In just his first year, ASU baseball head coach Tracy Smith has brought a fresh culture of emphasized accountability and a winning attitude, inspiring players to develop a work ethic to succeed on and off the field, resulting in the team mirroring his personality.
Before taking the job at ASU, Smith, who prefers to be called "Skip," was the Indiana head coach from 2006-14, taking the Hoosiers to three NCAA Tournaments and one College World Series.
In addition, he played three seasons of minor-league baseball prior to becoming the head coach at his alma mater, Miami (OH), where he took the RedHawks to two NCAA Tournaments.
Culture Change
Often in sports, it is difficult for new coaches to earn the respect of the players. In such a short time, Smith has done that and more, changing the culture of ASU baseball in an effort to bring the program back to the prominence it holds historically.
"This team wants to be good," Smith said. "Coming in here and establishing a clean, concise set of ideas and living it every day by being consistent in communicating those ideas. If you communicate with people, whether the information is good or bad, they take it better because they know where they stand."
One of the most intriguing aspects of his coaching is his emphasis on relieving stress after games to make sure players take time for themselves before focusing on the next day's challenge.
"I'm a big believer in moderation of all things and I mean that in life," he said. "I always try to have balance in life."
That "balance" is also a part of the value of being a well-rounded individual, which Smith holds highly.
"I'm one of the luckiest guys on the planet to be coaching at Arizona State University," he said. "However, I see myself as more than just a baseball coach — I am a father, husband, hopefully a good friend. I've always said that when I'm dead, when someone looks at a picture of me, I want them to say, 'That was a good guy.' I don't care if they say, 'That was a good baseball coach.'"
In its first year at Phoenix Municipal Stadium after leaving its historic longtime home, Packard Stadium, ASU leads the Pac-12 in average home attendance with 3,281 fans per game — that is almost 700 more fans than the second-ranking Pac-12 school.
Smith said he has tried to connect to the fan base — in fact, he admitted that he probably worried about it too much when he took the job.
"I wanted to try to please everyone, and I'm respectful to all of our fans and donors," he said. "But at the end of the day, the people I need to be accountable to are myself, my family and my team."
Unlike many coaches, he has been vocal on social media, primarily Twitter. He said he it is fun to interact and be himself.
"I've always said that if I'm going to have a Twitter account, people are going to see me," Smith said. "I don't take myself too seriously. Some call me an idiot for responding to people on Twitter and some appreciate it, but love it or hate it, it's me."
“@ASU_Baseball: 14,050 fans at #PHXMuni over the past three days! THANK YOU #SunDevilNation! pic.twitter.com/qlGz0kjWsa” I second that!
— Tracy Smith (@ASUSkip) April 14, 2015
Junior starting pitcher Ryan Kellogg said it has been refreshing to have a coach who holds the team to the highest standard, pushing each individual to be better.
"He wants you to get better and it makes you want to get better to meet his expectations," he said. "In a program like this that's been so good historically, we all have those expectations."
Many players also noted an increased intensity compared to other years, which can be attributed to Smith's tough, hard-nosed coaching style.
"You notice it especially when we're in practice and he brings intent to everything we do instead of just going through the motions," Kellogg said.
Junior center fielder Johnny Sewald said this year's team is more focused than in years past, noting that it fully supports Smith's coaching style.
"As a collective group, we're into it more and we have a better feeling," he said. "With everyone in, we can beat anyone in the country."
He said Smith puts full faith in his players, which in turn gives them confidence.
"We as leaders take it upon ourselves to get the team to do its best and give its all," Sewald said. "It was pretty easy for him to get us to buy in because we had a bad previous couple of years and he has a good track record. He knows how to get there and that's one thing we realize — he's been there and done that before, so if we follow what he says, we're going to get there like he has in the past."
It's takes a village.... pic.twitter.com/LbSlfKO6Az
— Tracy Smith (@ASUSkip) April 12, 2015
Accountability
Perhaps the most important ideal Smith emphasizes is that of accountability. He said the ability to focus throughout a game, whether it be in a small or big situation, separates the good players and teams from the great ones.
"Baseball is an interesting sport because you're out here for three hours, but when the little, individuals battles that go on in a game are really maybe in a matter of seconds or maybe minutes, I don't think it's a lot to ask to lock-in as a concentration piece for that long," he said. "Demand that and you'll get it."
However, he said what separates his teams from others is how accountability is practiced. Instead of talking about it, the team models that type of behavior in everything it does to create a program-wide standard.
"Accountability is living up to the team standards that we have," Smith said. "It may be foreign when a freshman comes into the program or maybe even in this situation where you're taking over a program where it's new to everybody, but the things we talk about, stress and expect are the things that we model and live everyday too. Our culture and who we want to be on and off the field is pretty clear."
Often this season, ASU has fallen behind by a few runs. After the game, Smith is usually asked what he told the team when it trailed.
His normal answer goes something like this: "I didn't tell them anything because these guys are a mature group and they know how to handle situations like this."
This stems from an ideal many successful business hold regarding empowering employees.
"In the world that we live in, our 'employees' are student-athletes and if they don't feel vested in the process — I don't care how badly I want it, they want it, or the fans want it—it's not going to happen," Smith said. "That can't be just stuff that you say, you really have it do it so we don't try to over-coach or overthink."
However, the accountability spans past the diamond — Smith motivates his players to hold a work ethic that will help them succeed anywhere in life.
"I don't think you can just say it and then allow them to be one way outside of baseball," he said. "I think you have to hold them to a higher standard — you think you can be one way in your personal life and one way in your professional, you can short-term. But in the long term, it'll catch up to you."
He also said he often gets emails from his former players telling him how well he shaped them as young men off the field.
"There's no greater thing in the world," Smith said. "They say, 'I get it. I understand why you preached that.'"
Also, the Sun Devils are 11-5 in one-run games this year. Smith said the grittiness is a result of the team's even-keeled mentality, making sure never to get too high or low.
"The overall philosophy is that you can't get too excited or emotional in a close game," he said. "If you're focused on the task at hand, you're not worried about the score of pressure because you're focused on that specific part of the game. A lot of teams get tense in close games, but our guys keep playing because we preach not fearing the result."
Leadership
In the realm of college baseball coaches, Smith is viewed as one of the great leaders. Out of many leadership qualities, he put humility and confidence at the top of the list. Above all, he tries to lead by example.
"I can laugh at myself pretty easily, and I'd like to think that my guys see that I'm confident and hopefully it gives them confidence, he said. "I try to be fair and hold people accountable."
Many coaches learn from role models, whether it be a legendary player, coach or owner. However, Smith said he takes bits and pieces from many influential people, including those who are leaders outside of baseball.
"I had a lot of good role models or people that have influenced my career," he said. "I take a bit from different people whether it be my parents and how they brought me up, my wife, my professional baseball manager (Brad Mills), or even business people. I don't think there's any different in motivating a baseball team or employees of a company.
ASU baseball pitching coach Brandon Higelin, who was on Smith's coaching staff at Indiana, said Smith's attention to detail is unparalleled.
"The smallest thing I've learned from him is a big deal," he said. "If you take care of all the small things, nothing every becomes a big thing. You never miss little things and it helps you as a coach and a person."
He said Smith explains everything to the players, which makes it easier for them to buy into what he preaches.
"The difference in today's athletes from athletes back in the day is that everyone wants to know why you do something," Higelin said. "He'll explain what we're doing and why we're doing it and I think sometimes if you can't understand what we're doing after that, there's something wrong with you."
Of course, the previous success doesn't hurt either.
"He's turned around two programs and has taken schools to places that no one thought was possible," Higelin said.
Higelin said it seems like the team is taking on its head coach's personality.
"They're buying into working hard every day," he said. "No one is going to push you to do anything after college. For our players who want to get to the (MLB), that has to come from within, and I think he's trying to teach them how to get there."
Although he preaches success past baseball, Smith is producing on-field results, too, as the Sun Devils are a consensus Top-10 team according to various renowned national polls.
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or follow @justintoscano3 on Twitter.
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