For Jeremy Swanson, baseball has always been about more than what happens between the lines.

Born and raised in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, Jeremy grew up as a multi-sport athlete, with baseball becoming a constant throughout his life. His playing days took him from Little League and Babe Ruth through Legion baseball and into Town Ball and amateur competition. And while his competitive baseball days may be behind him, legend has it you can still catch him roaming a slow-pitch softball field a few times each year.

That lifelong connection to the game eventually brought Jeremy into coaching. Now with four years of youth baseball coaching experience, he has found a new appreciation for the sport—not simply by teaching young athletes how to play, but by helping them discover everything the game can teach them.

“An athlete's immediate goal is obviously to improve their skills, compete to the best of their abilities, and win,” Jeremy said. “But while doing that, so many important life-related lessons sneak in along the way.”

Discipline. Patience. Dedication. Perseverance. Teamwork. Respect. Learning from failure.

To Jeremy, those aren't just ingredients for becoming a better baseball player. They're qualities that help young athletes become better people.

“Much like life, you never know when the ball is going to be hit to you,” he said, “but you absolutely need to know how to react when it happens.”

Jeremy describes his coaching philosophy as “old school,” built around three messages his players have probably heard more times than they can count: practice how you want to play, trust your teammates, and pick each other up.

With only a few hours of practice each week, Jeremy believes every drill and every repetition matters. Players who learn to practice with focus and intensity are better prepared to bring those same qualities into a game.

Trust is equally important. Baseball may be filled with individual statistics, but Jeremy reminds his players that it takes an entire team to win. Every player has to trust that when the ball finds a teammate, that teammate is ready.

And when things don't go as planned, the response matters.

Dropped pop-ups happen. So do strikeouts, missed ground balls and throws to the wrong base. Jeremy wants his players to understand that failure isn't something to fear—it's part of baseball.

“It's vital to pick your teammate up, stay positive, and remind them they will get another chance to make that play or get that hit,” he said. “Baseball always has a funny way of giving you another shot.”

Ask Jeremy about his greatest coaching influences, and his answer isn't a famous manager or former coach.

It's his players.

Jeremy has been fortunate to coach a core group of returning athletes throughout his four years. Watching them develop, work hard and enjoy the game has reminded him of his own baseball days and the friendships that came with them.

In the process, the players have taught their coach something, too.

“The greatest lesson they have taught me is to remember what it is like being present in a moment and truly enjoy what you are doing, right there and then.”

That perspective carries beyond the baseball field.

Jeremy graduated from Moorhead State University—and he’ll quickly tell you he still refuses to call it MSUM—with degrees in Criminal Justice and Sociology. While his career path has taken a few turns since then, he now works as a Healthcare Software Manager.

Away from work and baseball, family remains an important part of Jeremy’s life. He has three children—two daughters and a son—and enjoys spending time with his wife, Sam. In his free time, Jeremy can often be found hunting, fishing, tackling DIY projects, or coaching basketball during the winter months.

But baseball continues to hold a special place in his life.

Jeremy isn't measuring his coaching legacy in wins, trophies or statistics. His hope is much simpler—and perhaps much more meaningful.

“If the boys can remember me, or at the very least some of the things I taught them, by the time they are playing catch with kids of their own, that would be a legacy to hang my hat on.”

Years from now, his players might not remember the score of a particular game. They may not remember their batting averages or every great play they made.

But if they remember to prepare with purpose, trust the people beside them, pick someone up after a mistake and be ready when their opportunity comes, they'll remember the lessons Coach Swanson wanted baseball to teach them.

And that's a pretty good legacy to leave behind.