After serving 10 seasons with the San Francisco Giants, sideline reporter Amy Gutierrez, or better known as her on-camera persona Amy G, visited Sonoma State University to give students insight about her career as a journalist on and off the baseball field. Many sports fans may believe that being a sports reporter is easy compared to most careers, but Gutierrez tells a different story.

A Petaluma native, Gutierrez had no idea what her future would hold. Today, she has been with the San Francisco Giants through three world series. Networked with Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Gutierrez didn’t start off as a reporter when she graduated from UC Davis. In fact, she worked with Sonoma State communications Professor Ed Beebout in Santa Rosa at Channel 50. Beebout, a news anchor at the time, took Gutierrez under his wing to show her the ropes of television production. Fortunately for Gutierrez, working at a small station meant she quickly climbed up the ladder for success.

“Ed was a big mentor for me when it came to figuring out what I wanted to do in television. I wanted to be on camera, but I didn’t have a plan,” said Gutierrez.

During the guest lecture, students were able to glimpse the strong ongoing bond that Gutierrez and Beebout have together. Beebout was able to mentor her when producing a financial station for Channel 50. There he taught her how to put a show together and how to have it make sense to viewers at home. Originally, Gutierrez wanted to stick to producing. However, when an opportunity came up with her love for sports, she couldn’t turn the chance down.

“I applied to Channel 50 four times and was denied three, but I kept pushing,” said Gutierrez. 

She explained how she accepted the job, even though it meant being paid a low wage and working long hours. According to Gutierrez, she worked two jobs while under Beebout’s wing just to get by.

Through the hurdles of trying to become a successful reporter and journalist, Gutierrez has conveyed her success through the time she gets to spend with the players while interviewing them. From working strenuous hours, to now being on the sidelines covering a game she loves, Gutierrez shows fans what it’s like to be behind the scenes.

“When I first met Amy, I knew she had what it takes to be a successful broadcast journalist. She was not only intelligent, funny and a quick learner, she was absolutely passionate about doing the best job she could,” Beebout said.

“Things that I learned from Ed are still things that I use today,” said Gutierrez.

From what may be a rough start, her hard work has certainly paid off as she gets to do what she loves.

“I thought that she was really awesome. She is dominating a mostly male work field and is doing amazing,” said Danielle Factor, a third year major. 

“‘Just keep pushing,’ is something I would suggest to any career, resiliency is really hard to deny. Just keep knocking on the door,” said Gutierrez .

“It’s a field I want to get into, so hearing her advice on how to get there was cool. She mentioned a lot of interesting points to the class, such as our social media is practically a resume and it’s super important to make sure your image is good online,” Factor said.

Overall, through the ups and downs of her career, Gutierrez has shown fans that with hard work and determination, it’s possible to get to where you want to be.