Photo by Bob BakkenRust College baseball coach John Bates in his office on campus. The Bearcats recently won for Bates his career coaching victory number 100.
Bates hits 100 (victories)
At the baseball field at Rust College in Holly Springs, a recent victory meant more than another mark in the win column for the Bearcats.
It marked a milestone for head coach John Bates, who earned the 100th win of his college coaching career during a three-game series sweep against Oakwood University.
The milestone came in fitting fashion. Rust swept the series, including a shutout victory that secured the landmark win. The Bearcats opened with a dominant 20-5 win before battling through a tough final game to complete the sweep.
The moment carried extra meaning for Bates. The Oakwood head coach is the same mentor who helped bring him into the college coaching ranks.
“It was a full-circle moment,” Bates said.
Bates’ career record includes time at Lane College, where he collected his first 15 wins before joining Rust. Since arriving in Holly Springs, he has steadily built the Bearcat program.
His coaching journey hasn’t been without challenges. Early in his career, Bates said he quickly learned that coaching college baseball involved far more than strategy on the field. Recruiting, travel, scheduling and administrative work all became part of the job.
“It wasn’t the X’s and O’s,” he said. “It was learning everything else that goes with coaching at the college level.”
When Bates eventually took over as head coach, progress came gradually. One of his early teams won 17 games, and within a few years the Bearcats captured a conference championship in 2023. Rust followed that success with a 22-win season last year.
Bates believes building a successful program takes patience and leadership from within the team.
“It takes three to five years to build a culture,” he said, noting that veteran players help teach younger teammates the program’s standards.
While the wins continue to add up, Bates measures success in another way – through the accomplishments of his former players.
Some have gone on to medical school, engineering programs and military service. Others have become firefighters, coaches and business professionals.
“I treat these players like they’re my own children,” Bates said.
When asked how he hopes people will remember his time at Rust, Bates offered a simple answer.
“That I cared about my players, worked hard and loved this community,” he said. “If people say that, then I did my job.”