Upon Further Review: Lake Travis' Clint Baty eyes his retirement with family
As coach of the Lake Travis basketball team, Clint Baty rarely had time for his favorite hobbies — hunting, fishing or a round of golf. So when he announced his retirement from the school district Monday, it opened up a new chapter of Baty's life.
A funny thing happened, though, just one day before the ink dried on his resignation letter. Baty's son Brett, a former Central Texas player of the year, was called up by the New York Mets for Monday night's game at Dodger Stadium, and the 23-year-old third baseman had a run-scoring single to help the Mets post an 8-6 victory.
Times change. Plans change. People change.
All of a sudden, Clint Baty and his wife Leslie were checking out the Major League Baseball schedule. Their summer will certainly include a few trips to the Big Apple and a few other stadiums closer to home. For the Batys, baseball has always been a family affair.
A call that changed everything
Baty was resting in a San Antonio hotel room on Sunday when he got the call from his son. Baty was coaching a youth baseball team. Instead of being surprised by the news, he "had an idea" Brett might soon join the big club. The Mets' 2019 first-round draft pick was called up last August and promptly homered in his first big league at-bat.
Contrary to a few social media posts, Baty did not retire because his son had just been promoted from New York's Triple-A team in Syracuse. Leaving Lake Travis was not an easy decision. Basketball is in Baty's blood and he said he was helped greatly by two retired coaches who passed along their wisdom — Larry Berkman of Marble Falls and Jan Jernberg of Lake Travis. When Jernberg stepped down after 14 successful seasons with the Cavaliers, Baty was elevated to head coach in 2011.
Baty established his own imprint on high school basketball in Central Texas, after a 28-year coaching career, including 17 as a head coach at Lake Travis and Marble Falls. His career varsity record was 394-170. That includes eight district titles, four regional tournament appearances and one trip to the UIL state tournament. He was the American-Statesman's Central Texas coach of the year in 2014.
Baty, 52, said he will miss the relationships he created with his players, coaches, opposing coaches, fans and even a few referees. Friends have often told him he should write a book about his experiences as a coach and mentor. He's especially proud when former players return and tell him how much of an impact he had on their lives.
"I've told a lot of our kids that eventually you will get things figured out," Baty said. "It might be tomorrow, it might be next week, it might be after you leave high school, it might be when you leave college or get in the work force or you become a dad. You'll realize what I'm telling you now was important and really the right thing."
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'His first word wasn't mama or dada. It was ball.'
Although coaching took up much of Baty's time, he said his work did not consume him. He always made time to have fun vacations with Leslie, Brett and daughter Lauren. Lauren has created her own success story. She recently graduated from the University of St. Augustine in Austin with a master's degree and is a doctor of occupational therapy.
Baty considers his wife the real family MVP for giving him the freedom to become a coach and for raising two gifted children. She's the chief academic officer at Live Oak Leadership Academy in Dripping Springs. She tells a funny story about the time she watched 2-year-old Brett at a daycare center.
Leslie Baty considers herself an expert in child development and was certain something was wrong with young Brett. While the other kids were playing with toy dinosaurs, blocks and trucks, he was playing with any ball he could get his hands on. Leslie took her newborn to his first high school basketball game when he was 3 days old.
"His first word wasn't mama or dada," she said. "It was ball."
It's impossible to predict a child will eventually play professional baseball, but Leslie knew Brett was exceptional when he joined a T-ball league. "There were times he'd throw the ball so hard, the first baseman would jump out of the way," she recalled. "A few coaches came up to me and said Brett could no longer play T-ball. He's going to hurt somebody."
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Clint said he knew something was special about his son around the time Brett entered high school. It didn't take long for Texas, Texas A&M, Texas State, Baylor, TCU and Oklahoma to show interest. He committed to Texas, but when he was chosen in the first round of the draft, his future was set.
"He's got the competitive 'it' factory," Baty said.
On deck: hunting, fishing, golf and Mets baseball
Brett also was competitive on the basketball court. At 6-foot-3, he was a bit short to play post, but during one game against Westlake, he had to guard All-State center Will Baker, who was closing in on 7 feet. The coach said his son showed maturity in "high-level" games.
As for the future, Baty is looking forward to a fresh chapter in his life. He wants to spend more time with his aging father, Chuck, who needs a helping hand. His mother Jacqueline died from cancer in 1995 at age 52. There will be time for a little golf, hunting and fishing, too.
Life is good for Clint Baty. He has a wife he adores, a daughter who just became a doctor and a son with baseball greatness in his blood. He added that he'll continue to coach basketball and baseball on his schedule because he can't shake it from his system.
Retirement is sounding pretty good.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Retiring Lake Travis basketball coach Clint Baty reflects on career
