Baylor Baseball Head Coach Mitch Thompson Reflects on First Year, Discusses 2024 & More
In a sit-down interview with SicEm365, Baylor baseball head coach Mitch Thompson discusses the struggles of his first year at the helm, how the Bears will be improved in 2024 and the reasons for optimism surrounding the program moving forward, amongst other things.
“[Last year] was the most difficult win-loss record that I’ve ever been through – I struggled with that,” Mitch Thompson said to SicEm365 reflecting on his forgetful first season as head coach of the Baylor baseball program.
Last spring, the Bears went 20-35, finished last in the conference and missed the Big 12 Tournament for the first time in program history. Thompson and his staff were forced to rely heavily upon a flawed roster with minimal Division I experience all season.
“I don’t think we went into [last year] expecting to be great,” Thompson said. “I think we knew what we had, and our kids were doing everything they could and were giving great effort. The difficult part was I wanted to be successful for the guys, and I wanted them to be successful. … But at the same time, here’s what we did accomplish – we won our last four games, the team’s chemistry and culture stayed together and there was no quit.”
This offseason, Thompson and his staff infused talent into the roster, adding over 20 newcomers, including a pair of talented outfielders who will hit toward the top of the batting order from the onset – Enzo Apodaca (Gonzaga) and Ty Johnson (McLennan CC).
“I think we’ve upgraded our talent level,” Thompson said. “We have more depth. Do we have the All-American star player yet? No, but there are going to be some guys that are going to develop into really good players here. I like what we’ve seen on the mound from our guys, and I like the competitiveness that we’ve had from our position players.”
As for on-the-field changes this spring, Thompson intends to manage the game from the dugout this year, as opposed to his usual perch at third base. Instead, assistant coach Jim Blair will coach third base, and assistant coach Zach Dillon will coach first base.
“I’ve got really good assistant coaches; I have to continue to let them coach,” Thompson said. “I’ve got two coaches who [can coach third base], and I feel comfortable with either one. Coach [Leverton] will be running the pitching staff, but I’m going to be heavily involved in all of that, and I’m going to be able to tap my pulse on what’s going on in the dugout the entire time.”
Going into the 2024 season, returning starters Hunter Teplanszky (3B, Jr.) and Hunter Simmons (LF, Sr.), as well as Apodaca (RF, RJr.) and Johnson (CF, Jr.), give Baylor a formidable lineup that should be the strength of the team on paper.
“I like our position players,” Thompson said. “I think we’re going to be able to have 12 or 13 different guys that we could put out there and expect something good to happen. They’ve been really competitive all fall and [have been] developing. We’ve got some other guys that are continuing to improve that may not be ready to step into a starting lineup, but there’s going to be something they can do to help us be successful.”
When Thompson first took the job at Baylor, he and his coaching staff entered the fall trying their best to mold a 35-man roster with over 60 players competing for a spot. Instead of the fall being used as a time to craft and develop skills, it was treated more like an open tryout. This past fall, however, was a key indicator to the coaching staff that the program is heading in the right direction.
“I think our ability from Opening Day of this fall was to have an idea that we were way, way farther ahead of where we were Opening Day [of the fall] last year,” Thompson said. “This fall probably went smoother; we got more done because last year was [more of an] evaluation of the guys.”
But one of the biggest questions surrounding the team going into the spring is whether the pitching will be improved. Last season, Baylor had the seventh-highest ERA (6.36) among Power Five schools. Thompson and pitching coach James Leverton anticipate returning starter Mason Marriott (RHP, Jr.) to take a step forward. Out of the bullpen, Baylor will look to veterans Grant Golomb (RHP, Sr., Cole Stasio (RHP, Sr.), Patrick Hail (RHP, RJr.), Jared Matheson (RHP, Sr.), Andrew Petrowski (RHP, RJr.) and Gabe Craig (RJr.) to make an impact.
“We’re going to have more options of being able to run a guy out [on the mound] and see where he’s at, as opposed to [putting a guy out there] because this is the only guy we’ve got,” Thompson said. “There were games last year where we had to ride guys out who didn’t have their stuff and weren’t going to be able to perform and be successful, but at the end of the day, there was nobody left. And hopefully, we’re never in that situation again.”
Aside from a handful of veterans, the coaching staff will have to rely heavily upon a nucleus of underclassmen arms this spring: Ethan Calder (LHP, So.), Collin McKinney (RHP, RFr.), Tanner Duke (RHP, RFr.), Jackson Elizondo (LHP, Fr.), Stephen Sepulveda (RHP, Fr.) and RJ Ruais (LHP, Fr.).
“Especially on the mound, we’ve got a bunch of [younger players], but they’ve been facing guys all fall and all in spring in intrasquad [scrimmages] that have some Division I experience,” Thompon said. “We have more high-caliber arms that can throw better velocity. Whether that [results] in them being better or not and getting things done, we’ll wait and see. I’m hoping it does, but I know we have more options as coaches [this season].”
With his younger players and young pitchers, in particular, Thompson understands that success isn’t always linear but that he wants his squad to play an aggressive blue-collar, gritty style of baseball.
“I want [the players] to play with freedom,” Thompson said. “I want them to play with high energy, and I want them to make aggressive mistakes rather than passive mistakes. I want to see them compete. … It’s a learning process. I think it’s going to be important for us as coaches to try and keep level heads and to keep moving forward – we’re not going backward, so we may as well move forward.”
As Opening Day inches closer, Baylor is slated to play the most difficult schedule in the country over the first month, according to Baseball Radar. The Bears will open the season at Globe Life Field in Arlington for the Shriners Children’s Showdown (Feb. 16-18), where they’ll face Nebraska, Oregon and No. 9 Tennesee. The following two weekends will include matchups against Indiana and Oral Roberts, both of whom were NCAA Tournament teams last season. Thompson acknowledges that his squad will be tested right away but is looking forward to seeing where his team stands.
“I think we’re definitely further along than we were a year ago, and I’m excited for the season,” Thompson said. “We’re getting ready to play the No. 1 schedule in the country for the first month of the season. It’s kind of daunting, but I’m excited – I think we can go and compete. If we do, that ought to build a lot of confidence. And if we struggle, then we’re going to learn where we’ve got to go, and we’ll continue to improve.”
Want to go further in-depth? Check out Baylor baseball’s full season preview here.