7 Days 'til: Takeaways from an entire day spent with Michael Earley

It’s that time of year! The Texas Aggie baseball team is set to open up the 2025 season next Friday against Elon at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. We’re counting down the days with our 2025 Aggie Baseball Preview Series.

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Opening night awaits.

Only a week of rehearsals remain.

When the Feb. 14 curtain is drawn, the Earley Era and all that comes with it will play out in front of the 12th Man with grandiose expectations of frequent June road trips to Nebraska and the trophies that come with those Omaha visits.

The new director is a familiar face who now finds himself in a new chair, pulling the strings for real for the very first time.

At just 36, Michael Earley is the 21st head coach in Texas A&M baseball history.

His hiring became public on June 30, just six days after the Aggies came tantalizingly close to their first national title ever.

The projections of greatness in Aggieland remained, even if Earley’s predecessor didn’t.

A&M is the nation’s consensus No. 1 team, but that’s just a preseason prediction. The head coach’s job is to put his ball club in position to be No. 1 when the dust settles on the postseason.

Of course, that won’t come easy, even for the supremely talented Aggies. Earley’s team is facing extraordinary expectations.

The Men’s College World Series has been contested 77 times, dating back to 1947. Never has a first-time head coach led his team to the national title.

In the face of a historic quest, Earley appears to be going about his job ordinarily, as if he’s conducting business as usual.

As if he has been a head coach for years.

As if he’s used to the position and all that comes with it.

As if he’s built for this.

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Inside Texas A&M’s Bill Byrne Student-Athlete Center, baseball happens in many different places.

Upstairs, inside the coaches’ offices, baseball is discussed, and the business of the game is handled.

Downstairs, in the clubhouse, the batting cages, the weight room and on Olsen Field, baseball is played.

One cannot exist without the other. Earley and his growing influence is present in both spaces.

As one might expect, in the final weeks leading up to Opening Day, everyone inside the Aggie program is hard at work. From student workers to players to equipment managers to the coaching staff, each individual has a role in A&M’s success once the games begin. For these men and women, it’s serious business.

Which is why Earley’s kindness in permitting a reporter to trail him for an entire day cannot be understated.

At 9:15 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 31, he welcomed me into his modestly decorated office that sits at the end of a long halfway and would overlook the pristine diamond if there weren’t temporary bleachers obstructing the view.

When I arrived, he was sitting at a round four-seater table scribbling notes (and playing with different lineups for that afternoon’s intrasquad) as he listened to SEC officials on Zoom. The topics discussed in painstaking detail ranged from the application of the double-base at first becoming the league standard to the implementation of umpires conducting foreign substance checks on pitchers entering the ballgame.

To Earley, details are important.

To him, the details that are of the utmost importance are on display in his office.

At first glance, visitors get a quick insight as to what he does versus what he’s all about.

The former is obviously baseball. That much is obvious from the handful of bats gathered in one corner, Doug Rau’s blue Adidas spikes in a shadow box and two framed jerseys on one of the walls — one signed by both the 2022 and 2024 A&M teams.

The latter is family.

Michael and his wife Lisa have three children. Pictures of the kids are framed on a bookshelf and pinned to a bulletin board beside his desk.

Where family intersects with baseball is also present. One photo features five smiling faces at Mike’s July 2 introduction as head coach. A custom black and maroon A2000 baseball glove sits above it with “MARSH-MIA-MADDIE” stitched into the thumb.

Yet the job can sometimes keep him from his kids.

That’s why, unbeknownst to me, his job began nearly two hours before my arrival.

“I have to take them to school,” Earley told me. “Because there’s just some days that I don’t get to see them.”

His routine is to take his girls to their school at 7:20 a.m. before taking his son to his. He’s usually at the ballpark by 8:30 a.m. to work out.

Throughout the day, the Earley kids were a topic of conversation between the two of us.

In July, Texas A&M President Mark A. Welsh III told the public that it took Michael “about 30 seconds” to mention Lisa and the kids.

That much remains true.

Maddie, 6, is “all unicorns and butterflies right now,” he said.

Mia, 9, gives Lisa the most trouble, “probably because she’s the most like me,” he laughed. She’s also a talented hitter on the softball field. Shocker.

Marshall, 11, is a gifted athlete like his dad.

“I hate to say this because he’s my kid, but he’s better than everyone else,” Michael told me. “He’s a good baseball player now. I hope he’s good, but more than that, I just hope he’s a great person.”

Beyond baseball, Marsh plays basketball. When his schedule permits, the father helps coach his son’s fourth and fifth-grade hoops team, which the Indiana native would prefer to be named the Pacers instead of the Spurs.

Fouling is encouraged. Defensive pressure is required.

“We crush,” the Hoosier said. “We got up 12-0 in the first four minutes the other day, and I just backed them off. We won something like 38-15.”

Sure, the notion of Texas A&M’s baseball coach schooling local kids in the art of Buzz Williams’ high-octane defensive effort might appear comical on the surface.

However, it shows us a necessary prerequisite for success in college baseball’s best league:

Michael Earley is highly, highly competitive and cut-throat.

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Certain spaces are off-limits to outsiders.

The clubhouse is an obvious one. Want to see the inside? Possess the talent of the student-athletes who have their names above the lockers.

Olsen Field is also hallowed ground. To cross between the white lines means to share a connection with legends like Moon, Johnson, Rau, Byington, Knoblauch, Granger, Holt, Tyner, Wacha, Stripling and others.

When it comes time for Earley to interact with his players, he wants to keep areas like the batting cages and the bullpen free of outsiders.

As a reporter, I respect those wishes. I’m also used to being relegated to the press box — or, in this case, the cushioned seats of the Diamond Club.

Much of his day is spent tending to various extracurriculars.

Literally, the physical baseball side of things didn’t begin until after lunch that day.

That afternoon, a 3 p.m. strength vs. strength intrasquad is scheduled with a 2 p.m. stretch and a short practice portion preceding the scrimmage.

The Michael Earley present for baseball activities differs from the one who stalks the upstairs corridor of offices.

Upstairs, he’s dressed in a grey A&M quarter-zip with a polo, joggers and clean shoes.

Downstairs, it’s his maroon A&M ball cap, a script “Aggies” hoodie, sweatpants, dirt-stained athletic shoes and black sunglasses.

On the field, his calm, casual disposition is replaced by a more serious, sterner attitude. He’s not a screamer, but he is in constant motion.

During a baserunning drill, Earley walks up and down the baselines, all the while providing commentary and corrections.

No job too small for him, he feeds the Hack Attack machines as the A&M infielders take ground balls, nodding along to the hip-hop tunes blaring over the stadium’s loudspeakers. Other times, he uses an oft-chided front-hand-toss method when swinging his fungo.

When something is done wrong, he lets his players know.

When something is done beautifully, like when Kaeden Kent backhands a slow roller at short before firing an off-balanced strike to first, he offers praise.

When Gavin Lyons snagged a sky-high pop-up, it was met with a cheer from his fellow pitchers. An animated Earley waved his arms in the air as if calling an end to a UFC fight.

That’s the signal that practice was over. It’s officially time to play.

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Fridays are Ryan Prager’s day.

As A&M’s ace, the left-hander often spun series-opening gems to start weekend after weekend last spring. After turning down the Los Angeles Angels over the summer, Prager is back for more Fridays in Maroon & White.

And so, at just after 3 p.m. on a Friday, the All-American southpaw emerged from A&M’s third-base dugout with his black glove in tow.

Gearing up for Opening Day vs. Elon, Prager was slated for three innings vs. the likes of Jace LaViolette, Hayden Schott, Caden Sorrell, Gavin Kash and others.

Earley took his spot at the dugout’s top step — standing, not leaning — with hitting coach Caleb Longley to his left and associate head coach Jason Kelly to the right, pushing buttons on his PitchComm devices.

If the six innings observed that day were any indication, it’s a location he’s comfortable commanding.

All the while, “The Big One” dug into the left-handed batter’s box as “The Big Jew” toed the rubber.

And off we went on a clear blue afternoon at Blue Bell Park.

Astute baseball fans are likely aware that pitching often has the upper hand on hitting in the early parts of the season. That much was true on this day.

“They weren’t great today, but they weren’t terrible considering what they faced,” Earley said after the scrimmage. “I don’t think we’ve prepared them for that, by design. In three weeks, they’ll be more prepared to face those guys.”

As he frequently is, Prager was brilliant on the bump.

One All-American started his day by fanning another All-American with an off-speed pitch. All that did was foreshadow the rest of No. 18’s outing.

In total, Prager punched out eight of the 10 batters he faced. The only blemish on his line was a high-fly ball that the centerfielder misplayed into a “double” in the second inning.

Before his second at-bat vs. Prager, LaViolette acknowledged the lefty’s dominance.

“This guy is making us look stuuuuupid,” he crowed from the dugout.

Combined with tough-hitting conditions as the flags atop the left-field scoreboard rippled from a strong north wind, pitching held the upper hand for much of the day.

Behind Prager, the next standout was electric right-hander Clayton Freshcorn, a transfer from McLennan College that combines a mid-90s heater with an elite slider that features a spin rate in the 2,500s.

A big league veteran of eight years, Tyler Naquin watched from the bullpen.

“I love him,” the former All-American said afterward. “I freaking love him. It’s filthy.”

The biggest swing of the day, and the only one worth mentioning, belonged to a College Station kid.

At 6-foot-6 and 230 pounds, Blake Binderup finds himself in a position battle for the starting role at first base. Facing Aiden Sims in the bottom of the first, he might’ve helped his cause.

Leaving the bat at 108 mph, Binderup ripped a low-flying line drive to left that just snuck over the wall for a three-run home run.

All told, Black beat Maroon in six innings, 5-1.

All the while, Earley watched from his spot at the opening of the dugout, making notes and providing direction.

At the end, he addressed the club, and before exiting the field, he came up to me.

“Do you need any more from me, Rich?”

“I’ll stick around as long as you’ll have me, coach,” I replied.

“Well, come on.”

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It’s no secret that Michael Earley has yet to manage a baseball game.

That will change in a week, but until then, rival programs are using the fading fact to negatively recruit against him and his program.

He’s aware of that.

He’s also aware of what he doesn’t know.

That’s why he assembled his coaching staff the way he did.

That’s why he asks as many questions as he provides answers when the group is together, and he should. Inside the offices and inside their coaches’ locker room, the conversations resemble more of a roundtable. “I’ll defer” is not an uncommon thing for Earley to say. “What about” questions are frequent.

Whether during the 10:45 a.m. coaches meeting in his office or in their locker room post-intrasquad, he welcomes input from those around him.

And what a cast of characters it is.

Kelly, a 20-year veteran of the college game, brought pitching expertise with him from Seattle, where he was most recently Washington’s head coach. The Aggie associate head coach crossed paths with Earley while on Tracy Smith’s Arizona State staff from 2020-21.

Longley, a former rival in Austin, views hitting similarly to Earley, which allows them to form an elite offensive-minded pairing, at least in theory. His connection with Kent has been well-documented in a relatively short time together.

Will Fox held an off-the-field role at A&M in recent years. One of many holdovers, he has been elevated to an assistant position and will coach third base in addition to working with infielders.

Former A&M catcher Troy Claunch closed the book on a brief professional career with the Chicago White Sox — the same organization Earley played for — and returned to College Station to work with A&M’s catchers. He’ll be the one tipping his helmet to Section 203 from the first base box this spring.

Off the field, Jason Hutchins’ tenure as A&M’s director of operations is nearing three decades in Aggieland. Along with his son Jace Hutchins and Harvard analytics wunderkind Jack Mahala, the trio forms a nice collection of familiar faces and pitching minds at Earley’s disposal.

If there’s one area the former Aggie hitting coach thrives most, it’s his knowledge and understanding of the current roster.

Last summer, Earley was the candidate championed by a group of A&M players — both current and former led by LaViolette — to fill the vacancy left behind by Schlossnagle.

Under his direction, the Aggie offense reached new heights across the three prior seasons. They famously mashed their way to Omaha in 2022 before rewriting school offensive records in 2024 en route to A&M’s first championship series appearance.

The success at the plate figures to carry over.

Earley’s seriousness and focus that bred those accolades have only shifted to his new role.

“It’s getting more and more real as the season gets closer,” Earley said. “I’ve never cared less than I do now, but I just had more breaks in my mind.”

However, those breaks have been replaced by more worries about pitchers…

…and interrupted by more meetings.

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Zoom meetings with Birmingham are part of the job.

As was a trip to Longley’s office to put the finishing touches on last week’s “Twelve for 12” banquet (a resounding success, I’ve been told).

Meetings take away from time Earley could spend writing out new lineups, which he has been doing on his iPhone notes app since November, or worrying about which players may or may not be available come Opening Day.

For the latter, he chooses to be a pessimist.

“I have to think like that so I can sleep,” Earley said.

When it comes to concerns like bullpen pieces, he’s a realist. For instance, he knows Evan Aschenback and Chris Cortez cannot be replaced.

But he has options.

While in Longley’s office, Earley spoke about Freshcorn’s propensity to “chew batters up, just breaking balls every pitch” and Isaac Morton’s breaking pitches that “people have never seen before, metrically.”

Longley adds: “He’s doing Greg Maddux stuff at seven miles an hour harder.”

Pieces are there. But that’s baseball chatter.

An 11 a.m. meeting provided a chance to see Earley’s passions away from the game or his family — his two loves that don’t leave much time for much else.

However, this particular Friday, Aggieland Credit Union’s Howard Baker had an appointment with the Aggie skipper for an important discussion.

Over the years, the credit union has helped support charitable organizations close to the head coach’s heart.

Rob Childress opted for Voices for Children and CASA of the Brazos Valley. The previous head coach has his RBEye Foundation.

Earley was prepared for this meeting.

“It’s not mine, but I can’t feel passion more than anything than I do about this,” he said. “It’s not my place to start a foundation.”

He spoke of Mark Massey. 

On Nov. 8, 2024, 10-year-old Mark lost his battle with Diffuse Midline Glioma, an extremely rare form of brain cancer.

Mark was a classmate of Marshall’s, and his family is now establishing a foundation in his legacy.

“It was tough on my son,” Earley said. “You had to tell him three different things. You had to tell him you were praying for a miracle. It was three different blows to an 11-year-old.

“Perceivably, the Masseys are way stronger people than I think I could be. My wife and I, we want to be involved as much as possible, and they’re going to let us. They’re the most amazing people.”

Between soccer and baseball, A&M athletics has joined the fight against childhood cancer. The Aggies have held annual Turn It Gold games at Ellis Field and Blue Bell Park in recent years.

However, this particular fight is a little more personal.

And as long as Earley is the head coach in Aggieland, expect Mark Massey to have a presence at the ballpark.

“They want to keep their son’s legacy alive,” Earley said. “My attention will always be there for this family and behind there for them. … The community really rallied around them. It shows you that this place is special.”

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Earlier, I used the word “ordinary” to describe Michael Earley’s approach and appearance.

Perhaps a better choice would be “real.”

As in, he’s a human being. He takes an interest in the people around him and doesn’t harbor the robotic nature prevalent among so many in his profession.

When our day together started, the first thing he asked me was about a recent family vacation before excitedly telling me how he just booked a November trip to California’s wine country for Spencer Torkelson’s wedding.

Yet that seems so far away.

Between now and then, Earley will manage roughly 60 (and perhaps a dozen or so more) college ball games. He’ll likely see LaViolette join Torkelson as proteges selected in the top five picks of the MLB draft.

All of that is beginning to be very real.

On this particular Friday, as we walked towards the doors at about 5:30 p.m., we chatted about evening plans.

For me, more work.

For him, a haircut before soaking up some much-needed time with his wife and kids.

Only time will tell, and we’ll find out together if Michael Earley is indeed the “real” deal.

Only time will tell, but Michael Earley doesn’t appear to be a man who will be crushed by the pressure of his position.

He truly seems built for this.