Indians Clubhouse attendant Ramon Diaz, 23, graduated from Columbia University with a degree in American studies and American history. A Cleveland native, Diaz sat down with TribeVibe and shared his daily responsibilities in the Indians Clubhouse.

TribeVibe: Describe your job on a daily basis.
Ramon Diaz: It’s pretty [laid back], but at times it’s sort of hectic. [It is] responsive; you have to attend to players’ needs. There’s some downtime, but other times you’re just on the go getting something for the players like a shirt, running an errand for them, picking somebody up in their family. It’s varied, but overall, it’s always active.

TV: What kind of duties do you have during a game?
RD: We have to get [the players’] jerseys during a game. If they have extra Under Armour that needs to be dried, we have to do that. If somebody needs something from the trainer, we need to run that out. Let’s say, Pronk is up to bat, and a pad falls out of his helmet; [the batboys] have to run up here, glue that, and get back on time. They have to keep doing that constantly.

TV: Is there a certain player that needs something routinely?
RD: [For pitchers], we have a rotation, so I know, every two innings I have to go out there. Kotchman comes out every two innings because he sweats [a lot]. He wears these cool jerseys, and he comes up here, gives us his jersey, and he puts a new one on. He gives us his jersey, we wash it and dry it, put a new one out and give it to him. There is a total of two jerseys, but we do it about three or four times. [Kotchman] is easy because he comes up here, and we just go back and forth.

TV: Have you always been an Indians fan?
RD: Of course, I was a big fan in the 90s. I went to [St.] Ignatius, and Chuck Kyle, the football coach there got me the job. He does speeches for the Winter Olympic Program. He recommended me to [Head Clubhouse Attendant] Tony Amato, and I’ve been here ever since. It’s been a summer job.

TV: Who is your favorite player?
RD: I don’t have a favorite. I try to, personally, look at the good in everybody, so each person has something to bring. Me and CP [Chris Perez], we’re real close; we talk about shoes. Same with Joe Smith. I can talk to Justin Masterson about certain things about life.

TV: What has been the most memorable interaction with a player?
RD: ALCS, 2007, I was going to school at Columbia, and the Indians were playing the Yankees, before they built the new Yankee Stadium. Tony arranged so I could batboy for that game. I went to school, and I met the team at their hotel. I got to drive to the stadium with CC [Sabathia] and Tony. That was probably most memorable because you went through, and all these people were screaming. They give you all these passes, and that was Yankee Stadium before the new one was built. It was cool to see that and go in that small clubhouse.

TV: What has been your most intimidating moment?
RD: The first day I came here, [former Indian] Arthur Rhodes was picking on me since I was new. I had these pants, and Tony gave me my uniform. Arthur came up to me and said, ‘You got baggy pants on; this isn’t the street.’ I had to change pants four times. For about a good three months, he would mess with you.

TV: Are you afraid of anything in particular happening to you?
RD: Not doing what I need to do in a timely manner. Let’s say, I have to get a simple shirt. [If] I can’t get it to [a player] on time, and the top of the inning is up; that’s scary because you don’t want to be that person that holds someone up. Same with [the batboys]; you don’t want to be that guy.

TV: What is the best part of coming to work every day?
RD: Other than the people that I work around, you get to watch baseball. Think about it, the way you get to interact with other people — crowds come here and put all this esteem on these players — they’re just normal people. Seriously, some of these people do weird things just like you; you realize that you have a lot in common with these guys on TV.

-Megan Golden, TribeVibe contributor