Warchant Q&A: FSU baseball coach Martin Jr. talks before first practice
On Friday, new head coach Mike Martin Jr. and the Florida State baseball team will open up the 2020 season with their first official practice of the new year.
The Seminoles, coming off a memorable run to the College World Series in Mike Martin Sr.'s final year at the helm, are ranked No. 12 in the country by multiple outlets, including Baseball America.
*ALSO SEE: FSU Baseball 2020 Schedule
In this Q&A with senior writer Corey Clark, Martin Jr. talks about coaching his son, Tyler, the pitching depth the Seminoles have, the changes he's made to the program and the controversy surrounding stealing signs in Major League Baseball.
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Corey Clark: First off, before we talk about the team itself: Have you decided if you're going to go with the banging-trash-can method to relay pitches or just go with buzzers hooked up to your hitters?
Mike Martin Jr: (Laughs) What a mess that is. Isn't it ironic that the center of it is Alex Cora? And guess where he played (in college)? Where did he learn it? He even came out and said it. The fact that they've been doing that for years down there, it's not a coincidence that it spread. I'm amazed how many people knew about it, how long it went on, and nothing was said. ... It's full-out cheating. What have we come to here? You're taking everything out of it when you're stealing signs and relaying them to the hitter. Again, if they're so lazy that you can steal signs from second base, like, "Hey, wait a minute. That's first sign." Well, OK, fine. That's their fault. But sitting there with a television to zoom in, like they did at Miami? That's wrong.
CC: You still didn't answer the question. Are you going to bang the trash cans or go with the buzzer?
MM: We're just going to bypass (the middle man) and go straight buzzer. Just in case the trash-can guy is sleeping on the job.
CC: That's fair. OK, onto the team itself. After going through fall practice, what would you say you were encouraged by and what maybe concerns you a bit heading into the spring?
MM: The encouraging thing without question was the pitching. The depth of it, the versatility of it. That was, by far, the most encouraging thing. Disappointing? Concerns? You know, the pitching is only going to go as far as the defense. And we have some positions where we've got to get guys in the right spots. We're in the process of doing that. You know, it takes time to evaluate guys and see who kind of profiles at what position. So we're in the midst of moving some guys around the infield. Obviously the outfield (Robbie Martin, Elijah Cabell and Reese Albert) is relatively set.
Offensively, again, we have some key parts missing. That's obviously a concern. Some of these young pups have to grow up and be ready to compete in the ACC.
CC: Is most of the infield up for grabs? Who is competing for those spots?
MM: It's bizarre. I'm going to say names and I'm going to say them over and over in different spots, because they can play for the most part second, third and first. Nander (de Sedas) is pretty much entrenched at short. He's played extremely well defensively. At third base, you've got Tyrell Brewer, Cooper Swanson, Tyler Martin. And then at second base, you've got Jackson Green, Tyler Martin, Terrell Brewer, Danny Andzel. At first base you've got Cooper Swanson, Nico Baldor, Dylan Simmons -- which is another amazing story. He's a kid that beat cancer. He came in at the break as well. We could put Carter Smith over there like last year, but he's catching right now. So, again, second, third and first are wide open.
CC: So you're telling me Tyler Martin isn't just penciled in as the leadoff hitter and starting third baseman for the next three years?
MM: (Laughs) No. No. Definitely not. I tell you what though, that son-of-a-gun has turned some heads in the short time he's been with us.
CC: This should be his senior year of high school, so when did you guys decide to have him join the team a spring early? When was that the plan?
MM: About mid-October. We were trying to get some of the kids in the 2020 class to graduate early. And nobody wanted to do it or couldn't do it. And I get it. You're not going to prom, you're not going to have a chance to get drafted. And Tyler was out there practicing with us. The coaches, all of us were watching him, and they came in one day and said, "There's our freaking guy right there." And I said, "Yeah, I'm kind of thinking the same thing." He kept getting better and stronger. And I went to him in mid-October and said do you want to do it? He said, "Heck yeah, I want to do it." He took some online courses, he was already ahead in the classroom, and ended up graduating in December.
CC: You've never coached him before, right?
MM: (Laughs) I've never really seen him play in a game.
CC: If anyone knows about the father-son dynamic, it's you. You played for your dad. You coached with him for over 20 years. How do you see this working out for you two? Is it something you worry about navigating?
MM: No, I really don't. Our relationship on the field is better than it is off the field. I think he likes me as a coach more than he likes me as a dad. No, but we'll make it work. He's been born and raised in the dugout. He knows how to act, he knows what to expect. He's had the usual criticisms from fans and other teams. Your dad, your grandfather ... the picking on. That type of stuff. So he can handle it.
CC: With the pitching, obviously you've got a proven ace in C.J. Van Eyk. Who else do you see filling out the starting rotation at this point?
MM: There's four or five of them that are competing for spots 2, 3, 4 and 5 in the rotation. Shane Drohan had an incredible fall. He made a big jump. Of course, you've got Conor Grady. "Steady Eddie," you know what you're going to get with him. Dylan Simmons is in the mix as a starting pitcher. He's been very impressive. Antonio Velez is another one. I'd like to keep him in the bullpen if I can, but he can start. Bryce Hubbart is a freshman that had a big fall. Jack Anderson has made a jump. So we've got some good problems. And we're going to use a lot of guys. A lot of guys. It's going to make for longer games, but we're going to utilize a ton of guys. We're going to try to keep them fresh for late in the season and the postseason.
CC: Do you have an idea who the closer will be?
MM: Again, Dylan Simmons is a candidate. Bryce Hubbart is a candidate. Davis Hare, a junior college right-hander who has been up to 94, a sinker-baller, will be in the mix. Brandon Walker from here in town will be in the mix. We've got a lot of guys we're looking at.
CC: You're making some serious changes to the program: Moving to the third-base dugout, taking names off of jerseys, employing two mental conditioning coaches, etc. How excited are you for this chance, and how do you envision the 2020 FSU baseball season going? How different will it be?
MM: It'll be different. Because we haven't had this depth pitching-wise in years. It's back to when I was playing and we were running those horses out there. It takes a toll on you. Especially in a three-game set. It'll be a fast-paced, upbeat, exciting brand that I think especially old-school baseball fans will really enjoy. We've got to stay healthy as always. But I like the group. They enjoy being around each other. They're working hard. They're taking tough coaching. We're not babying anybody.
And we're going to do things right.
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