From pitch strikes to pitch houses

Lenny DiNardo was supposed to play baseball. He knew from an early age that his left arm would take him anywhere.

Once his baseball career was over, however, DiNardo had no idea where life would take him. He certainly didn’t think he would leave the field to enter the world of real estate.

“I really had no idea what I wanted to do next. I kind of knew I wanted to be a baseball player, and thank God it worked out,” DiNardo said. baseball, I just needed to do something, and real estate fell into my lap, along with broadcasting.”

After 13 years of playing professional baseball, the southpaw started his career as a licensed real estate agent in Rhode Island in 2017. He now works for Edge Realty Group, which offers listings in the Ocean State, as well as in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

For DiNardo, even where he would eventually work and settle after baseball was once foreign land.

“Coming from Florida, it’s a different pace,” DiNardo said. “When I moved to Rhode Island, everyone thought I was crazy, a salmon swimming upstream so to speak. Snow is still kind of a new thing for me even though it’s been almost eight years. I still don’t mind shoveling the drive.

So far in his career, DiNardo has seen every type of home possible in the state, and everywhere too, from Warren to South Kingstown. For him, it doesn’t matter who sells the house or what it looks like, what matters is the experience of the people he works with.

“I will help someone who has a cardboard cabin and wants me to sell it. I will do my best to take care of them and treat them the same as if they had a $4 million mansion,” DiNardo said. “I would never turn down an ad because I feel like you are helping people and giving them knowledge and expertise regarding selling or buying… It’s a good feeling when all is said and done with a loved one and you can see the smile on their face.”

When asked what life lessons he took from the diamond to the door, DiNardo replied that nothing is as important as hard work.

“My baseball player mentality was old school of showing up early and staying late, kind of working harder than the next guy. And I apply the same work ethic to everything I do,” said DiNardo: “Let’s say I have a smoke inspection that day. And often the fire marshal will arrive 15 to 20 minutes early, but I’m usually there before them. So if someone shows up before me , I have to watch my clock, because it doesn’t happen very often.

DiNardo may have hung up his cleats and turned to real estate, but his involvement in baseball isn’t over.

The former pitcher spends about half of the regular season at Fenway Park for NESN. DiNardo is a key element in coverage for the Red Sox network.

He can be seen on pre- or post-game shows, as well as in specialty segments like when he talked to Garrett Whitlock about being a Rule 5 draft pick.

DiNardo said baseball season is when he feels especially grateful for the support team around him.

“If I’m in Boston playing Red Sox games, it’s 12 hours a day if you count the two hour drive. [in] and a two-hour drive back,” DiNardo said. “So it’s good to have a team around you, including my wife who got her license as well, to kind of take over if I’m busy, which during this part of the year , it’s more often times than not, I’m overwhelmed.

This team around him is one of his favorite parts of his life. DiNardo knows that teamwork is not only necessary when trying to win World Series titles, but also in most work settings.

No matter what the office looks like, DiNardo knows that a person is nothing without a good group around them, and everyone is needed to keep things running smoothly.

“If I’m on stage with two or three people at a Red Sox show, we’re all trying to make each other better, and if I’m not making the person next to me better, I’m not doing my job. And the same goes for real estate,” DiNardo said. “We all try to help each other with listings, and if I can’t do something, everyone tries to help me and vice versa.

“Whether it’s real estate, broadcasting or baseball, it’s a team vibe. The main goal is to make each other better.