Nick Brannan has been around Crane baseball for about 13 years - first as bat boy at about age 11, then as center fielder and pitcher for the Pirates, in high school, before graduating in 2019, and later returned to coach the junior high team. This fall he takes over the high school program.

"Crane baseball has been a big part of my life," Brannan said. "So getting the opportunity to lead the program is special."

He inherits the reins at an unsettled moment, and says so plainly. Brannan is the program's third head coach in two years, following Lucas Vert, who left for the athletic director position at Aurora. In recent years, participation has fallen off.

Brannan's answer is a phrase he has turned into the program's mentality: "Earn it back."

"Respect isn't something we expect anybody to give us because of what Crane baseball used to be," he said. "We have to earn it back. We want to earn back the expectation that when another team sees Crane on the schedule, they know they're going to have to play good baseball to beat us."

A roster he already knows

Whatever else is unsettled, Brannan begins with something unusual for a first-year head coach. He has already coached nearly every player on his roster.

"Every player we have this fall except one has played for me at least one season before," he said. "Some of them I've coached for three or four years."

The familiarity runs both directions, he said. The players already know what he expects and how he communicates; he knows what brings the best out of each of them.

Changes coming

Brannan is careful about the program he came up in. His head coach was Bryan Harmon, a familiar name in the area. Harmon was inducted into the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in January. Brannan says Harmon brought him on as a bat boy at about 11, before he was old enough to play.

"Coach Harmon ran a successful program and was an excellent teacher of the game," Brannan said. What he took from him was the teaching - "the rules, situations, strategy, and all the little details that can win or lose games."

He is, however, planning substantial change.

"There are going to be a lot of changes," he said, listing hitting philosophy, defensive philosophy, practice structure, and situational approach. "I want us to become a much more fundamentally sound and intelligent baseball team. We're going to emphasize understanding why we do things instead of players simply being told where to stand or what to do."

The numbers question

Crane's baseball participation has been down in recent years, and Brannan does not expect familiarity alone to reverse it.

"With football getting started, there is more competition for athletes, and as kids move from junior high to high school they naturally develop other interests," he said.

"Our job is to create a baseball program that kids want to be a part of. If we build a competitive environment, make practices meaningful, and make playing Crane baseball something they can be proud of, I believe the numbers can grow."

What success looks like

Asked what a good first season would be, Brannan did not lead with a record.

"Success to me would mean becoming a team that can compete with anybody we play," he said. "Obviously everybody wants to win, but I'm also looking at whether each player is reaching more of his potential, whether we're playing intelligent baseball and whether teams know they have to play well when they see Crane on the schedule. If we accomplish those things, the wins will follow."

He points to the same group's junior high season under him as evidence of what it can look like.

"They're and older and stronger now," he said. "My expectation is that we can get back to being that kind of team, one that is capable of giving anybody we play a problem. We still have to earn that. Potential doesn't win baseball games. But I believe the ability is there."

Asked what he would say to players and parents looking for a long-term coach, Brannan pointed to what he can control.

"My focus is on making sure the program is better because I was here," he said. "Whether I'm the person leading it for a long time or I help build the foundation for whoever eventually does, I want the next chapter of Crane baseball to start from a much stronger position than where we are today."

Crane kicks off its season at the Galena Jamboree on Aug. 24.