From the basketball court, to the football field, to a facility 10 minutes away and finally the Legacy baseball field, tryouts have concluded and teams have been made, all under new Head Coach Kyle Mickels.
“There’s no guarantee on how many games we’re going to win. But I’m looking forward to how we train, how we develop, and how we prepare and to continue to get better at those things every single day,” Coach Mickels said. “And then to have our guys understand the mental psychology of baseball and what’s required to be good at it, the ability to fail and not worry about it, and the ability to succeed and really celebrate it.”
Tryouts for the 2024 baseball season took place Jan. 19-22 during unfavorable weather. The coaches adapted to the wet conditions and traveled between the football field, the basketball court and off-campus facilities to see the talent.
“I showed up. I stuck to my basics and I didn’t try and do anything flashy, which is hard to do in a gym anyway,” Sophomore Eli Dugan said. “I already had an idea of what team I would be on, so I just did my thing and had fun.”
After tryouts, the coaches made their decisions on three rosters: varsity, JV red and JV black. With a sizable senior class leaving last year, this year’s roster is full of new juniors and returning seniors. Senior Luke Batson returns to the varsity roster and looks forward to more than just baseball.
“I love my teammates. They’re my guys. I’ve been with them since freshman year and even before that. I love hanging with them outside of school and then on the baseball field being locked in with them and practicing with them, it’s great,” Batson said.
Coach Aaron Cole is the only returning baseball coach, this year being his second at the school. Meanwhile, Coach Mickels joined the program with Coach Doug Danser and Coach Kendall Catalon, and, although starting their first year coaching at Legacy, they’ve built a solid reputation from playing and coaching at other high schools and colleges. Coach Mickels himself played at two NCAA Division 1 schools and coached at four different high schools.
“It was rough at the start just trying to get used to the new coach, but I feel like we’ve all gotten on board with what he’s doing and we see what he’s doing is good. Everyone respects him,” Dugan said. “He doesn’t restrain any knowledge from us. He tells us everything he knows.”
Coach Mickels fills the job after Coach Chris McMullen departure last school year. Coach McMullen spent six years as head coach, leaving a 162-52-1 record and multiple banners.
“Any pressure that I feel comes from myself. I have high standards for what I think the program needs to look like,” Coach Mickels said. “Obviously they’ve won a ton of games, and that was a part of the big attraction to take the job. I expect that baseball success to continue.”
The different coaching staff comes with a new style of practice for the team. Players now have more responsibility in their practice, expected to fix themselves first and then receive advice from coaches.
“It’s definitely a huge shift in the way they run their stuff, but Mickels is more about just letting you do your thing and then he’ll tone you down when he needs to, but he just wants us to play,” Dugan said.
Although managing 70 new players and two new coaches, Coach Mickels is awaiting the season with excitement, with the first varsity district game set for April. 2 against Waxahachie High School.
“We have unbelievable families and great kids who have really just jumped into what we’re doing,” Coach Mickels said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself to make sure we’re getting the most out of these guys every single day and I think if we take care of all of the little things the winning will have a way of taking care of itself.”
