​Dinner with John Turnour, November 13, 2019

John Turnour played baseball from T-Ball through high school and then thought, “How can I continue to be involved in sports?” He took that thought to NC State and majored in Turf Management.  He volunteered to work for NC State sports programs while he was there and landed a job with the Durham Bulls as soon as he graduated.  He credits his volunteer time with giving him exposure, knowledge and experience to springboard into the MLB quickly.

Trying to find his way back to New England where he grew up, John got a little closer when he moved to Baltimore to work with the Orioles and now he has been with the Washington Nationals for 10 years.

John gave the crowd a peek at a typical day on the ball diamond, which begins at 7:00 a.m. for a 7:00 p.m. game.  “Nobody pays attention to the weather more than we do when the team is in town,” he added. On those days, he starts checking weather radar before dawn.

Other fun facts:

• The Nationals employ 35-40 on their grounds crew, including four full-time and four interns.
• Fifteen will work each game.
• No experience is required to work on the game day crew.
• There will be an additional 70-80 non-baseball events at the stadium each year.

​Also at the dinner event, the Better Sports Club recognized former club member, John Karinshak, for his many years of dedication and volunteer service to youth sports programs in Arlington.

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