Caroline O’Connor didn’t know what her ceiling was when she entered the sports business world, simply because there were so few examples of women who traveled her path.
Turns out, she had no limit.
The Miami Marlins promoted O’Connor to president of business operations on Monday, making them the first U.S. major sports franchise to have women serving simultaneously as president and general manager. The Marlins made history by hiring Kim Ng as GM in November 2020; two years later, they’ve made another significant move.
“When I talk to young girls, I really like them to see me in my role because I didn’t feel like I had that role model,” O’Connor said. “And I want people to see themselves when they see me and know that it is a possibility.”
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O’Connor is just the second woman to serve as president of a Major League Baseball team; Seattle’s Catie Griggs is the other. O’Connor was brought to the Marlins by then-CEO Derek Jeter in 2017 as a senior vice president and chief of staff, then became the team’s chief operating officer in 2019.
Ng handles the on-field business, O’Connor runs the off-field business.
“We are fortunate to have someone with Caroline’s business acumen and vision leading our day-to-day business operations,” Marlins chairman and principal owner Bruce Sherman said. “Her passion and drive for success is unmatched in our game and the South Florida market. Her leadership will continue to guide the Marlins organization toward our goal of sustained success while strategizing additional new ventures to grow our business and enhance our brand recognition.”
O’Connor’s path to this spot was, in some ways, unintentional. She was a high school athlete in New Jersey — playing basketball, tennis, soccer and softball — and went to college at Rutgers and New York University, first studying computers, then finance.
She worked for some powerful places: IBM, UBS Investment Bank, Morgan Stanley. She wasn’t thinking about a career in sports.
And then Jeter called.
“A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” O’Connor said.
She’s been with the Marlins ever since