Twenty-seven coaches convened at the New York Athletic Club on June 29, 1945 for the first-ever ABCA meeting. The inaugural meeting consisted of presentations urging college coaches to organize so they could better promote the game, help gather national statistics and cooperate with professional baseball. It was determined that the organization would have members and each year the organization would hold a convention for its members. The name of this new organization: the American Association of College Baseball Coaches (AACBC).
Since that time, the AACBC has transitioned to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and the membership has grown to include all amateur baseball coaches. Additionally, a Lifetime Membership has been added for any coach who has been a member of the organization for 35 consecutive years. Lifetime members no longer have to pay annual dues to the association and are automatically renewed every Sept. 1.
Today, the ABCA consists of over 8,300 member coaches. There are currently 374 Lifetime ABCA Members and 36 of those members have been in the organization for over five decades! These are the coaches that have paved the way for the association's growth and helped shape it into what it is today.
Three Lifetime ABCA Members have been involved in the organization since nearly the beginning. Bud Daniel, former head coach at University of Wyoming, Jack Kaiser, former player and head coach at St. John's University, and Tom Petroff, former head coach at Rider University and University of Northern Colorado, are the three ABCA Lifetime Members with over 60 continuous years of membership.
Daniel joined the ABCA in 1952, just seven years after its inception. Daniel, now the longest-tenured member with 65-continous years of membership, guided Wyoming to four Mountain States Conference Championships and the school's only College World Series appearance in 1956 as a coach.
Although Daniel has seen the organization grow exponentially, the 1963 ABCA President said, "Time moves on, but some things will never change." The 1993 ABCA Hall of Fame inductee added, "Those friendships formed since the early 1950s remain an integral part of who I am. The accomplishments and admiration of those that have passed on to the 'big diamond in the sky' will live forever in the history of the ABCA and my heart."
Just a year after Daniel, in 1953, former St. John's University head coach, Jack Kaiser, became a member for the first time. Kaiser, now a 64-year continuous member, led the Red Storm to three College World Series appearances in 1960, 1966 and 1968 as a coach.
"I love the ABCA. The special thing about our association is that it teaches baseball and it also teaches ethics," said the former ABCA/Wilson Lefty Gomez Award recipient and 1989 ABCA Hall of Fame inductee. "Being in the association and meeting all the great people involved in it has made me a better coach and a better person."
A few years later, Tom Petroff joined the association alongside Daniel and Kaiser. The now 61-year continuous member is still one of just two coaches to lead two different schools to the College World Series (Rider in 1967 and Northern Colorado in 1974).
Petroff got started with the organization when "John Kobs, one of the ABCA founding fathers, pulled me in," Petroff reminisced. The 1986 ABCA HOF inductee added, "From that moment, I began making lifelong friends that I still stay in touch with today."
Daniel, Kaiser and Petroff along with their peers are a major reason why the American Baseball Coaches Association has become the No. 1 amateur baseball coaching association in the world! The annual convention and networking opportunity has grown from 27 coaches at the first meeting in 1945 to over 5,600 coaches in attendance at the 2016 convention in Nashville.
"I can remember going to the convention way back when," said Petroff. "That's where my growth as a coach began. I'd get into the hospitality rooms with other coaches and soak in their knowledge."
"I never left the meetings without having learned something new from one of them," added Daniel. "We were competing coaches on the diamond, but part of the same team when needed by the association to help with a project or travel to conduct clinics and promote the game."
In addition to the convention, the association now has year-round member benefits including coaching publications, liability insurance coverage and a member discount program among other benefits.
"The organization does a great job of sharing new ideas on how to teach the game and life values," said Kaiser. "We have to continue to develop sports and specifically baseball to teach life values."