Former Cobra’s success stems from Parkland

The Cobras baseball program has seen its share of successful African-American players. One of the most notable was class of 2003 outfielder Michael Coles from Hammond, Ind.

Coles' path to Parkland Baseball wasn't set in stone. At Hammond High School, Coles earned all state honors his senior season in both baseball as an outfielder and in football as quarterback.

Football was his first love, but his baseball success led him to be drafted into the MLB by the Baltimore Orioles in the 34th round of the 2001 draft. The Hammond star received many college scholarship offers but couldn't find one that allowed him to play both sports, so he was forced to make a choice. He decided on baseball.

"When I was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles and was given the visions of what could be if I focused on just baseball, I decided to pursue just baseball," Coles said about the decision.

Coles then had a pretty good idea about where he'd start his college baseball career.

"Once I decided to focus on one sport there was no better place to play baseball at than Parkland," he said.

One factor that helped in making his decision was Parkland's ongoing relationship with his native northwest Indiana area. Many of his good friends from there had already signed with Parkland. Coles admitted that knowing that made his college choice that much easier.

"I was excited about playing at Parkland just because I knew Parkland had some ties to the region," he said. It would become a decision that immediately benefited both Coles and Parkland.

The success he had in high school translated well on the college level. He was a key contributor to the 2002 Cobras squad that won the NJCAA World Series, and came back with a fourth place finish in the World Series in 2003. The Cobras went an astounding 105-23 during those two years while Coles hit for a combined average of .407 while amassing 161 hits.

His work on the field earned him team MVP in 2003 as well as third team All-American honors. Two of his statistical records, runs scored (138) and stolen bases (61) in a career, have yet to be broken.

He credits the Parkland baseball program and head coach at the time Dave Seifert with much of his success.

"We butted heads a lot, but not in ways to make us dislike each other," Coles said. "In ways that he wanted to make sure he got the best out of me because he saw potential and didn't want me to ever be content with any success."

The former Cobra star admitted that Seifert's coaching worked, "He did get through to me and I've told him this over the years."

Not only was the coaching staff beneficial to Coles at Parkland, but also the overall talent of the roster, which prepared him to put up those impressive numbers.

"The off-seasons were tougher than the actual season at Parkland just because the pitching you would face in pre-season from your teammates was tough," Coles said. This left him well prepared for the regular season.

"The talent at Parkland of the team I had was better than most Big Ten schools," Coles admitted.

The third team All-American admitted that the environment at Parkland is what allowed him to reach his many accomplishments.

"Coach Seifert, Rod Lovett and the staff and people of Parkland made me feel comfortable," he said. "This makes it easier for players to relax and play ball to the best of their abilities."

Coles did just that, setting precedents for future Cobra baseball teams to follow. Parkland Baseball has been to the World Series three more times since Coles' departure.

After his career at Parkland, Cole received and accepted a scholarship offer from Purdue University. From there, his career would continue to blossom as he became a key contributor for the Boilers, starting over 100 games and amassing 114 hits with a career .296 average in two seasons in the Big Ten.

His career would be slowed after his senior year due to tears in his hip and quadriceps but he didn't let that stop him.

"I sat a summer out, trained really hard and have been playing minor league ball since 2006 in still pursuing my dream of being a Major League Baseball player," he said.

The former Parkland star has kept that dream alive as he won four straight minor league championships in two different leagues from 2007-2010 while being named an All-Star once in each league.

The current minor leaguer not only left his mark on Parkland, but Parkland left him with something, too.

"My time at Parkland was the best of my life," Coles said. "Words just can't explain the fun or the love I have for my time at Parkland."

The Gary Railcats of the independent baseball league The American Association recently signed Coles, where he will begin the seventh year of his professional baseball career.