The Year God Took the Bat Out of My Hands - Part 4 — Mike Zatopek
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Part 4
Driving back to Austin after giving my life to Christ, I felt like a different man. For the first time in years, the anger and bitterness I had carried no longer owned me. That freedom changed everything—including my baseball career. After a mediocre fall, something clicked. In our Fall World Series I hit over .400 with a couple of home runs and settled into center field, where I would play that spring. Early in the season I platooned across the outfield and was the designated hitter, but right before conference play Coach Gus told me I’d earned a starting spot. A knee injury to our center fielder pushed me into the lineup full‑time, and I started strong against Baylor. By mid‑conference I was leading the Southwest Conference (SWC) in hitting and felt on top of the world.
Then a low‑grade fever slowed me down, and I spent the final week of the season in the hospital having a cyst removed. I listened on the radio as my teammates clinched the SWC Championship. Even so, I was humbled to be named First Team All‑SWC and First Team NCAA All‑District VI. I returned for the playoffs, made the All‑Region Team, and helped us reach the championship game of the NCAA Central Region.
It was surreal. A year earlier I’d been kicked off a junior college team. Now I was winning honors alongside future big leaguers. Though scouts told me I might be drafted, my late‑season illness changed their plans. I was disappointed, but I trusted God’s timing. Coach Gus upgraded my scholarship and challenged me to lead the next year’s team to a national title.
That summer I played in Colorado with future stars like Joe Carter, Alvin Davis, Spike Owen, and Bobby Meacham. I was the only starter who never made the majors, but the experience was unforgettable. Homesick, I returned to Texas and helped an Austin team win the state championship and reach the national tournament. Even when Kevin McReynolds robbed me with a game‑saving catch, I could smile—God had brought me so far.
But the greatest blessings weren’t athletic. Through the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, I built friendships with guys like Joe Shearin and Robert Brewer, who even bought me my first Ryrie Study Bible. John Henderson from Athletes in Action discipled me deeply, grounding my faith and reshaping my priorities. That season of growth eventually led me from the church of my childhood into a Bible‑based fellowship—a painful transition for my mom, but one she later came to appreciate as she saw God changing my life, especially in how I related to my dad and siblings.
My senior year brought more highs, injuries, a College World Series run, and another draft disappointment. But I have never regretted any of it. Baseball gave me memories. Some would say I should be disappointed that I didn’t go further in baseball but I could never have any regrets because God had some amazing things ahead for me in my life.
Jesus gave me a new life. Glory to God for His goodness.
