(#32) This is one of the many great stories from the 1999 season when Hinds suffered through a long regular season, got better along the way, barely qualified for the Region 23, Division II tournament by winning just enough of the right games, set some new goals, and went on a miraculous, historic playoff run … Continue reading Cock-Eyed Junior
Author: Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach (Rick Clarke)
My name is Rick Clarke. I'm an old, retired baseball coach with a lot of stories to tell.
This will be a fun blog. A little bit of this...a little bit of that. Great Mississippi baseball stories, especially about the players and teams at Magnolia Academy and Hinds Community (& Junior) College. And some funny stuff and lots of savvy observations.
It Only Takes One
(#31) It was the “Shot Heard ‘Round our World” and would be talked about around Raymond and Wesson for years to come. It's a memory that will be played over and over... Daniel Tackett's 3-run homer hit deep into the night with two outs in the bottom of the 11th inning, that led Hinds to … Continue reading It Only Takes One
Thanks Jeff!
(#30) Here are some kind words from Jeff McClaskey, one of my great players at Magnolia and Hinds, who went on to an outstanding coaching career, mostly at Northwest Rankin where the baseball stadium he built is named in his honor. This was included, at his request, in a newspaper article about his retirement from … Continue reading Thanks Jeff!
A Man of Great Vision
(#29) Latest Fine-Tuning, October, 2024 One of the great things about coaching is you not only get to share in the great stories and performances of your own players, but of players on the opposing teams as well. One of those inspiring stories came in the spring of 2005 from John Fortenberry, a right-handed pitcher for East Central … Continue reading A Man of Great Vision
Moose Tales: (Swing the D@%# Bat!)
(#28) Playing high school baseball for the great Bill "Moose" Perry in the early 1970s is something that most modern day kids, and their parents, just could not survive. This is just one of the many, many stories. It has been said that "Moose" left his mark on the game. I know he left his … Continue reading Moose Tales: (Swing the D@%# Bat!)
Gurganus, Eagles Stun #1 Northwest
I'm on a road trip today to watch Hinds take on Northwest in a best-of-three series in Senatobia with the winner advancing to the Region 23 Tournament in Poplarville beginning on Monday, May the 13th. As I travel I-55 North, I can't help but reminisce about the "post-season magic" team of 1999 (25th anniversary) when … Continue reading Gurganus, Eagles Stun #1 Northwest
Sacred Ground at 555 Magnolia Road
(#50) If you went to Magnolia Academy and ever want to visit your old school, you're gonna have to rent a house. The subdivision is called Keystone Estates. What the tenants don't know is that those houses are built on sacred ground with a lot of blood and guts and memories inside those gates, under … Continue reading Sacred Ground at 555 Magnolia Road
“Take It All Off!”
(#25) At Magnolia Academy we always seemed to lose to our neighborhood, arch-rival Mississippi Baptist at least once each season. Either we played differently when we played them or they played differently when they played us. Or both. But it could have just been facing crafty pitchers like Bo Kirby and others, who were masters of screwing with the heads of their … Continue reading “Take It All Off!”
Moose Tales: The Run Over the Catcher Drill
(#24) I got moved to catcher during the fall of my junior year at Forest Hill in 1971. Coach Perry said it was because I was such a good glove at second base and he really needed me behind the plate to handle all of the wild pitchers we had, but I really think it … Continue reading Moose Tales: The Run Over the Catcher Drill
My Favorite Magnolia Academy Baseball Memories, Volume 1
(#23) In no particular order..... We won 26 championships in six seasons...unprecedented. Nobody ever won that many tournament and playoff championships in that span of time. We were the first private school team to win 30+ games in a season and the second Mississippi High School to do it. Clinton High School went 32-2 in … Continue reading My Favorite Magnolia Academy Baseball Memories, Volume 1
Rick Clarke's Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach 