Since taking over as Elder baseball head coach in 1990, Mark Thompson has just about done it all for the Panthers. On May 12, he added another milestone.
The Elder skipper won his 700th career game in Elder’s 6-5 come-from-behind win over Ross, making him the 13th coach in Ohio High School Athletic Association history to win that many games.
Elder trailed Ross 5-0 through the Ross turn in the top of the fifth inning. Elder scored twice in the bottom of the fifth and three more times in the sixth inning to tie the game. The Panthers won on a sacrifice fly from senior Dylan Wullenweber, scoring senior Carson Smith.
“They scrapped their way back in it and that’s kind of our MO and what we do and it was nice to squeak out a win there,” Thompson said. “It’s been awesome with the relationship with the players and the assistant coaches over the years. It’s been awesome.”
Thompson entered the season with a 684-298 record and has won nearly 43% of Elder’s 1,629 all-time wins. The program, started in 1924, has the most wins in OHSAA history.
“We talk about the days when I started coaching and the differences,” Thompson said. “We played at Dunham. We didn’t have an L-screen so I had two garbage cans stacked on top of each other and that was my L-screen. We used orange cones as our tees. It’s a whole different world. Now we have this facility and it’s just changed.”
Elder won state championships in 1999 and 2005 under Thompson, two of his six state tournament appearances.
Thompson’s son, Robb, was on the 2005 team and is an assistant coach under his dad.
“It’s certainly been a little different from decade to decade and certainly a little bit different playing for him than it was coaching for him,” Robb Thompson said. “I get to see all sides of that, but he always does things the right way on and off the field. He does everything the correct way, whether that’s a long process or making a quick change right now.
“He wants these guys to not take shortcuts on or off the field, because his job is to teach the game … and prepare them for life.”
Thompson’s grandchildren, decked in full Elder uniforms, ran around the field at the Panther Athletic Complex after the game. Having his family around is a part of what keeps Thompson coming back year after year.
“My son was on our ’05 championship team and to experience that was the best experience I ever had as a head coach that year having him on the team,” Thompson said. “Now having him on staff and arguing with me every day and having the grandkids run around is real special.”
Before taking over at Elder, Thompson was a pitching coach for his alma mater Western Hills under head coach Ken Selby, winning the 1986 state championship. Thompson was inducted into the Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2013.
“After my father, Ken Selby was really close and really I learned everything from Coach Selby,” Thompson said. “He was a great mentor to me. I was an assistant for five years and just learned a tremendous amount and I’m really grateful to him.”
Former Hebron Lakewood head coach Don Thorp has the most wins all-time in Ohio, winning 1,011 from 1973 to 2021. Other coaches ahead of Thompson include former Mason head coach Ken Gray with 768 wins and former Moeller head coach Mike Cameron with 767 wins.
“Mike Cameron was a mentor of mine when I started coaching,” Thompson said. “He took me under his wing and taught me a lot and really how to handle myself as a head coach.”
‘Baum’s Bench’ dedicated to former Elder bullpen catcher Adam Baum
The day before Thompson’s milestone win was also a special one for the Elder Panthers.
Adam Baum, a 2006 Elder graduate and former bullpen catcher for Thompson, had a bench dedicated to him in the bullpen, making a longstanding promise come true for the former Enquirer writer.
“I said, ‘Adam, for everything you did for us, one day I’m going to have a bench built in the bullpen and it’s going to be called Baum’s Bench. We’re going to bring you back for a dedication,'” Mark Thompson said.
Twenty years after graduating, the day for that dedication was May 11.
According to Baum, Robb Thompson told Baum to pick a day to come out and catch a game. The game Baum picked wouldn’t work for the dedication so Thompson told him to pick another, letting Baum know something was up.
Baum’s father, Steve, was a catcher from Oak Hills who was drafted and played in the minor leagues for the Athletics. Baum’s mother, Beverly, attended the dedication and saw Baum catch the first pitch from Charlie Leesman, another member of the 2005 state championship team who also played in the Major League with the White Sox in 2013 and 2014.
According to the Thompsons, Baum was an expert at getting the team amped for a game, sometimes busting out speeches from “Braveheart” or “Any Given Sunday” to get the job done.
“He was the life of the dugout and at practice and he wasn’t afraid to speak up when he needed to speak up, too,” Robb Thompson said. “He had that ability because he was well respected. Even though his title was bullpen catcher, he was still another teammate with us.”
The elder Thompson added a tale of grit that made Baum worthy of a bench dedication. Baum was warming a pitcher up and had a pitch bounce off the mitt, and into his chin, splitting it open. With blood dripping off his mask, Thompson told Baum to leave and get some medical attention.
Baum pounded his mitt, squatted back and down and told his coach, “Not until I get my guy hot, Coach.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Scrappy Elder Panthers baseball gives coach Mark Thompson 700th win
Reporting by Alex Harrison, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
