Successful Coaches: Michael Barta

To be the head coach of a team, one needs to have a good work ethic and a vast knowledge about baseball. From making practice plans to deciding final line-ups, every little decision can determine a team's success. In this article, the head coach of the Johnston Dragons, Michael Barta, discusses his time as a head coach, how he got there, the upcoming season, and what it means to be successful.

Successful Coaches Series
Presented by Chloe Williams- PBR Iowa Intern (2021-2022)

Michael Barta, Head Coach, Johnston Dragons

Barta has been the head coach of the dragons for the past 11 years. He played high school baseball in Carroll at Kuemper Catholic and got recruited to Buena Vista University. After he was done playing he coached for a year. Then he ran the Newell-Fonda program for a year. After that he became an assistant coach for Johnston and then a couple of years later he became head coach.

Looking at what makes a team successful Barta talks about creating a positive atmosphere. He says, “I think the ultimate goal being a coach is you're creating an environment where kids would love to be. They have this positive energy that leads to the work ethic and growth, and then that growth leads to winning.”

When talking about the team's culture Barta discuss how it changes every year for the better. He says, “Every year is like almost a reset. We hope that our senior year from the previous year had left the jersey in a better place. But then you start over with a brand new group of leaders. Then their growth as leaders will determine your success and your culture. Because culture is formalized by all of the people, not just the coach. So we do a lot with our leaders to try to promote good practices and good culture.”

He continues to talk about this team's impact on the Johnston environment. “This senior group that we have right now, I think has done a phenomenal job at building our culture and starting the process of hopefully leaving this Jersey in a better place than the current.” 

Preparing for this season has been about research and development for the dragons. “Researching how we can make sure that what we're doing is right for kids. I really liked some of the changes we've made. I love what we do offensively. I feel very good about our developmental process and how we've worked this off season. So now it's about: Can we convert all of the development into competing and winning?”

Looking at this upcoming season Barta says, “I look forward to the challenge of being relevant every single year. I'm looking forward to having some of our players make insane growth that nobody saw coming and to be a force for our team. And people didn't even know who they were.”

He continues, “That's the sign of development. Four years of growth that you have these kids waiting and working, and when their time comes, they're ready. And it doesn't matter that they aren't a big name in the state. They will be by the end of the year. So I'm ready for that challenge this year.” 

However, there are some difficult decisions that have to be made. Barta says, “I lose a lot of sleep over lineup decisions. I'm not a guy that can simply put nine guys out there and not feel for the kid. You put in your time and work and truly grow as a player and a person. I want to play all of those kids.”

Barta has had a great amount of success with the Johnston team and this year will be no exception. Him and the Dragons are looking forward to playing a great season of baseball.

Chloe Williams is currently a senior at Johnston High School and has been working for Prep Baseball Report Iowa as an intern since September 2021. She has been managing the Johnston baseball team since she was a sophomore and has also worked for the Iowa Sticks team as a data collector. In the fall, she plans on going to the University of Iowa to major in data science.

PBR Iowa strives to be the most comprehensive source of player information across the state. The Prep Baseball Report is the No. 1 resource for high school baseball in each state we cover through our variety of events, boots-on-the-ground scouting staff, daily coverage, and multimedia platforms. Our multimedia platforms and events work in tandem, ultimately creating the most powerful source of high school baseball promotion in each state.  While other organizations take a national approach, our goal is to become the authoritative voice on the ground level of each state.

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