Trading Baseball Diamond for the Next Challenge: Business Management Degree
By Jason Gonzalez
Published October 15, 2026
After seven years of professional baseball, Jacob Gonzalez found a new path and pursued a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Grand Canyon University (GCU) online. He graduated in August and is now starting a career in construction at McCarthy Building Companies.
"I gave everything I had while doing (baseball)," Jacob said. "And then pretty much right after it ended, then it was like, all right, now I'm going to figure out the next steps."
Since his early days playing baseball, Jacob's life revolved around the sport. He was drafted in the second round, 58th overall, in the 2017 MLB Draft by the San Francisco Giants. His journey took him through the minors, but ultimately led him away from baseball.
Navigating a new industry and pursuing a degree from GCU's online program while working in construction presented unique challenges. However, Jacob has always embraced big challenges, especially when it meant pursuing a new path after his baseball career ended.
Today, Jacob serves as a senior project engineer at McCarthy, helping to renovate Metro Tech High School – a familiar location just miles from where he will celebrate his graduation. His degree was a key factor in his recent promotion.