MPS takes over middle school baseball and softball

Middle school softball organizer Dan Lewis hands the championship trophy to members of Johnny Carr for the 2019 title. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

Montgomery Public Middle Schools Baseball-Softball Initiative executive director David Thomas was hurriedly sending out the baseball and softball schedules for the upcoming year so coaches could fill out the schedule with games against area private schools or outlying school systems such as those at Pike Road and Tallassee.

Thomas sent an E-mail to MPS athletic director Patrick Fenderson to keep him apprised of the group’s work in its third season of helping MPS middle schools with their spring sports. 

The short reply from Fenderson stopped Thomas in his tracks.

“MPS will handle all Middle School Baseball and Softball,” Thomas read.

After three years of seemingly thankless duty, the group’s efforts were rewarded as MPS officials have decided to add baseball and softball as MPS-sponsored athletic programs.  

“They’ve decided to adopt it,” Thomas said. “They’re taking over everything. I got everything up and going (for the 2021 season). The girls are going to play at Fain Park and the boys at various city facilities, communicated with the umpires and I thought I would send Dr. Fenderson a schedule. When I sent him a schedule, he replied back to my email, MPS will handle middle school baseball and softball.”

Thomas is still in the process of trying to line up a meeting with MSP superintendent Ann Roy Moore but did talk to MPS chief financial officer Arthur Watts and received an e-mail from Watts on Friday thanking him for his work in getting the middle school baseball and softball programs off the ground.  

“Montgomery Public Schools (MPS) thank you so much for all you have done to promote middle school baseball and softball in our District,” Watts said in his email. “Your support has been immeasurable and greatly appreciated. Because of your hard work, MPS has decided to fully support middle school baseball/softball this year and in years to come. Again, thanks for your hard work and dedication to Montgomery Public Schools.”

The group started an organization in 2018 to bring middle school baseball and softball back to MPS to keep students from falling too far behind other school systems that fund middle school programs and to keep some students from jumping to those other programs, such as area private schools, that already have middle school baseball and softball programs in place.

The grass-roots organization included among its leaders Thomas, a former boys’ basketball coach at Robert E. Lee; Dan Lewis, a former boys’ basketball coach at G.W. Carver; Sheryl Young, wife of the late John Young, the founder of the intercity baseball organization RBI; David Thomas Jr., who was the Park Crossing baseball coach at the time and now serves as assistant principal at Jeff Davis; and Rod White, who was then the baseball coach at G.W. Carver.  

The group raised approximately $25,000 that first year and Thomas estimated a little more than $60,000 in its three-year history to fund uniforms, equipment, coaches’ salaries and funding for umpires. The first year, just Dunbar, Johnnie Carr and Floyd Middle Magnet participated in the league as the remainder of the middle schools -- as well as a large part of the community -- remained wary of the group’s intentions. 

“They had to understand what we were doing for the schools as opposed to discouragement, misunderstanding and miscommunication,” Thomas said. “A lot of them thought (middle school baseball and softball) was already in the school system.”

With Thomas and Lewis as two of the primary forces, the group charged ahead, undaunted that just three schools participated in the 2019 season. By 2020, baseball programs were added at Capitol Heights, Brewbaker, Southlawn, Bellingrath and McKee, with only Goodwyn sitting out. Softball was a bigger issue with Southlawn, Capitol Heights and Goodwyn electing not to field programs, but the community began to take notice as funding came from county commissioners Dan Harris and Elton Dean, from the city council and from the Montgomery Biscuits.

“Last year, we took care of everything,” Thomas said. “We ended up a little short (on funding) but he (Watts) found ways to take care of everything. Everything was going good, everyone was excited, we had pretty good attendance at the games.”

But the season would last just two games when the coronavirus pandemic shut down the season. 

Now, as the MPS middle school baseball and softball teams prepare for their third season, Thomas believes everything is in place for a successful year.

“The biggest expense (in the past) was uniforms,” he said. “We spent around $31,000-$32,000 for uniforms. We have supplied them with a good starting point. Our only expense this year was paying the coaches and the officials.

Now, he and the Montgomery Public Middle Schools Baseball-Softball Initiative can sit back and watch with pride as their hard work paid off for Montgomery middle school students interested in playing spring sports

“Everything was discouraging,” Thomas said. “I’m glad (it was adopted) because it was needed. You’ve got the other sports there. Why not baseball and softball? Now, I just hope the community will get more involved if they see it slacking.”