The Come Up; Erie Resident Michael’s Balko Enjoying Great Success in Sports Entertainment and Media

Podcast Episode: Anchor, Apple, Spotify

Just a few short years ago, Erie, Pennsylvania resident Michael Balko was homeless, jobless, and hungry. Flash forward a few years and he’s a married man, has a thriving career in sports, and is having perhaps the best year of his life.

It took only around three to four years for Balko to pull himself out of one of the lowest points of his entire life, with him giving much of that credit to his Christ as well as his wife, Burgundee.

However, he deserves a lot of credit for helping himself up as well. Working various jobs to help support himself and his mother, eventually, the burdens started to shrink. It certainly was not easy, but it’s been worth it. 

Balko broke through into the sports industry working in a collection of roles for the Erie Seawolves of Minor League Baseball and the Erie Bayhawks, an extinct organization of the NBA G-League. With these organizations, he had experience in many roles including serving as the mascot for both organizations at points.

From there, hundreds of connections were made with players, staff members, and others that have helped him start and expand his career in sports media. Balko got his start in 2020 as a writer with FanSided, a site that is broken into sub categories by sport. In particular, Balko started writing about New Orleans Saints football for WhoDatDish, a gig he still continues to this day.

Other opportunities he’s had over the last few years include writing full-time for nflanalysis.net and nbaanalysis.net, roles he held full time before transitioning to his current role as an Amusement Supervisor for Round1.

And Balko is not just scooting by in his media career, but rather he’s become a highly respected insider across professional sports. He broke news via Twitter about the Juan Soto trade, the Baker Mayfield trade, the length of Deshaun Watson’s suspension, and several other topics. Balko has over 8,000 followers on Twitter and even hosts his own podcast called The Michael Balko Show.

On the show, he interviews some of the most prolific sports figures and athletes from around Erie and beyond. His show has been nominated as one of the top podcasts in all of Erie and is approaching 100 episodes in total.

With special guests like Jim McMahon, Morten Andersen, and Irv Smith to name a few, Balko has built quite a reputation as a truly good guy in the sports industry. For him, it’s not about the name of the person he’s interviewing, the fact he has a blue check mark on his Twitter account, or that he’s been featured on ESPN, 24/7Sports, The Pat McAfee Show, and in USA Today. No, it’s about the lives he can inspire and the stories he can help share.

While he’s featured some well known athletes and sports personalities, he’s also helped people who needed exposure in order to gain their next chance in their respective sport. 

Michael Balko entered the sports media world for the right reasons and credits perhaps some suppressive times he had in his childhood while living in Seattle, Washington as why his passion to always have the latest information and news around the world of sports. 

From a teenager who was not allowed to play or watch much sports to a rising NFL Insider and media professional, life has certainly changed in a big way for Michael Balko. With a popular podcast and many connections around the NFL, he’s not slowing down any time soon. The best times of his career are still yet to come.