{"id":794165,"date":"2019-03-25T18:40:01","date_gmt":"2019-03-26T00:40:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season\/"},"modified":"2019-03-25T18:40:01","modified_gmt":"2019-03-26T00:40:01","slug":"bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Bus life: Thrifty minor leaguer to live in school bus during season"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery\" readability=\"6.8801843317972\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-363483-679\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt | Jack Labosky, left, and Madi Hiatt pose after purchasing a school bus in Lynchburg, Virginia in October of last year. Labosky is a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and he and Hiatt, his girlfriend, plan to live out of the bus during his first full professional season. The couple hopes to save money on rent to help offset Labosky\u2019s meager minor league salary.\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"10.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3.jpg\" alt=\"Jack Labosky, left, and Madi Hiatt pose after purchasing a school bus in Lynchburg, Virginia in October of last year. Labosky is a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and he and Hiatt, his girlfriend, plan to live out of the bus during his first full professional season. The couple hopes to save money on rent to help offset Labosky\u2019s meager minor league salary.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"16\">\n<p><strong>Jack Labosky, left, and Madi Hiatt pose after purchasing a school bus in Lynchburg, Virginia in October of last year. Labosky is a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and he and Hiatt, his girlfriend, plan to live out of the bus during his first full professional season. The couple hopes to save money on rent to help offset Labosky\u2019s meager minor league salary.<\/strong><br \/>Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt | The interior of a school bus being renovated in November 2018 is viewed in Durham, North Carolina. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season. Labosky used his $3,000 signing bonus to buy the bus, and he and Hiatt renovated it this offseason.\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"10\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-1.jpg\" alt=\"The interior of a school bus being renovated in November 2018 is viewed in Durham, North Carolina. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season. Labosky used his $3,000 signing bonus to buy the bus, and he and Hiatt renovated it this offseason.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"15\">\n<p><strong>The interior of a school bus being renovated in November 2018 is viewed in Durham, North Carolina. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky&#8217;s first full professional season. Labosky used his $3,000 signing bonus to buy the bus, and he and Hiatt renovated it this offseason.<\/strong><br \/>Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-2.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt | The renovated interior of a school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina last month. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season.\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"9\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-2.jpg\" alt=\"The renovated interior of a school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina last month. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"13\">\n<p><strong>The renovated interior of a school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina last month. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky&#8217;s first full professional season.<\/strong><br \/>Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-3.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt | A renovated school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina in January. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season.\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"9\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/03\/Living_The_Bus_Life_Baseball_30446-5b1e3-3.jpg\" alt=\"A renovated school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina in January. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky's first full professional season.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"13\">\n<p><strong>A renovated school bus is viewed in Durham, North Carolina in January. The bus was purchased by Jack Labosky, a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and his girlfriend Madi Hiatt. They plan to live out of the bus during Labosky&#8217;s first full professional season.<\/strong><br \/>Madi Hiatt \/ AP | Madi Hiatt<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/sports\/bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/sports\/bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. \u2014 Grueling, late-night road trips are a loathed hallmark of minor league baseball, and most ballplayers can\u2019t wait to leave bus life behind.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Jack Labosky is traveling in a different lane. A relief pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, Labosky used his $3,000 signing bonus to purchase a school bus, and he and girlfriend Madi Hiatt plan to live out of the renovated \u201cskoolie\u201d during the 2019 season. A healthy dose of whimsy went into that decision, to be sure, but it\u2019s also a creative way for the couple to stretch Labosky\u2019s meager minor league salary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s kind of the one time in my life I feel like I\u2019m able to do something like it,\u201d Labosky said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The Rays selected Labosky, a two-way player at Duke, in the 22nd round of the draft last June. He quickly accepted the signing bonus \u2014 trivial compared to the millions earned by most first-round picks, but for Labosky, \u201c$3,000 was hard to come by as a college student, so that was great to me.\u201d He played the final 2\u00bd months of the season with Class A Hudson Valley in Wappingers Falls, New York, living with a host family to stretch his $1,100-per-month salary while Hiatt, his high school sweetheart, went home to California.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The stint at Hudson Valley was a test run in minor league life for Labosky, who is hoping to be assigned to Class A Bowling Green in Kentucky for opening day. After a few months apart, he and Hiatt determined that in future seasons, wherever Labosky goes, Hiatt will, too.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The problem: Labosky made only about $5,000 during his first season, including the signing bonus, and is not expecting much of a raise in 2019. With Hiatt focused on getting a master\u2019s degree in educational psychology from Purdue University Online, there isn\u2019t much room in the budget for rent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cAround the first offseason is when I realized, \u2018Hey man, I\u2019m pretty broke,\u2019\u201d Labosky said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Their first thought was to get an RV. Parking figured to be cheaper than rent, and a mobile home could move with the couple as Labosky hopefully climbed the minor league ladder. But RVs and fifth-wheel trailers cost at least tens of thousands of dollars.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The internet led them to a thriftier option: renovated school buses, or \u201cskoolies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s a little hippie,\u201d Labosky said with a laugh. \u201cPersonally, I don\u2019t consider myself, like my grandma says, the flower children of the \u201960s, living in buses, stuff like that. I don\u2019t really consider myself on that level. I\u2019m doing it more for, I\u2019m 22, turning 23 this summer, I don\u2019t really have much responsibility outside of baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe just decided, \u2018Why not?\u2019\u201d Hiatt said. \u201cWhy not just take a leap?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">They bought a 1999 Blue Bird International for $4,000 from a private Christian school in Lynchburg, Virginia. Labosky drove it back to Durham, North Carolina, to begin the renovation process.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt had crayons and candy wrappers and homework under the seats,\u201d Labosky said. \u201cIt was kind of crazy driving it home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Their approach to the makeover mirrored that of HGTV\u2019s Joanna and Chip Gaines \u2014 Hiatt took charge of design, Labosky handled construction. To save money, they did nearly everything themselves. They ripped out seats, insulated the walls and installed electrical wiring, water pipes, heating, air conditioning, a stovetop and more. They have a full-sized bed, a toilet and a shower. The floors are dark, the walls are tan and the cabinets are white \u2014 basic, but an impressive use of 172.5 square feet.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cPeople say it\u2019s modern,\u201d Hiatt said of the aesthetic. \u201cThere is nothing real special about it, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">They painted the exterior white because white paint was the cheapest. Aside from a few small details \u2014 like the curtains sewn by Hiatt\u2019s grandmother \u2014 the bus was ready to go by the time Labosky left for spring training in late February. Total cost, including purchase price: around $13,000.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The skoolie is staying behind until Labosky learns where he\u2019ll be on opening day. The right-hander had a 2.63 ERA with Hudson Valley last season and seems a good bet for a promotion to Bowling Green, but it\u2019s possible Tampa Bay holds him in extended spring training in Port Charlotte. He\u2019s hoping for the former, since players don\u2019t get paid in extended and trailer parks are cheaper in Kentucky than Florida.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Once Labosky has his assignment, Hiatt\u2019s dad will help her move the bus because Hiatt hasn\u2019t learned to drive her house yet, and a long road trip isn\u2019t the best time for a crash course.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">And then the adventure is on. The couple started an Instagram account, The Grand Bus Adventure, to document the journey. Hiatt might follow Labosky and the team bus on the road once or twice during the season, but the plan is for her to stick around Port Charlotte or Bowling Green, find part-time work, study for her master\u2019s and keep up with her own athletic training \u2014 she\u2019s a collegiate runner-turned-marathoner who is preparing to run the Boston Marathon on April 15.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Labosky has gotten some ribbing from past and current teammates about the bus, but mostly they\u2019re impressed by the final result.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cOnce people see the finished product and they realize, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s a motorhome, it\u2019s pretty normal,\u2019 they\u2019re a lot more positive toward it as opposed to being like, \u2018Hey, I live in a school bus.\u2019 That just sounds crazy,\u201d Labosky said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Crazy, but certainly creative. And easing the anxiety of planning a life around Labosky\u2019s pursuit of big league dreams.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI\u2019ve learned throughout the process when Jack did get drafted and went to New York that this lifestyle requires no planning,\u201d Hiatt said. \u201cNow I\u2019m not that stressed out, because we have a house on wheels. Now, everything I own literally comes with us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/sports\/bus-life-thrifty-minor-leaguer-to-live-in-school-bus-during-season\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jack Labosky, left, and Madi Hiatt pose after purchasing a school bus in Lynchburg, Virginia in October of last year. Labosky is a minor league pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, and he and Hiatt, his girlfriend, plan to live out of the bus during his first full professional season. The couple hopes to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-794165","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-14 01:07:14","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=794165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794165\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=794165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=794165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=794165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}