Birmingham Seaholm baseball hits turning point with new coach

Casey Goetz somehow went unnoticed. While the rest of the Birmingham Seaholm baseball team jogged to center field to snap a photo in front of the scoreboard after an 8-1 win over rival Birmingham Groves on April 30, Goetz hung back in the dugout, waiting for the coast to clear. The senior grabbed the Maples’ orange water bucket and crept toward the outfield, tiptoeing behind first-year coach Mike Nahtygal.

Just as Nahtygal turned to face photographer Chris Vecchio, Goetz sprinted up and dumped what was left of the ice water all over his back. Seaholm (9-10-2) was celebrating Nahtygal’s first series win over Groves, but the splash felt like a turning point. Nahtygal is the program’s third coach in as many seasons as it searches for stability.

Former coach John Toth Jr. led the Maples to their first Division 1 district title in 35 years in 2024 but stepped down after a regional final loss to eventual state runner-up Brother Rice. It’s been an up-and-down start for Nahtygal on Cranbrook Road, including error-filled losses where the Maples couldn’t keep pace, like an 8-5 defeat to Groves on April 27.

But they’ve since responded, beating the Falcons in back-to-back games, including an 18-2 win on April 28, to knot the series. Winning the deciding third game might prove that the future is bright. “To really come back and make a statement after giving away Game 1, when a couple of errors didn’t go our way, and we make a couple of mistakes, we really showed everybody that we are here to play hard,” Nahtgyal said.