- Mike Martin spent 47 years with Florida State as a player, assistant and head coach.
- Mike Martin retired with a record 2,029 wins with one NCAA tournament appearance during 40 years as head coach, but never won the College World Series.
- In 2021, Mike Martin was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia, the most common form of dementia behind Alzheimer’s disease.
Mike Martin — the legendary Florida State baseball coach whose consistency and all-time winning record are unmatched — died Thursday less than three years after being diagnosed with Lewy body dementia.
Martin was 79 years old.
Martin has been synonymous with FSU baseball for 47 years as a player, assistant coach and head coach, elevating the program to a national power and perennial contender despite never winning the College World Series.
When Martin retired after his 40th season at FSU in June 2019, he resigned as the winningest coach in college sports with a record of 2,029-736-4.
A statement from Martin’s family paid tribute to “a loving husband, father, grandfather and brother.”
“Mike Martin passed away peacefully and is now taking them to heaven,” they wrote. “The wins and losses weren’t about making a positive difference in people’s lives. Most of all, he wanted Seminole fans to be proud of his ‘boys’ on and off the field. And he wanted everyone who came through the FSU baseball program to prepare themselves for life through Christ. »
Reaction to the death of Mike Martin:Fans and rivals pay tribute to legendary FSU baseball head coach Mike Martin
In October 2023, in an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, Carol Martin – Mike’s wife of 58 years – publicly shared Martin’s dementia diagnosis for the first time. She also revealed that her husband was first diagnosed with the illness in the summer of 2021, two years after retiring.
Carol described how her husband experienced changes in attention, alertness, and behavior. The family worked with doctors and specialists to identify strategies to relieve Martin’s symptoms. He was a patient at a Tallahassee memory care center and had been in hospice care since mid-January.
She said her thoughts often turned to the diamond, adding that he sometimes shared baseball instructions with her.
“We laugh at some of the things that happen – even though it’s a tragedy,” Carol said. “You try to laugh to cheer yourself up. In his mind, in those moments, he’s fine and he’s still doing what he loves. We hope that in his mind he is happy and at peace.
Bill Smith, one of Martin’s closest friends and chairman and CEO of Capital City Bank Group, said Thursday, “What a great man, what a great life.” He is one of my best friends. We are lucky to have known him.”
Mike Martin Sr. led FSU baseball to the NCAA tournament for 40 years as head coach
Martin, nicknamed “Eleven” because of his jersey number, made a record 40 consecutive postseason appearances, won eight Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championships and appeared in 17 College World Series games, including its final season.
“Eleven” was also 11 days shy of its 80th birthday.
Martin has received numerous national honors and awards, and the field at Howser Stadium was dedicated in his name in 2005.
On January 5, Martin was recognized as the 2024 ABCA/Wilson Lefty Gomez Award recipient at the organization’s national convention in Dallas. The award is given to an individual who has made significant contributions to baseball.
Martin’s FSU teams won 40 or more games and made the NCAA Tournament every year. He was the head coach of the Seminoles beginning in 1980, succeeding Dick Howser.
Martin balanced his passion to win with his kindness.
“To say nothing was left unturned, there’s no way,” Martin told The Democrat in 2019. “I always want to feel like I gave every player everything I had. You always want to feel like you did your best.
Martin’s first victory as FSU coach was 9-8 at Miami on February 24, 1980; its last and 2,029th was 1-0 against Arkansas during the CWS on June 15, 2019 in Omaha, Nebraska.
“He built a legacy and a tradition there that is pretty unmatched,” former FSU All-American infielder (1999-2000) Marshall McDougall told the Democrat in 2018. “It’s impressive what he did it and how long he did it. He brought tons of great players there. I think that’s what you remember most, all the people who contributed. You remember all the good times. »
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Coach Mike Martin’s legacy includes Buster Posey and JD Drew among 4 Golden Spikes winners
More than 70 players coached by Martin at FSU, headlined by Buster Posey, JD Drew, Paul Wilson, Mike Loynd, Mike Fuentes and Doug Mientkiewicz, have been named All-Americans. Eight were named National Player of the Year, four won the Golden Spikes Award and two won the Dick Howser Trophy.
Posey, a Georgia native and three-time World Series champion while playing with the San Francisco Giants, called Martin “the best college baseball coach in history” and said, “It was just a dream come true reality of having the opportunity to put on this uniform. »
Martin’s son, Mike Martin Jr., coached under his father at FSU for 22 seasons before succeeding him as head coach for three seasons. Current FSU coach Link Jarrett also played and coached under Mike Martin.
During his opening 2024 press conference with media on Friday, Jan. 26, Jarrett unveiled a space dedicated to Martin in the program’s renovated traditional hall at Howser Stadium. The stadium pitch was named after Martin in 2005.
“This is the best uniform it’s ever been. The amount of wins, the way he handled himself,” Jarrett said of Martin. “I saw Carol and Mike last week (mid-January). Phenomenal human beings. (It) means everything to me, the program. And I wanted to have a dedicated space for him.”
Martin passed the late Augie Garrido (1,975) for the college baseball wins record with a 3-2 victory in 13 innings against No. 9 Clemson on May 5, 2018. On March 9, 2019, Martin became the first coach to reach 2,000 career wins with a 5-2 victory over Virginia Tech in the second game of a doubleheader.
“One time, after we beat Texas in the College World Series, we came out and shook hands after the game,” Mike Martin, Jr. told the Democrat in 2018. “I think one of the biggest compliment was when (Texas head coach) Augie Garrido said, ‘Mike, you’re so good you beat me with your guys and you could turn around and take my team and beat me with my team.’ I was surprised by this. I thought it was a pretty cool compliment when one of the greatest of all time said you’re so good you can do it different ways.
Martin’s Seminoles appeared in two national title games in 1986 and 1999, losing to Arizona 10-2 and Miami 6-5.
The 1970 FSU team led by Mike Stallings also reached the title game, losing to Southern Cal in 15 innings.
Mike Martin and his wife Carol Martin were an integral part of the Tallahassee community
Martin, a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, and Carol arrived in Tallahassee as newlyweds in 1964 – and never left.
“We fell in love with the state of Florida from day one,” Carol Martin told the Democrat in 2018. “When we arrived in Tallahassee for your honeymoon — seriously, we did — from the moment when he walked onto campus, he just loved everything about Florida. State. To this day, he is such a competitor that he wants Florida State to win every race, every game, every game. He is a die-hard fan at heart.
“After going to Florida State, he’s proud of it. He breathes garnet and gold, that’s for sure.”
Martin played center field for the Seminoles (1965-66), hitting .354 and helping the team reach the 1965 CWS. (He missed the CWS with a broken arm).
After Martin played minor league baseball for three seasons, he returned to Tallahassee as a coach and teacher in the Leon County school system. He also coached basketball at Tallahassee Community College (1970-71) for one season.
Martin returned to FSU as an assistant coach in 1974 under Woody Woodward. When Woodward left before the 1979 season, FSU hired former FSU All-American Dick Howser, who had been an assistant with the New York Yankees. When the Yankees hired Howser as manager in 1980, Martin stepped in as coach of the Seminoles.
His legacy will certainly live on, although Martin laughed and admitted that his beginnings may not have been synonymous with success. Martin and FSU lost their first two games in 1980 in Miami, 10-0 and 4-3 on a throwing error.
“That night — the first game I coached as head coach — I coached third base,” Martin told the Democrat in 2018. “We didn’t bring a man to third base . We got beat 10-0 (by Miami). I’m sitting there after the game and I’m like, “Is this what I signed up for?” That’s not really what I thought.
Forty years later, Martin has left an indelible mark on the game and on players.
“For me, when I came to Florida State, it really made me feel like I could compete,” said former FSU All-American outfielder (1999-2001) John Ford- Griffin to the Democrat in 2018. “He stuck to my game more than anyone. He made you believe you were good and he brought that out of you. You want to play for people like him. Wanting to play for him, wanting to win for him and how he impacted my game.”
In the classroom, Martin’s players have been selected to the All-Academic Team 72 times since its inception in 2006, while leading the ACC six times in 13 years. Three of Martin’s players have won the ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year five times, while his teams have twice received the ACC Sportsmanship Award.
Off the baseball diamond, Martin was an avid golfer.
“I want to be remembered as a guy who did things right, who prioritized education, who made sure guys understood what was expected of them, that they arrive…
2024-02-02 08:00:10
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