Sarkis Ohanian

Sarkis Ohanian brings a rare combination of elite academic, collegiate, professional baseball, and recruiting experience to his role as Vice President of Time to Sign Sports. Having personally navigated the path from South Florida travel baseball to Duke University, the Cape Cod Baseball League, the MLB Draft, and professional baseball, he now uses that experience to help student-athletes and families navigate many of the same decisions that shaped his own career.

A South Florida native, Sarkis attended North Broward Preparatory School, where he developed as both a shortstop and pitcher while competing for the South Florida Bandits on the travel circuit. As a senior at North Broward, Sarkis posted a 2.41 ERA with 49 strikeouts in just 29 innings and played a key role in the Eagles' District and Regional Championships and run to the Florida State Championship.

Sarkis continued his career at Duke University, competing for four seasons in the Atlantic Coast Conference while earning a degree in Sociology and a Certificate in Markets & Management. His career was defined by continued development, culminating in a dominant senior season in 2015. Working exclusively out of the bullpen, Sarkis went 4-1 with a 1.97 ERA across 45.2 innings, striking out 62 hitters while allowing just 11 walks. His 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings and 5.64 strikeout-to-walk ratio established him as one of the ACC's best relief pitchers.

Among ACC pitchers who threw at least 45 innings that season, Sarkis' 1.97 ERA ranked fourth in the conference, and he was one of only three pitchers in the ACC to surpass 45 innings while maintaining an ERA below 2.00.

During his collegiate career, Sarkis also spent two summers with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League. His 2013 summer was particularly dominant: he appeared in 10 games without surrendering a single run over 14.1 innings, allowing just six hits while recording three saves. His performance earned him a selection to the Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star Game, placing him among the top players competing in the nation's premier collegiate summer league.

Following his senior season, Sarkis was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the ninth round, 265th overall, of the 2015 MLB Draft. He and teammate Michael Matuella became the first pair of Duke teammates selected within the first 10 rounds of the MLB Draft since 2002.

Sarkis spent five years in the Cincinnati Reds organization. In 2016 with the Dayton Dragons, he recorded 13 saves, tied for second in the Midwest League, while striking out 61 hitters in only 35.1 innings and posting a 0.93 WHIP. During one remarkable 21-appearance stretch that June and July, he allowed just six hits in 22 innings while recording 42 strikeouts against only five walks. Across his professional career, Sarkis struck out 159 hitters in 100.2 innings, averaging more than 14 strikeouts per nine innings.

Sarkis' story also carries particular significance beyond baseball. When he graduated from Duke in 2015, he became the first member of the Ohanian family to graduate from college, fulfilling a goal rooted in generations of sacrifice and reinforcing his belief that baseball can be a vehicle for extraordinary educational opportunities.

Today, Sarkis serves as Vice President of Time to Sign Sports, where he works directly with student-athletes and families while helping lead the organization's recruiting, team, event, and player-development initiatives. His experience extends beyond his own playing career into years of player evaluation, college placement, recruiting strategy, and relationship-building with college coaches across the country. Time to Sign's current recruiting model places particular emphasis on evaluating both the athletic and academic profile of each player, an approach that closely mirrors Sarkis' own journey to Duke.

Having experienced virtually every stage of the process himself, from being evaluated and recruited as a high school player to competing in the ACC, performing on the Cape, hearing his name called in the MLB Draft, and navigating professional baseball, Sarkis brings a perspective that cannot be learned from the sidelines. He understands what college coaches are evaluating, what high-level baseball demands, and how important it is for families to identify opportunities that align with a player's ability, academics, development, and long-term goals.

At Time to Sign, his objective is straightforward: give serious student-athletes the honest evaluation, strategy, relationships, and preparation necessary to maximize both their baseball and educational opportunities.