Riverdogs manager Zigler steps down

Almost every coach, when asked what he or she likes best about the role, will get a distant look in their eyes as they reflect on this most important of tasks.

And almost everyone will wax philosophically about working with the kids, seeing them grow and being part of something big in the lives of young athletes.

You could see that in the eyes of Clark Fork Valley Riverdogs head coach Jon Zigler any time he was in a Dogs uniform, watching over his team as they prepared to take on the next opponent.

Some, like Zigler, see even more.

“Baseball to me,” he said, “is almost romantic. Being on the field in the morning with freshly cut grass, a finely dragged infield, guys chalking the baselines, the players stretching and getting ready ... nothing like it.”

And when you can take a group of young people and be part of molding them into better players who understand the meaning and feeling of the game, that too is hard to top.

So, by all standards, this recently completed Legion baseball season, which came with the usual high and low situations coaches deal with, would have to rank right up there success-wise in the mind of a guy who loves the game and those who play it.

Now, after guiding this group of local athletes to a 23-23 season record against routinely higher level opponents, Zigler will take some time to step back from this most demanding and time-chewing occupation. When the Riverdogs fought to the last out in the recent Belgrade Legion tournament after knocking off the likes of Butte, Helena and host Belgrade along the way, it marked the end, at least for now of the baseball coaching romance Zigler has courted for years.

For now, because there is another Zigler on the way up through the baseball ranks, this one a seven-year-old grandson. With his son and outstanding player Nate having used up his last year of eligibility this season, Zigler is going to step aside from coaching.

But he will not be stepping away from a game that has been such an important part of his life for so many years.

“I’m done coaching for now,” he said. “I plan to umpire for both American Legion and Montana high school baseball next season. I have a 7-year-old grandson who’s playing at the Rookies level in Plains, so I wouldn’t rule out coming back to coach him in a couple years. This season was Nate’s last season. I would love to coach with my grandson in the future.”

You can probably bet on it.

This season, with players like Jack Taylor, Nate Zigler, Orion Plakke and Eli Ratliff among a solid group of hitters and pitchers, the Dogs showed right out of the gate in the early going that they had the makings of a tough team to play.

After dropping their season opener in Missoula, the Riverdogs, ranked as a Class B Montana Legion team, rebounded and upset the Class A Mavericks the next day. They would go on to play at or above .500 baseball for most of the rest of the season.

Along the way they faced the loss of Plakke, one of their best hitters and a multiple-role player who broke a bone in his hand. Another player left the team for personal reasons and several were out for a game or two with injuries or summertime obligations.

For the Riverdogs, that often meant playing with the bare minimum nine players available. Still they battled on, undaunted by supposedly higher ranked opponents. They picked up a signature win against Class AA Mead of the always tough Washington Legion scene.

“We always had the mindset that when someone goes down, it’s next man up,” he said at one point during the season. “No excuses here.”

A key to the success, observers would agree, is the general attitude of the players on the field and in the dugout. Morale which could have tanked, stayed high. The players remained ready to take on all comers, as they did in the season-ending Belgrade tournament during which the Dogs made it to the semi-final round.

“My basic philosphy is if you’re not having fun, get out of the game. Obviously winning is a goal, but when players get so consumed with winning that it robs them of the passion for playing the game, you really have to question priorities. Many times this season, the players and I have had to have a conversation about that, ”Zigler said.

At season’s end Zigler received two letters of thanks from families of players commending him for the positive effect he has had on their sons. One of the letters was particularly special.

“Your leadership and constant support helped him overcome some of his struggles this season,” said the letter writer, whom Zigler asked not be named. “You were one of the first to celebrate big when he succeeded but also to pick him up when he failed.”

The comments, which were given to Nate by a team parent, Zigler said, were the “proudest moment of my whole tenure as Riverdogs coach.”

“I guess in a lot of ways, a true measure of a coach’s success at this level is the impact you have on a player and their family,” Zigler continued. “Their were also comments from relatives of Jack Taylor. I’m sure one day I will meet his wife and kids, he will keep in contact with my family forever.”

Another measure, he said, goes back to the next player up attitude.

“Last season we started 0-14 before we won our first game. This season the boys expected to win every time they took the field. They believed they could beat anyone they played.”

That is the true measurement of coaching success...at any level.