Jessica Kleinschmidt Nyla Cherry interview on Rays World Series

The Jessica Kleinschmidt Nyla Cherry interview covered Kleinschmidt’s belief that the Tampa Bay Rays could win the World Series, the exchange with Dontrelle Willis that helped her find her voice on camera, and the pressure women face in baseball broadcasting. She also told Cherry why she wants to cover sports beyond baseball and how she makes time for people outside work.

How did Jessica Kleinschmidt build a career across sports media?

Jessica Kleinschmidt began her sports media career as a writer and initially expected to stay in that role. She later pursued on-camera work, sidelines, podcasts, television and radio because she wanted to report a story in more than one format and keep each day’s work fresh.

Early in her career, Kleinschmidt recalled, managers and agents advised her to concentrate on one thing. Over time, the advice changed: she was encouraged to work across formats. She liked the idea that she could write an article and then discuss the same subject on camera.

That range was accidental at first. Kleinschmidt had thought writing would be her entire career, but taking on different assignments gave her more to learn and less chance to grow tired of any one part of the job. She said the variety also makes her want to work harder.

How does Jessica Kleinschmidt handle work-life balance and time away from baseball?

Jessica Kleinschmidt rests by stepping away from baseball rather than following it through her time off. After a game, she avoids Major League Baseball highlights, watches shows such as 90 Day Fiancé and tries to give her friends and family her attention, even when work is close at hand.

Putting the phone away for family and friends

Kleinschmidt said she has to practice taking breaks and schedule them when she can, while accepting that new opportunities may disrupt the plan. When she is with someone, she puts her phone in her purse or turns it over. She used to check it more often and now sees that as a poor way to treat another person’s time.

A game was on at a bar while she was with friends, and she tried not to become absorbed in it. Her friends understand when work demands her attention, she said, but she wants to be present for them. The same principle applies at her nephew’s Little League games: she wants him to see her watching, not looking down at her phone.

Adopting Loki after a chance stop

Kleinschmidt also talked about Loki, a flat-coated retriever she had adopted a couple of months earlier. After leaving Costco, she saw a Facebook notice for an adoption event two blocks away. She walked through the event, passed Loki, then turned back after seeing him interact well with a little girl.

Loki came through an organization whose dogs are trained by inmates. Bringing him home made for a hectic day, and Kleinschmidt briefly wondered whether she had made a rash decision. Once he settled in, she said, they got along well. She had wanted a dog for some time.

How did Jessica Kleinschmidt find her voice in sports media?

Jessica Kleinschmidt traced a turning point to a show with Dontrelle Willis and host Jim. She began the program speaking more cautiously, then made a joke about Oakland Athletics fans on social media and traded a playful defense of Dallas Braden with Willis. The exchange showed her she could bring her personality on camera.

The exchange with Dontrelle Willis

When the conversation turned to Alex Rodriguez and Dallas Braden, Willis said he worked with Rodriguez and had his back. Kleinschmidt replied that she worked with Braden and had his. She felt herself becoming more direct without losing the substance of the discussion.

Braden had helped teach her to speak that way, she said, while Stuart Scott was someone she admired growing up. Kleinschmidt described the lesson she took from that show:

you can actually be yourself on camera and still be taken seriously.

Asking players to explain their answers

That confidence changed how she approaches players, too. If she does not fully understand an answer, she asks the player to elaborate rather than pretending she knows. Kleinschmidt said accuracy matters when she goes on camera to discuss someone’s pitches or explain what that player said.

What did Jessica Kleinschmidt say about women in baseball broadcasting?

Jessica Kleinschmidt said confidence in baseball broadcasting is not permanent: feelings of imposter syndrome still come and go. She also described the extra attention she has paid to her appearance as a woman on television, saying that losing 45 pounds helped her focus less on how she looked and more on her work.

Before one on-air debut, a former camera colleague told her, “just go talk baseball.” Kleinschmidt wrote the advice on the edge of her paper and went on to deliver what she considered one of her best shows. She had prepared; the reminder helped her stop dwelling on everything that might go wrong.

Appearance had been another distraction. Kleinschmidt said she used to think about how she was sitting and whether her stomach showed. After losing weight, she worried about those things less. She described that scrutiny as a difference between her experience and that of men who can go on television without the same concerns.

She does not claim to have eliminated self-doubt. Instead, she tries to return her attention to the preparation she has done and the baseball she is there to discuss.

Which sports does Jessica Kleinschmidt want to cover beyond baseball?

Jessica Kleinschmidt wants to cover the Olympics, spend more time reporting on golf and return to motorsports coverage. She has already covered a World Series, and she is interested in a Super Bowl assignment partly because it would let her discuss the culture around the game as well as American football.

Golf, motorsports and the Olympics

Kleinschmidt said she has become interested in golf and would like to cover it more closely. Motorsports appealed to her growing up; she mentioned motocross, the X Games and work she had done involving Nitro Circus. She would also welcome assignments in less expected competitions, including archery, cornhole or disc golf.

Coverage in the Bay Area

While covering sports in the Bay Area, she reported on the San Francisco 49ers when they reached the Super Bowl and the Golden State Warriors when they reached the NBA Championship. She also did some hockey coverage. She enjoys attending hockey games but said she would need to learn much more about the statistics to cover the sport in depth.

Kleinschmidt believes her research and willingness to ask knowledgeable people for help would let her take on another sport. She also wants people who do not follow baseball to find something in her coverage that interests them.

What were Jessica Kleinschmidt’s World Series predictions?

Jessica Kleinschmidt backed the Tampa Bay Rays as a team that could win the World Series, after initially suggesting they could make a deep American League run. She would also like to see Stephen Vogt win a ring with the Cleveland Guardians and said a Milwaukee Brewers title for Bob Uecker would be meaningful.

Kleinschmidt compared the Rays with the Oakland Athletics, pointing to low payrolls and pitching as reasons she liked Tampa Bay’s chances. Having publicly told people not to overlook the Rays, she said she was sticking with that position.

Her interest in the Guardians was personal: Kleinschmidt said Vogt taught her a great deal when he was with the Athletics. She would be happy to see either American League team win, while also recognizing what a Brewers championship would mean for Uecker.

Who is Jessica Kleinschmidt?

Jessica Kleinschmidt is a baseball multimedia journalist, Oakland Athletics broadcaster and contributor to Baseball America. Her work includes baseball analysis and features across written and on-air formats.