100% of MLB General Managers attended college or university.
26 of the 30 NBA GMs have post secondary education, according to wikipedia.com.
Now, lets take a look at the "ugly cousins" (your words, not mine): the National Hockey League.
23 current NHL GMs (74%) were former NHLers; the vast majority retired with long pro careers. Of the 31 teams, 8 employ GMs with no NHL playing experience.
A closer look reveals that all of these executives, in the "Non-Pro" group, had strong connections to the sport in junior, college or university, but nothing near a pro career; not even a single game in the NHL.
It was not easy to dig up the education backgrounds of these men, especially Doug Armstrong and Pierre Dorion *pop-up says " internet shutting down"*. The other 6 GMs in this group have some interesting backgrounds, with strong education and some experience outside the rink. Did you know Lou Lamoriello was a math teacher? Don't even start wth the abacus jokes.
General Manager Research Summary
MLB
- 3% are former pro players
- 100% have post secondary or higher degrees
NBA
- 27% are former pro players
- Over 85% have post secondary or higher degrees
NHL
- 74% are former pro players
- Education? *the dog ate my research data. Ask Editor for a deadline extension*