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Weatherlys Cherishing Final Run Together
June 2, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
HOWELL – It’s not hard to pick out the Weatherly boys on a baseball field. Sam, the senior, is 6-foot-3. Ty, a junior, is an inch taller.
It’s a little tougher to realize Howell co-coach Mike Weatherly is their dad. He's shading just north of 6 foot.
But watch closely, and you’ll figure it out. Jason Ladd, the other half of the Highlanders’ varsity coaching pair, has seen it plenty of times.
“They’ve both got some of their dad’s athleticism for sure, seeing how he played four years at Central Michigan University and they won four MAC championships while he was there,” Ladd said. “He was a captain, and they get a lot of leadership quality from their dad.
“But it’s unique in the fact that they’re able to be so respectful. Sometimes when you get parents who are coaches, (the kids) aren’t respectful. But they’re both totally respectful to their dad, appreciative of what he does, and you can tell there’s a lot of love beyond being the son of the coach.”
It’s a lot of fun at the Weatherly house these days. But really, it’s been that kind of spring as Mike gets one final chance to coach both of his youngest sons on a team that could do some damage when Howell begins Division 1 District play today at Dexter.
Sam Weatherly is arguably the top high school baseball player in Michigan this season. A lefty, he hits 92 mph on the mound, and he’s signed to continue his career at Clemson University – which currently is playing in the NCAA Regionals.
Ty is finishing his first year of varsity ball, but coming on strong. A righty, he throws in the mid 80s and no-hit reigning Division 2 runner-up Linden a week ago.
They’re the youngest two of four athletic children Mike and Marybeth (Chappelle) Weatherly have raised. Bobby, 25, played baseball at Howell and Muskegon Community College, while Tess is three years older than Sam and plays basketball at Northern Michigan University.
It’s a question Mike can’t help but get asked – how do you go about raising such a talented bunch? There are some pointers to be offered there. But right now, the focus is just on enjoying every moment they can share.
Following Mom and Dad's lead
Mike Weatherly was a shortstop at Central Michigan University – and a really good one, in fact.
So it makes sense that when he describes how his wife-to-someday-be flipped through the air in front of him back then, he calls it an “Ozzie Smith” in reference to the acrobatic Hall of Fame shortstop of St. Louis Cardinals lore.
He also knew at that moment that she was the one – or at least one he was interested in knowing better.
According to a Detroit Free Press report when she was a track star at Sterling Heights Stevenson, Marybeth had grown up in gymnastics and also was a cheerleader. She got into track later, but some of her school records still stand, Mike said. And because of her genes, her boys stand tall – the height is from her side of the family, as is their speed and a dose of their toughness.
“My mom had three older brothers. She’s been raised with wolves, and with us, she treats us the same way,” Sam said. “Crybabies never really happened in our house. You have to have a hard nose in this family."
All four clearly have used those physical gifts to their advantage – Sam and Ty most recently in helping Howell to a 26-9-1 record.
Sam is hitting .500 with 15 doubles, three home runs and 29 RBI, and he’s stolen 16 bases. He’s also 5-1 on the mound with a 0.73 ERA and 61 strikeouts in just more than 38 innings pitched. He’s given up 19 hits and four runs total this spring.
Ty – who grew four inches just over the last year – is finishing up his first varsity season strongly. He has thrown 35 innings and is 5-0 with a 2.00 ERA and 30 strikeouts.
When Sam was 6, he asked his dad about college baseball. Ever since, Sam wanted to be a baseball player. He chose jersey number 6 because it was Mike’s; he’s worn it since.
Sam and Ty always were together as the two youngest kids, and played on the same teams for about five years with Mike as their coach.
“They were fortunate to be born with some coordination, and worked at it. And they had good youth experiences, playing Little League … we let them develop at their own pace, and I think that’s the key,” Mike said.
“There was no extra coaching going on. If you look at their innings pitched, they were really green; they didn’t throw a lot. Sam played freshman baseball (instead of varsity). I think this generation of people push too hard too early. If we did one thing right, that’s it, that’s really it. You have to go out and have fun and enjoy it. Because it can get ugly if you don’t.”
Sharing the fire
Ladd spun a bit of a phrase in describing Sam and Ty. He said they are nothing alike, but just like their dad. And, strange as that might sound, he’s right.
Ty might be the jokester, but Sam is the talker of the two, even if he’s a little more serious. Mike, meanwhile, recalled how his CMU teams were referred to as the “mouths of the Midwest,” but not him – he kept quiet and played, and Ty is much the same.
And yet, competitive fire, however the sons show it, reminds Ladd of their dad.
Ty indeed is more like Mike in that he keeps it under the surface. That’s not to mistake either as calm; it’s just the intensity doesn’t necessarily come with a voice.
Sam’s intensity, on the other hand, “is way out there.” Ty said this perhaps a little tongue-in-cheek – but he also knows that after a bad loss, his brother holes up in his room until morning.
“He gets really ticked off,” Ty said. “He hates it. He wants to win at everything.”
And Ty admires his brother’s work ethic in trying to attain that goal. So much so, he’d love to see his brother go out in a couple weeks as the last one standing on the mound at Michigan State’s McLane Stadium, putting the finishing touches on a championship.
“I know this season has meant a lot to him, and he really, really wants that state championship,” Ty Weatherly said. “I know if he went out there and got that W for us, it would be really special to him.”
Here and now
It would be easy for Sam to look ahead. He wouldn’t have to look far.
Whenever Howell’s season does end over the next three weekends, he’ll officially become a member of the Clemson baseball program.
In a little more than a week, on June 12, the Major League Baseball draft will begin. He has a legitimate shot of being selected the second day, sometime during rounds 3-10.
But that’s not where his head, or rather feet, are today – or will be until the Highlanders have done everything possible to win their first MHSAA baseball championship.
And that’s not just saying the right thing because Dad is the coach. It’s especially apparent in his relationship with Ty – with all of this going on in Sam’s life, he’s still watching his brother’s moves on the diamond, ready with a few words of wisdom when they can help. Sam has gotten a lot of coaching from great sources the last few years, and through him Ty has been a recipient as well.
“I really care. I care about the team first, and personal accolades follow that,” Sam said. “You should be where your feet are, and my feet right now are in high school with my high school team, and that’s my first priority.”
But …
“All of it kinda hits me off the field,” he added. “I use baseball and friends to get away from it. It’s fun, but I’m very anxious at the same time.”
Howell has eluded a state ranking despite recent wins over No. 5 Birmingham Brother Rice, No. 9 Sterling Heights Stevenson and ranked Division 2 teams Linden and Fowlerville.
With No. 10 Brighton being upset by Ann Arbor Skyline in a Pre-District game Tuesday, today’s possibilities got a lot more interesting. Not that anyone is looking ahead or expecting to win. But simply forecasting from the outside, there are opportunities to keep this thing together a little while longer – especially with a ranked rival no longer in the field.
Mike knows the way. He coached Hartland to the MHSAA Semifinals in 2000, and with Ladd led Howell to the final weekend in 2012 and 2013. Those runs had to be a little bit different, of course; now he's writing his sons into the lineup at this most exciting time of the season.
“We’re trying to enjoy every moment and slow it down because it’s going to be gone before we know it,” Mike Weatherly said. “It’s exciting, but I’ll admit it’s a little stressful too.
“There’s a lot riding on stuff, but at the end of the day things will work out the way they work out. We’ll keep plugging away. All we’re trying to do is win a championship, try to win their last game, and that’s been our focus.”
Geoff Kimmerly joined the MHSAA as its Media & Content Coordinator in Sept. 2011 after 12 years as Prep Sports Editor of the Lansing State Journal. He has served as Editor of Second Half since its creation in Jan. 2012. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for the Barry, Eaton, Ingham, Livingston, Ionia, Clinton, Shiawassee, Gratiot, Isabella, Clare and Montcalm counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Sam Weatherly, middle, stands with parents Mike (also his coach at Howell) and Marybeth. (Middle) Ty Weatherly shares a fist bump with his dad after reaching base. (Below) Sam Weatherly begins to unwind toward the plate during a game this season. (Photos by Andrea Leon.)
![Grandville baseball](/sites/default/files/2021-04/210416_Verburg_2H.jpg)
Grandville Backstop Home Again Behind the Plate
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
April 16, 2021
GRANDVILLE – Spencer Verburg understands his position on the baseball diamond isn’t the most glamorous.
It doesn’t bother the Grandville senior standout one bit.
In fact, he takes pride in his role as one of the top catchers in the Grand Rapids area.
“I like to do the dirty work,” said the 6-foot-2, 200-pound Verburg, who recently signed with Central Michigan University. “Not many people want to do that, and everyone wants to be a shortstop or center fielder where you look cool and get the girls.
“I feel like a team can't take it to the next level without a dude behind the plate that is willing to block and get down and dirty to help the pitchers look pretty.”
Verburg is a defensive stalwart who embraces the opportunity to help his pitching staff.
“I like receiving because I’m able to stick pitches that other catchers would drag out of the zone,” Verburg said. “It’s such a confidence booster when you stick and steal one and it can change the whole game because your pitcher gains the confidence he needs and then he starts rolling.
“I’ve always focused on defense because it's hard to find good catchers out there. I feel like so many people have focused on hitting, so I focused on catching where I knew not as many people would focus on.”
Verburg’s prowess and maturity was on display in Grandville’s first tournament of the season last weekend.
Bulldogs head coach Matt Cook was impressed by Verburg’s ability to block out his offensive struggles and remain focused on his catching duties.
“He didn’t have a great day at the plate and I sent him a text telling him that the way he talked to our younger pitchers, the way he carried himself behind the plate and the way he talked to umpires is going to pay such dividends in the long run,” Cook said. “He didn’t let the other things bother him at all.”
Verburg is thrilled to be back on the field with his teammates after the pandemic wiped out his junior season.
Last year was a challenging time for all spring sports athletes in the state.
“It hit hard because baseball is such a big part of my life,” Verburg said. “I didn’t get to play with my teammates and see them every day. There weren’t any places to work out or throw or hit because so many places were shut down because of COVID.”
The Bulldogs had just wrapped up tryouts before they found out the season would be put on pause. It eventually turned into a cancellation.
“There was no way I thought they were going to cancel the season, and we thought we would just wait it out for a couple weeks,” Verburg said. “It felt like it dragged out, and eventually we sensed that we wouldn’t be playing at all.”
Verburg had mixed emotions because he knew he had another year of high school baseball.
On the other hand, he knew that wouldn’t be the same for his senior teammates.
“I felt really bad because I’ve been playing with those guys since I was a freshman, and I’ve been through so much with those guys,” he said. “It was hard to not be able to go out and play that last season with them and know they were not going to enjoy senior night and everything else.”
“It was heartbreaking for everyone around the state and the country,” Cook added. “Guys like Spencer and others who had been waiting in the wings and they knew they were going to be day-one starters and play every single inning. And then for the season to get canceled ... I know it was really tough on those guys.”
Cook saw a noticeable difference in his players’ preparation upon learning of their return this spring.
“They have been so locked in this year, and I think a lot of it is because they lost a year and are not taking anything for granted,” Cook said. “We’ve had our best practices so far this year than we’ve had in my four years here.
“Guys are more locked in because of that missed year. They don’t take practice for granted, and they want to be there.”
Verburg feels blessed to have the opportunity to play in his final season.
“I’m so thankful because last year it was obvious to everyone that things can be taken away so fast,” Verburg said. “This is the first year I’ve been able to play with all the guys I grew up with since kindergarten. It’s nice to go out and play the game that we love together and just have fun doing it.”
Verburg has been on the varsity since he was a freshman. As a sophomore, he spent time playing behind then-senior Jake Paganelli.
The following offseason, playing with his Diamonds travel team, Verburg began to show promise at the plate.
The combination of defense and hitting helped him earn interest from college scouts.
“Things just started to click for me at the plate,” Verburg said. “It’s this feeling you have when you step up to the plate and you knew you were not going to strike out. You knew you were going to find a way on base no matter what pitcher was out there and no matter what situation it was.”
Verburg fit in right away as an incoming freshman on varsity.
“He was business-like then, and had goals early,” Cook said. “We recognized him as a kid that was only going to work and work and work, It’s rare when you find a freshman that carries himself the way he did. He carried himself like an upperclassman.”
The Bulldogs possess a lot of potential this year after winning 24 games in 2019.
“I think we’re being slept on, but we're scrappy,” Verburg said. “I think we can make a deep run in the tournament.”
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for four years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Grandville catcher Spencer Verburg gets ready for another inning behind the plate during his team’s doubleheader against Grand Ledge earlier this month. (Middle) Verburg signs with Central Michigan in November. (Below) The then-sophomore drives a pitch for the varsity in 2019. (Photos courtesy of the Verburg family and Grandville baseball program.)