It's pretty hard to argue with a baseball icon.
Especially one whose name already has been added to the official name of the facility at a previous head-coaching stop, one who was inducted into a state hall of fame only last month, and one whose ongoing record not only is one of the nation's best, but which bears an uncanny resemblance to his predecessor at his current stomping ground.
Kelton McCoy recently learned this about the University of New Mexico's Ray Birmingham.
"We went down there.three weeks ago?" the senior recalled Tuesday afternoon, of a trip to see what the suitor of a post-BHS destination could offer. "And we went and watched them play Texas Tech-they're a top-five team in the nation-and beat 'em (6-5, April 20)! We hung out with (the UNM players) before the game, and afterwards he came up to me and said, 'Well how does it feel to be a Lobo?'"
"I didn't know what to say; I was just blown away! I thought it was just.Coach just beating around the bush, and he said, 'Because you're a Lobo.' And I said, 'I'm a Lobo, I guess!' and he goes, 'That's right, cowboy!'"
Tuesday afternoon at a gathering inside Bayfield's cafetorium, backed by parents Derek and Loresa, BHS Head Coach Jon Qualls, BHS Football Head Coach Gary Heide and assistants Mike Wnorowski and Frank Hawkins, and even Farmington Strike Zone coaches Adam Morrissey and Damion Lovato, McCoy made known what Birmingham apparently already knew: McCoy's going to be a Lobo.
"Coach Birmingham, I really liked him; he's a nose-to-the-grindstone kind of guy, likes small-school kids," said McCoy, donning a New Mexico cherry-and-silver shirt and cap. "A lot of D-I coaches.3A kids, they shy away from for some reason I don't know. But he likes the small kid, chip on his shoulder, who will work hard for him and so I respect that."
Presently in his ninth season in Albuquerque, Birmingham's coaching roots indeed started much smaller. He coached high school at Las Cruces Mayfield, coaching the team to a 1981 NMAA Class 4A title win over Hobbs.
He then moved to Hobbs, coaching New Mexico Junior College's team as its first and only coach until 2008, when he left for UNM. NMJC named its facility, Ray Birmingham Thunderbird Field, after his departure.
In addition to the small-town roots, McCoy believed something else was what probably sold him to his coach.
"Honestly, my grades," he stated. "It helps to be six-four, 210 pounds, but you know.. It's not about if you hit the ball 500 feet; it's about if you hustle and have a positive attitude to get after it!"
"The good year I had as a junior helped a lot, but really it's the little things (Birmingham) said he liked-the hard work and stuff," he continued. "If it wasn't for my good grades it would probably be a different story."
And to that effect, McCoy claimed an interest in New Mexico's Anderson School of Management.
"It's a top program in the nation business-wise," he said, "and I'll probably study entrepreneurial studies."
"I'm very proud of Kelton as an individual-how he's grown, how I've seen him grow the last four years to be a positive leader.and just a great athlete," Heide said. "And I think just being such a positive force on the football field was impressive to the baseball coaches, and vice versa. I'm very proud to be associated with that."
Having declined several Division II schools' football offers in the wake of Bayfield's unbeaten, state championship-winning 2015 season, McCoy said he'll go to UNM expecting to contend for time in the infield.
"Catcher and the corners, probably-so first, third and catcher," he said. "But I've got to go.and win my spot. Nothing's given. So.down there, whatever position Coach Birmingham wants me in, I'll play it."
Because after all, it's pretty hard to argue with a baseball icon.
"I'm excited. It's going to be a different level of competition, but I'm ready to go to work and be the best I can be," said McCoy. "Coach Qualls and Coach (Tom) Horton from Bayfield, and Adam and Damion from Farmington.they're a big part of why I'm here, along with my teammates and my family. So I'm thankful for that, and thankful for Coach Birmingham just giving me an opportunity."
LOBOS SO FAR IN 2016: Coming off a 32-27 season in which a program-record three players were named Freshman All-America, UNM will go into this weekend's three-game set at Santa Ana Star Field with Nevada standing 32-18 overall and 17-7 in the NCAA Division I Mountain West Conference.
ACCLIMATION INCLINATION: Eager to not only finish off his Bayfield career with a bang, McCoy will also again look forward to playing Connie Mack-level ball this summer, with an Albuquerque stop on Strike Zone's itinerary.
"Yeah, I'll go play in Farmington with Coach Morrissey, and we're actually going down to play a couple games with Albuquerque Baseball Academy on UNM's field," he said. "So it'll be fun to get to play in my future home! I'm excited."
