MLB Trade Rumors (MLBTR), founded by Tim Dierkes in 2005, is widely regarded as baseball’s go-to source for trade and free-agent news. It offers original coverage and analysis of trades, signings, and well-sourced rumors, and its reference tools, including free-agent rankings, contract details, and arbitration projections, are used by fans, reporters, and front-office staff alike.
I managed the MLBTR Instagram account, overseeing the creation of graphics and jersey swaps that were featured on the website and across multiple social media platforms. My focus was on developing content that not only attracted visitors to the page but also encouraged engagement and participation in discussions about the latest rumors and news. During my tenure, I successfully grew the follower base by 38% while maintaining a consistent engagement rate of approximately 6%.
I kept our stories feed updated with the latest baseball news featuring links to our related articles, website polls, and baseball trivia questions. I found out pretty quickly that our followers enjoyed the trivia questions because on days I was late posting it, I’d often get DMs asking where it was. Below are some examples of the template I created and used for these posts:
Increased follower count by 38%
Steady engagement rate of 6%
Before being promoted to manage the Instagram account, I started out creating jersey swaps for MLBTR — editing players into the uniforms of their new teams after trades or signings, and sometimes even before if the rumor mill was buzzing loudly enough. While many publications would break news without such graphics, MLBTR saw an opportunity to include them as a complimentary piece with their articles to help them stand out. Fans love to see players in their new threads, and MLBTR became a reliable destination for such content. Examples of my work are featured below:
On occasion we would host giveaways with signed baseball cards of star players. As you can imagine, these were always a hit and would lead to a reliable bump in followers and engagement.
