The small world of college baseball coaching connections
Baseball is a game of relationships, thus it always lends itself to talk of coaching connections. This goes well beyond the obvious storylines that link FSU’s Mike Martin to every head coach in the field. Remember, he has family right there on his staff, with Mike Martin Jr, who at one point played for his father, now coaching third base.
The game itself is like a family, with only a few degrees of separation at programs all across the country. It’s nearly everywhere you look. Eleven called it a “coaching fraternity.”
This year these ties are perhaps even stronger. Look no further than Auburn’s Butch Thompson. Here for the first time as a head coach, Thompson was born in Aberdeen, Mississippi, a short drive from Dudy Noble Stadium in Starkville.
Prior to taking the Auburn job, he was one of the most respected pitching coaches in the country while on John Cohen’s staff at State. What he has done in a very short time on the plains is remarkable.
There are nearly 300 college baseball teams, but wouldn’t you know it, his Tigers are facing Mississippi State in the tournament opener for both schools. He pointed out the irony of this in the pre-series press conferences on Friday.
Dave Van Horn and Tim Tadlock have battled it out for some time, both were junior college coaches in the state of Texas. These two men share a commonality that comes with understnanding just what it means to make the climb through all levels of the coaching ranks.
Michigan’s Eric Bakich also has personal connections. The youngest of this year’s CWS skippers was once an assistant for Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin in Nashville. He’s just the latest to have made the traditional phone call to Tallahassee in search of a little wisdom from the dean of college baseball coaches.
Corbin and Louisville skipper Dan McDonnell catch up yearly during summer vacation, meeting up on the cape to wind down and debrief following long grinding seasons. It is a tradition that has built a special bond between their wives and entire families. The trip will have to take place a little later this go round. Don’t think they mind.
In perhaps the strongest Omaha related connection, McDonnell and first year Mississippi State head coach Chris Lemonis were teammates on The Citadel’s 1990 College World Series squad. Being back here together keeps those memories fresh. They are still representing the small military academy from the Palmetto State extremely well.
The sentiments of all these coaches became clear in multiple conversations prior to the start of the tournament: If you are going to see a revered colleague and a trusted friend in the other dugout, you want it to be here.
In the preliminary rounds you run the risk of keeping a respected comrade from realizing the dream of Omaha. If you are going to meet, make it on college baseball’s biggest stage.