Bucksport High School softball coach Mike Carrier said he was “21 or 22” years old when his younger sister Julie approached him. She was crying.
“She told me if I didn’t coach her summer league softball team, she wouldn’t be able to play. She was 12 at the time,” recalled the 60-year-old Carrier, who agreed to coach.
Carrier had never been involved with a girls team. He had played baseball and football at Bucksport High School and had intended to play football at Castine’s Maine Maritime Academy only to suffer a career-ending knee injury his senior year.
His first softball practice was memorable.
“I hollered at a girl because she made a mistake and she laid down on the ground and cried,” chuckled Carrier. “It was a big learning curve. I learned real quickly.”
He coached summer league softball for several years until he received an opportunity to assist Bob Mercer, who was the Bucksport High School softball coach.
“I went to every clinic there was. Softball is a completely different game than baseball. I needed to learn how to teach pitching,” he said.
He learned a lot from Mercer even though they had different philosophies.
“Bob was very knowledgeable. He would beat you with pitching. I wanted more offense than he did,” said Carrier. “My teams have always worked hard on hitting.”
Mercer is now a well-respected pitching coach.
Carrier coached with Mercer for seven years and they captured Class B state championships in 1984, ‘86 and ‘87.
When Mercer stepped down, Carrier took the job.
That was 26 years ago. Carrier has carried on the winning tradition. He has led the Bucks to a 414-70 record, four state championships and 19 appearances in regional championship games.
Orono High School coach Kristen Espling, whose team recorded a rare victory over the Bucks on Wednesday, has known him for a long time. She played against him at Caribou High School.
“He has always been a respectable guy,” said Espling. “He knows the game and he takes care of his kids.
“He is one of my favorite coaches to talk to before a game and get caught up,” Espling added. “He is a legend in that town. He is totally committed to softball and the girls in Bucksport.”
Keeping up with the game
The reasons behind his success are his tireless thirst for knowledge and his progressive attitude.
“Softball is evolving every year,” he said. “I still go to as many clinics as I can. I try to learn new things every year. I’ll change the way I teach things if I find a better way.
“I also watch a lot of college softball games and I pick up a lot from them,” he added. “I learned a different way to throw a changeup.”
Carrier played the pitch back in slow motion “just to see how she threw it.” And he taught it to his pitchers.
“He is very open-minded,” said Lori Dorr, who played for Carrier in the early 1990s and is now one of his assistant coaches. “He will give things a try to see how they work out. If it’s going to be beneficial, he’ll go with it.”
During games, he constantly talks to his players. He encourages them as he stands with his scorebook in the third base coach’s box.
He does his homework. He makes it a point to know his opponents and their tendencies.
He says he doesn’t like to suggest to one of his players that she make a significant adjustment during a game.
“I’ll make a mental note of it and we’ll take care of it in practice,” he said. “Sometimes it takes a lot more than one practice to take care of it.”
Carrier said he gets the greatest pleasure out of seeing one of his suggestions help a player become successful.
“Seeing a kid being happy is what makes me happy,” he said.
His players enjoy playing for him.
“He’s a great coach and he got everybody excited about softball. I learned a lot from him,” Dorr said.
“Coach means everything to us,” said senior third baseman Julia Zavalza. “He supports us. We couldn’t play without him. He settles us down when we’re freaking out and brings us up when we’re down.”
Building skills and confidence
Carrier is a stickler for the fundamentals.
“Every year, we’ll go over and over things. You may think it’s boring but it really helps us in the long run,” said Zavalza.
“I’ve known him since third grade and he has always been a big supporter of us,” said senior first baseman Tyler Dupont. “He always has our backs.”
Senior center fielder Eliza Hosford said he pumps them up so that “we never lack confidence.
“And he never talks down to us,” Hosford added.
Dorr said the fact he keeps his kids upbeat and positive “stems from his passion for the sport. He loves it.”
“Over the years, you learn how to get the young ladies to be more positive about themselves — how to have more confidence,” said Carrier.
He said he doesn’t like to be “predictable” with his pitch selection.
“I’ve called three changeups in a row before,” said Carrier. “But you won’t see me calling changeups when the nNo. 9 hitter is up.”
His teams are always aggressive on the basepaths.
“I feel everything has to be a perfect throw in order to get some of my kids out,” said Carrier.
He is also unconventional at times. He will have five players in the infield and just two outfielders in certain situations.
Coaching and family ties
Carrier enjoys the fact he has started coaching girls whose mothers played for him.
And he is also pleased to see some of his players get into coaching, including current Husson University coach Terren Hall.
He feels strongly that in order to win a state championship, “you have to have two varsity coaches who think alike and can check each other.”
“I’ll ask [my assistant] if there is something going on I should know about,” said Carrier
He said he has been blessed by having top-notch assistant coaches such as Terry Hall, Terren’s father, and by having quality people involved in the feeder system such as Dorr, who runs the program for ages 7-12.
“It starts with great help. We have a great youth league program which is run by people who believe in what I believe in,” said Carrier.
Carriero worked for the Verso Paper mill for 41 years but the mill closed earlier this year so he is enjoying his retirement.
He and wife Charlotte have two sons, Matthew and Ryan, and a grandson Zak.
Carrier has no plans to leave coaching. He enjoys it too much.
“They’re going to have to take me off the field in a wheelchair,” he quipped.