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Emanuele Has Made Baseball Important At Stevenson

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STERLING HEIGHTS - When Joe Emanuele became the head baseball coach at Sterling Heights Stevenson in 1998, things were much different.

“When I first got there it was very much a powerhouse football school,” reflected Emanuele, an assistant football coach at Stevenson as well at that time. “It was a football school with baseball an afterthought. But as a baseball coach, I wanted to make it every bit as good or equal to football.”

More than 500 wins later … mission accomplished.

“One of the things I thought about when I started in 1998 was about changing the culture of the program,” explained Emanuele, who was an assistant baseball coach for five combined years at East Detroit, Avondale and Eisenhower prior to coming to Stevenson. “I did a lot of research on successful programs and I researched coaches.”

It brought out an early goal that was just reached earlier this season.

“That was kind of a benchmark for me,” Emanuele said about 500 coaching wins.

Less than 50 have ever done it in the state of Michigan. Emanuele is one of 16 active coaches that has reached the coveted mark, with Pat O’Keefe of Grand Ledge the all-time leader followed closely by Larry Tuttle of Blissfield, both still coaching today.

“I love the game, that hasn’t changed a lot,” the 51-year-old pointed out. “I love coaching baseball, it’s my passion.”

To do it at his alma mater with so much success makes it even more special.

“I went to Stevenson and played baseball and football there,” noted the 1986 high school graduate, who played baseball for coach Glenn Patterson at Stevenson.

It did not take Emanuele long to make an impact once in charge of the program.

“In 2000 we got on the map,” Emanuele remembered. “We won districts, that helped turn the corner. We went on to the regional finals. That’s when the culture turned.”

In his time at Stevenson, Emanuele has led the Titans to a dozen district and league titles. There have been six regional championships in the last dozen years. There have been three Final Fours and a 2005 state title.

But there is more than just winning that is satisfying to Emanuele, who in 2015 was inducted into the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

“The best thing … the most gratifying to me is to see guys graduate and come back and have a relationship with them,” explained Emanuele, who had led Stevenson to seven consecutive Macomb Area Conference Red Division titles before last season. “Whether it’s on social media or talking, we share a bond that we’ll take with us to our grave.”

There have been some changes the veteran coach has seen along the way on the diamond.

“The game has definitely changed,” Emanuele said. “When I started bats were minus-five. There were some very good, dominate pitchers that had an ERA of 4-something. Minus-five bats made the game dangerous. But now they’ve gone completely the other way.

“Open enrollment has also made a huge difference. Another big thing today, everybody has a hitting coach and a pitching coach. There’s launch angle, and there’s video now. Everybody is working with somebody in the winter. If you don’t, you’re not going to make the team. It’s just different how people approach the game.

“It’s all good, but it’s also bad sometimes,” Emanuele continued. “Kids are stronger today, that’s a good part of it. But as far as organizing your own pickup game, that doesn’t happen.”

The players are also different.

“Kids don’t watch baseball as much as they used to, so you have to be sure to teach them the right way,” Emanuele noted. “They train more now, but they don’t play baseball as much.”

The desire to excel has always been there in players, maybe more so now than ever before which can also affect today’s player.

“If a kid is not working hard he’s going to get passed up,” Emanuele said. “That’s the way it is here. It’s competitive. To be successful at Stevenson, if you don’t get on board to what we’re doing then you’re going to get passed up.”

Success continues today for the Titans, which are currently 13-3 on the season, giving Emanuele an overall record of 506-294 at the school.

“What I want to be remembered by as a coach, is that the kids played hard for me,” pointed out Emanuele, who has plans to continue coaching baseball for another decade … and likely much more. “I want to be remembered as someone who was respected and was fair to the kids … that we played the game the right way.”

A number of former players for Emanuele have gone on to coach in the sport, thanks in part to Emanuele as well as his assistant coaches. Matt Paddock has been a varsity assistant for 22 years, with D.J. Hill another assistant that has helped make coaching at his alma mater even more memorable for Emanuele.

“This has been a dream job for me,” Emanuele admitted. “I always wanted to go back to where I played at to coach. I take a lot of pride in this school. Baseball won the league when I played here and football was undefeated twice. I just wanted to make baseball important at Stevenson while at the same time making memories.”

Mission accomplished.