity! He's graduating in May. Are we talking about a new, steady girl? A job? Does he want to go on to get a teaching certificate? As much as he's enjoyed four years of studying public policy and political science, he isn't 100% sure he wants to make it his career. He's nervous about the relocation that would likely require.

Another member of the family making a living with words

Well, here's an unexpected plot twist. He has a job already lined up after graduation. As a writer! More than that, he's going to be a baseball writer!

Around Halloween, he was checking one of his favorite baseball sites and saw a job posting. Even though he didn't have the qualifications specified -- journalism degree, portfolio, experience -- he filled out the application and sent them a sample article about where he predicted where former Cub Kris Bryant would land for the 2022 season.

They liked it! Enough to give him an exercise, just to see if he could write about other teams as well. They liked that article, too, and gave him an interview. He wowed them with his deep knowledge of stats and passion for the game.

He's an intern now. One of his stories -- the original one about Kris Bryant -- was reworked and posted and they paid him for it. With the baseball strike, there is nothing going on right now and likely won't be until spring training. So the site is very comfortable letting him juggle his writing duties and his schoolwork just now.

After graduation, he becomes a full-time baseball writer with a byline! And a regular salary based on a 40-hour workweek.

He won't be a reporter. His job will include scouring social media, major news sites and individual sportswriters' columns for news and then putting his own spin on the aggregate. No reason why he can't do that from his bedroom in his parents' house.* This gives him a chance to earn money at his own pace until he moves out.

I admit it, I got weepy at the news. "I wanted to tell you face-to-face, because you're the one who introduced me to baseball," he said. A next generation baseball fan, a next generation writer. I am so proud and so very moved by this.

While the website he's working for is reputable and has been around for more than a decade, I know he's never going to get rich working there. I'm also not sure about how quick the turnover is at this site. But it will definitely open doors for him, if sportswriting turns out to be his chosen career.

If it doesn't? In May he receives a diploma that he can still use to get a job in politics and policy. Or PR, and here his web writing experience will be a real plus.

But I don't want to project too far into the future. Right now, he's happy and proud that he has his "dream job." And I'm happy and proud, too.

*His mother will love that.