Rick Whittington is always teaching.
Those teaching moments could be taking time out to explain what pitches to look for when facing a 3-2 count with a runner on second base, or proper base running techniques when facing a left-handed pitcher or making sure to be on time for the team’s prayer before a game.
It doesn’t matter the time nor the place, Kinder’s baseball coach is going to make it a point to teach his players the right way to do something.
“It is very significant because it helped us better understand what is going on,” Brooks Fawcett said.
That was no more evident than what took place during the first game of the late-season doubleheader at Kinder High School. A baseball game that would end in a lopsided 17-1 mercy-rule victory for Whittington’s team, but it wasn’t that day’s offensive firepower that still stands out as the most impressive moment from that game.
Instead, it is what transpired in the first inning.
A Yellow Jacket player was tossed after an altercation between himself and the opposing team’s catcher. The verbal altercation escalated and even though punches were not thrown, the umpire behind the plate threw both players out of the game.
As the young man walked into the dugout, the frustration was evident, not only by his physical demeanor but also with the words coming out of his mouth.
The kid was both embarrassed and steamed about the ejection.
Yet, Whittington didn’t scream at his player for losing his composure, or scold him in front of his teammates and Yellow Jacket fans in attendance.
Instead, he calmly walked up to the dugout and leaned on the fence. In a matter-of-fact fashion, Whittington explained to his ejected player why he got tossed, what he shouldn’t have done in that spot and what he will need to do to appeal the one-game suspension.
It was a tough love moment but one done with respect, and one, mind you, while the actual game was still being played behind him.
“We needed that,” said Landon Schmitz about Whittington’s tough love. “It helped us in so many different ways. We didn’t mess around on the field as much as we had last year. We actually got work done. He was also fair to everyone on the team. There were no favorites, and he treated them all equally.”
For some, Whittington’s approach to coaching may seem outdated.
He speaks frankly and plainly and doesn’t mince his words. He preaches work ethic, discipline, respect and does so while proudly wearing his faith on his sleeve for all to see.
Whittington, who helped turn Kinder into a perennial playoff team during his first stint as coach, is an old school coach and one who hails from an era in which parents allowed their kids to actually be coached, and to be coached with tough love.
The type of coach, more and more kids desperately need in their lives, and the type so many unfortunately lack.
Which is why that teaching moment stands out still.
Yes, the Yellow Jackets won 18 games during the regular season, earned the No. 3 seed in the Class 2A playoffs and notched an opening-round playoff victory.
Those are all things to applaud.
Yet, Whittington’s greatest impact can not be measured by wins and losses.
It was how he navigated the Yellow Jackets through the complicated emotions of having teammate Will Fontenot battle cancer for a second time, or how the team dealt with family members suddenly passing the afternoon before a ball game.
Whittington changed the attitude of the program, and in turn, made the young men, who wear the black and yellow colors of Kinder High, once again care about the program.
“The biggest change this year was our attitude,” Fawcett said. “That came from the coach. His attitude and the effort he put forth from making our locker room and field look 10 times better. Coach truly cares about the way the baseball program is represented.”
“It was awesome to have a coach like him do that,” Landon added. “He has changed the whole program.”
