Like many young baseball players, Eric Casias ’04 thought he would someday have a sports career – perhaps as a coach. He grew up an hour outside of Fort Worth, but he often played baseball there. Before he ever played for Texas Wesleyan’s baseball team, Casias played games on the Rams field.

“Growing up, we had some summer league games at Texas Wesleyan, so I was familiar with the campus,” Casias said.

“Out of high school, I signed with a small community college and I ended up wanting to be a little closer to home." So he transferred to Texas Wesleyan.

“What drew me to Wesleyan was the small community-type feel,” he said. “Growing up in a small town, pretty much everybody knows everybody.”

Life after baseball

After graduation, Casias initially thought about sticking with sports, but opted for a job in retail.

“The goal at the time was to go into coaching and explore that route as a career. But I found that I needed a break from playing baseball pretty much all of my life,” he said.

After earning a steady paycheck in retail, Casias pursued a career in banking. He was recently promoted to vice president at Capital One.

“The culture of Capital One allows the development of a career should you choose to stay and be part of the company,” he said.

One of the keys to his success is the relationship-building skills that he learned from his professors at Wesleyan.

“As a student athlete, baseball was the focus for me,” Casias said. “You have the camaraderie with the players, but having the conversations with the professors and being able to develop professional relationships was essential.

“My experience with my professors in my major was great. At the time, I didn’t realize how much that would impact me,” he said. “That experience helped me be successful at what I’m doing today.”